Ok, thanks for taking the time, I enjoyed chatting with you.

Oops, sorry, never seen it.

This is seriously fascinating to me. I kept this bit to myself because I didn't want it to affect people's answers, but the thread is old enough now... my question and its answer arose from my religious beliefs, and here you are arriving at the same answer scientifically, that we are all followers by nature.

It eventually occurred to me after hearing the word "sheep" thrown around enough times that I've never met a person so original that they follow nothing and no one. Being told, for example, that I'm incapable of rational, intelligent, independent thought (because of my religious beliefs) by people who believe themselves to be superior critical thinkers... when the very idea of "critical thinking" was originally born from the mind of Socrates... another mere man, as fallible as any other, who himself believed he was guided by an inner voice that he alone could hear. So we religious folk are commonly ridiculed for aspiring to follow God by people who follow a mere man that, by today's definitions, would be diagnosed a schizophrenic. I do love irony, seriously, I really do.

To be clear, I've been debating religion with people for a very, very long time, so none of this upsets me in the least... I just find it all extremely fascinating.

Anyhow, the conclusion I eventually reached is that there's very real danger in denying our own nature as followers, because that's when we open ourselves fully to the risk of blindly following anyone and anything.

Not a clue what that means. Are you just compressing some chit?

I get it. It's just the kind of meaningless babble I'd expect in a social setting, like at a bar or party.

Thanks for taking the time, I appreciate it. The news isn't the best source of information anymore.

I saw an article earlier that said Americans are planning on traveling to Europe more. So a sensitive question for you, if it's ok: What places in the world do you feel you could travel to right now where you feel you'd be welcomed as an American? Sincerely asking.

I'd say it's because we're ridiculously spoiled (Canadian here).

I wouldn't be daring known liars to do anything... you have to be wise when dealing with people like that.

I think we need a new word to describe this insane behavior.

I've known people like this, who just take whatever they want as if they're entitled to it, but never a country. Weird, gives me the same feeling as if it was a person doing it... like, get the hell outta here and go earn your own stuff.

Racists are never the sharpest tools in the shed. Most racist man I ever knew was never wronged by anyone except people of his own race, go figure.