They're weeping today!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/

THE NEW BLUE AMERICA:

(from the NY Time.)

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/11/06/the-new-electorate-whats_n_1417...

__________________
Freedom is an inside job

[ and beyond! ]

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/P/PALIN_WHATS_NEXT?SITE=INEVA&SECTI...

" 'Conservatives are still looking for Mr. Right. And maybe Mr. Right turns out to be Ms. Right,' said Bill Whalen, a fellow at the conservative Hoover Institution. "

.....

"When she returned to Alaska on Wednesday night after losing the election, she was greeted at the Anchorage airport by chants of "2012! 2012!" Asked by reporters if she might run for president, Palin said, 'We'll see what happens then.' "

[ I'll try to keep this brief as possible. ]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Groupthink

" Groupthink is a type of thought exhibited by group members who try to minimize conflict and reach consensus without critically testing, analyzing, and evaluating ideas. Individual creativity, uniqueness, and independent thinking are lost in the pursuit of group cohesiveness, as are the advantages of reasonable balance in choice and thought that might normally be obtained by making decisions as a group. During groupthink, members of the group avoid promoting viewpoints outside the comfort zone of consensus thinking. A variety of motives for this may exist such as a desire to avoid being seen as foolish, or a desire to avoid embarrassing or angering other members of the group. Groupthink may cause groups to make hasty, irrational decisions, where individual doubts are set aside, for fear of upsetting the group’s balance. The term is frequently used pejoratively, with hindsight. "

.....

Causes of Groupthink
"Highly cohesive groups are much more likely to engage in groupthink. The closer they are, the less likely they are to raise questions that might break the cohesion. Although Janis sees group cohesion as the most important antecedent to groupthink, he states that it will not invariably lead to groupthink: 'It is a necessary condition, but not a sufficient condition' (Janis, Victims of Groupthink, 1972). According to Janis, group cohesion will only lead to groupthink if one of the following two antecedent conditions is present:

Structural faults in the organization: insulation of the group, lack of tradition of impartial leadership, lack of norms requiring methodological procedures, homogeneity of members' social background and ideology.
Provocative situational context: high stress from external threats, recent failures, excessive difficulties on the decision-making task, moral dilemmas.
Social psychologist Clark McCauley's three conditions under which groupthink occurs:

* Directive leadership.
* Homogeneity of members' social background and ideology.
* Isolation of the group from outside sources of information and analysis. "

Symptoms of Groupthink
" In order to make groupthink testable, Irving Janis devised eight symptoms that are indicative of groupthink (1977).

** Illusions of invulnerability creating excessive optimism and encouraging risk taking.
** Rationalising warnings that might challenge the group's assumptions.
** Unquestioned belief in the morality of the group, causing members to ignore the consequences of their actions.
** Stereotyping those who are opposed to the group as weak, evil, disfigured, impotent, or stupid.
** Direct pressure to conform placed on any member who questions the group, couched in terms of "disloyalty".
** Self censorship of ideas that deviate from the apparent group consensus.
** Illusions of unanimity among group members, silence is viewed as agreement.
** Mindguards — self-appointed members who shield the group from dissenting information. "

.....

" Cults are also studied by sociologists with regards to groupthink and its effect on deindividuation. The textbook definition states deindividuation as the loss of self-awareness and evaluation apprehension; occurs in group situations that foster anonymity and draw attention away from the individual (Myers, 305) "

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deindividuation

[ Choose your destiny, folks! ]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hindsight
[ -- or -- ]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foresight
[ click on this when you get to the URL! ]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foresight_(futures_studies)

[ And with all that said ... :P ]

Racks and Water Cures,
Joe "Join My Cult" Average

++++++++++++++++++

" If you ain't a millionaire, then you're lazy. "