Herd Animals, Law and the Individual

Having grown up in the American West, I found occaisions to work around
livestock. First is was Arabian horses and later, cattle. One thing was a
constant, herd mentality. Even my dog team exhibitted herd mentality.

So just what is herd mentality? It is a protective mechanism based upon
the premise that there is safety in large groups. For the group to exist,
each member must conform to the standards/rules of the group.

With the advent of government, many of these standards became codified
into law. Many of these standards exist for logical reasons that can
easily withstand critical scrutiny. Some just won't. Other laws are
grouped into the category of herd expectations. You are expected to ... .

Within the herd, the "law" is accepted as a protective construct. All
members are expected to obey and defend the law. None the less, the law is
NOT for protection. It is codified punishment. Its sole purpose is to
punish transgressors.

The herd demands compliance. It is just a logical offshoot of the "because
I said so" admonishments of harried mothers. Birth of an infant
constitutes automatic enrollment in the herd. Choice is NOT optional.
Rather than teach children why a law exists, we practice forced
compliance. The herd can brook no questioning of the law. The law is, was
and will always be.

The herd accepts anything handed down from on high as gospel. In the US,
the on high is government composed of elected representatives. These laws
are trotted out as consensus, compromises and neccessities for order. The
herd accepts them for one reason. Each herd elected its representative to
the central body. The representative is a member of the herd. This is why
encumbants enjoy re-election more often than not.

Yet within every herd, there appears some individual that questions the
logic, leadership and motivations of the herd. In almost every case, the
individual is isolated by the enforcers and under pain of seperation from
the herd told to "get with the program."

Some will ask, "Why are questions met with so much hostility?"

Here is a dose of bitter reality. The members of the herd aren't very
smart. They don't know why a particularly obscure law, rule or standard
exists. But there must be a good reason. Questions cause distress to the
members due to the evidence that they don't know why. You are one of us or
you are against us. Notice that there are no other possibilities?

This herd concept has been around forever. Ants, bees, coral, ... the list
goes on. It works. It is group-think. If you attack one of us, you have
attacked all of us. If we stampede, we all stampede.

However, there is a problem. The more rigid the rules, the lower the
adaptability of the herd is to changes in the environment. Humans abhor
change. Change is disruptive to the status quo. Change forces unskilled
minds to react in fear.

Individualism is the realm of the free-thinker. The herd forces them to
the outskirts and relegates them to obscurity. The individual must be
marginalized for the mental security of the membership.

The individual has choices: move on and become more isolated, remain on
the outskirts of the current herd or resign from the ranks of
individualism and seek full membership. There is one other choice;
self-elimination.

Returning to the fact that this herd issue has always been, leads us to
the evolution of the concept. First came family with an authoritarian
leader. Next came the tribe with an elected leader. As the tribe enlarged,
the need arose for more authoritarianism. Education brought us cooperation
and the democratic ideal. Democracy is herd mentality. Orderliness
demanded some authoritarianism, but it must sound logical. Enter the
philosophers.

Philosophy provides good sounding arguments for why such must be. It
discounts the individual and demands coordinated efforts by the masses. To
be governable, the masses must beleive their herd is sovereign even when
it ain't. The easist method for accomplishing this is by repackaging and
relabeling it as Communitarianism. The top designs the framework,
methodology and common interests. The herds think they are contributing
when all they are doing is complying with a predetermined outcome. The
herd was conned into thinking they decided.

It is just another episode of Borg attacks. You will be assimilated,
resistance is futile.

The why is simple: fear and profitability.