#73 - Heard Immunity

A sure-fire way to generate self-validation these days is to make the claim that you’ve been insulted. Which is easiest to accomplish when you are part a group.

You see, we attach our identities to affiliations and that affiliation provides a sense of security because when others share your point of view, your opinions become validated. And if someone discriminates against you, they are discriminating against the entire affiliation. They call this safety in numbers.

And what’s not to love about the convenience? Because lord knows, critical thinking can be an added nuisance to the busy schedule, and between the nine to five, the grocery getting, and Netflix to keep up with, who has got time for that? It’s much simpler to join a community of like-minded folks and suddenly you are no longer rogue, but now actually have a voice that is popular and applauded!

It takes a herd to be heard.

I will use religion as an example for this logic.

The facts are simple, everything is made up of energy. I assume this energy comes from a divine source. I believe I can prove what that divine source is by simply naming it, and because I have affiliated with a group of people who share that conviction, my claim is justified. And whether the assertion is reasonable, possible, or plausible, is irrelevant. There only needs to be other people who submit. I mean, there may very well be a grey bearded man ruling from a throne atop the clouds, but that doesn’t matter. What matters is that there are enough of us who reinforce the belief in it. And if there are, it does not increase the chances of it being real, but my confidence that it is. And with confidence, I can be more convincing. And I can be convincing to not only others, but myself.

So, if you insult my creed, it only strengthens my claim. And makes you look like a conspiracy theorist.

And if you smoke weed, I hope you burn in hell.