Discussion- Conformity

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Ever heard of that phrase don't conform to non-conformity? As paradoxical as it sounds, it seems I have found people who fit that sample. Someone who rebels not for a cause, but for the very sake of rebeling seems impractical if not foolish.

Granted there are times when one should break from the norm but it's not like we have to act or dress differently if we don't like to. For me, conformity is something practical that everyone follows. Let's say traffic laws; speed limits are set for road conditions, if you choose not to follow that your safety is compromised, right? In that sense there is a purpose to follow those rules for the safety of others.

However, taste in music, fashion and other things are subjective. You can dress like everyone else just like how you can choose to dress your own way. However, it is more acceptable to dress neatly and presentable for special occassions and at the workplace(though that isn't the same in all cases) for making a good impression. So when one chooses not to conform to the tie and white-collar it may put a job and work performance at risk. Conformity exists for a reason~

Rebellion is good though to bring a flaw in the system to light and bring about a solution. Some people act like it's a cool thing to do but only in a superficial trendy way. Rebellion brought about things like voting rights for females and working compensation for those injured on the job. Unions, strikes and peaceful protesting helps impact and change things on a small or large scale. It seems to be that both conformity and rebellion are more of checks and balances in the system; conform to what works and nonconform to what doesn't. Seems simple, yes?

Maybe this belongs elsewhere like in the teen section or something x:

do you want it moved?

Possibly. Not sure where it would go but I was curious about discussion x:

How about the Philosophy section?

i know this topic says discussion but it reminds me of this album.

dissection, get it please!




check out the song, soulreaper!

Okay...pants...shirt...they fit...people don't bother me over them...I can live with it. Some ramen noodles would be nice. Big, green salad instead, does the body good. Conformity? Too much effort, too little return. Revolt? Same. If the last generation had done anything right, I'd have gills and an exoskeleton, and I wouldn't have to worry about kicking the bucket for another four million years. The difference between a revolutionary and a stupid prat is that the revolutionary actually has a point. Otherwise, they're about the same.

Yes, that's very true. I used to be a rebel without a cause, until I actually found valid causes. My vision for a better future was what made me realize that such aimless rebels would be a distraction for absolutely no reason at all. There'll definitely be people who'll always want to stir things up for the sake of it, and they need to be discouraged at all costs. Such philosophies have to be dispelled before we get within reach of a stable future, otherwise we'll have counter-authority movements even if we managed to create a utopia or something like it.

Not quite. I used to badger NTs for conforming for a long time until I finally got a chance to be accepted into their circles. In that case, conforming gets you a bucketload of benefits for little or no effort. The little effort here is intellectual effort. All you have to do is do what everyone else is doing so brainlessly, and just put your own intelligent spin on it. You get everything you want to get that they have to offer. So while the return seems little to you, it means everything to someone else. I value both intellectual pursuits and superficial gains, just because I can, but everything I do in moderation. When the balance changes, and I feel I'm beginning to put in too much effort I find ways of getting what I want with less effort or I abandon the pursuit altogether.



And it's interesting you make that statement. Would you happen to be a transhumanist?

I don't have any loyalty to the philosophy, but I do consider it somewhat inevitable. Numenta just came up with a system that could potentially lead to an artificial neocortex, so I imagine it's just a matter of time before we start patching ourselves back together with artificial parts as the natural ones break down.

Interesting.. few people are keeping track of such things. I myself am interested in entering the field of AI in the future, but from a cognitive science approach.

- and sorry for hijacking the thread, MarieElana

In 1980 I was 17, and saw this graffiti in a public restroom in Paris:
"Punk is rumpled preppie"
Perhaps some of you later generations won't get the cultural reference, but this one sentence speaks to conformity in the simplest way.

Well, if we were to start replacing damaged parts of the brain with digital analogues, there'd be a whole, new field for rehabilitating them. After all, there's no way we'll have anything like a proper neocortex for a long time, yet, and any "prosthetic" put into use is going to be clumsy, strange, and limited for a long time.

Non-conformity is disguised conformity. No one can be truely non-conformist.

I'm not sure of that. I don't feel that I conform to any groups whatsoever. Most "non-conformists" are somewhat social in nature; but I just feel like I do whatever the heck I do, with little regard for any effect it has on others.

Today is a good example. I was lying down in the hallway outside my office (I share it with a couple of other students, so I can't lie down in it). Not to make any point, just being considerate, whilst being within site for anyone who might come to my office hours. Well, I could tell that I was disturbing others in my department (both by the looks and the comments relating to vagrants that they made) - so I moved outside, where I'd still be able to intercept any of my students. There was no specific attempt to be non-conformist - it's just that my solution (as often) was an unacceptable one to polite society.

Though, there is a question whether anyone polite would have made their feelings known, given the circumstances.

Which, ironically, I find a little rude in itself. What, are people afraid to actually speak their mind about things? It should be considered a disorder, for crying out loud! I'd have given you New York CPR right then: "Get up, or you're gonna die!" I'd have been joking, of course. Three people would stare, and I would give them a grin that either conveys good humor or makes them stare at something else (I never asked which).

I don't think that it's a matter of being afraid to say anything, so much as being somewhat civil about the matter. Your reaction would probably be even more likely to get you removed from the department than my quirks will.