This article by Thomas Sowell was originally published in the Gaston Gazette. It describes how a woman took a petition to the state fair and asked people to sign it in support of banning dihydroxymonoxide which she said is found in our streams and ponds. She gained many signatures in favor of baning this chemical dihydroxymonoxide. It turns out that this is just a fancy chemical name for water. The article goes on to say that people today are trained to act upon the first seemingly good cause they find and not to examine the other side of the argument or situation.
This relates back to chapter 12 of the book and the section on social psychology and conformity. People are born with the desire to be like others and are easily influenced by the actions of others. In conformity people change their behavior to mimic the behavior of those around them. This article shows this concept very well. When people saw this cause for which they could join up with and they saw that many other people were doing it they jumped at the chance to be a part of it.
I remember seeing something on this in the paper or internet. Some people just want to fit it and be like others and go with the flow. Someone should have questioned what it was they were actually signing and not just sign for the sake of signing it because others were. Scary to think that people just "go with the flow," Be your own person and don't follow a crowd because everyone else is. Question is--what would you do? Would you sign a petition to go along with the rest, or would you ask questions first? Great article about conformity.
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