Re: herd mentality
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conforming is easier and gives me a greater chance of happiness. I just look around, decide what I want, and in most cases it turns out that the easiest and most likely way to get what want is to conform, so I will. I realize it but dont care because its just a means to an end. If there was a better means id use that one.
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This is the right attitude IMO. To be aware of the social norms, follow them when you like, but also be able to do something else when you want to.
A lot of people don't want to be different from the flock for fear of rejection/humiliation/etc. They couldn't do the non-conformist thing even if they knew it was the better option. So IMO it's best to be aware of the rules, but also be free to break them.
This summer I was on vacation in Greece with some friends, and one guy insisted that we could do nothing that all the tourists did. He believed it was inherently wrong to do anything that the 'masses' did. So retarded.
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