Q&A #5: The Barbed Wire Faces Inward

[chaoticidealism]

Q: What do you think about groups that separate themselves from the mainstream? Examples... intentional communities, religious groups like the Amish, or all girl schools. Do you think there is advantage to creating islands of people separate from the rest of society or do they greatly lose out because of missing out on diversity? Obviously, people

Comments

[answermam]

I'm so glad you had the strength to leave. What a horrible experience!

[ehrenyu]

I'm glad you were able to escape that school. Sounds absolutely dreadful.

[bigmark243]

I am glad you were able to leave that circumstance. I do wonder why your parents did not come and get you from such a place of seclusion. Maybe they hoped it was a good place for you at the right price and felt it was best to leave well enough alone...

[anonymous]

"The dangers of separation, though, are very real. If you separate with a group and stay only to yourselves, then in a very short time all the ideas are old and being recycled constantly like stale air in a closed room. New things are rejected because they go against the group's identity; and sooner or later, people start to suffocate."

Colorful metaphor. The reality though is often not stagnation but worse. In groups, shared beliefs often become galvanized rather than stagnated. A group of moderately racist people will eventually usually become more and more racist as the sentiment creates what is essentially a feedback loop. Fortunately, this can work for good as well. Virtuous feedback loops are the foundation of the culture of many organizations such as charities.

[fishlivejournal]

That was a disturbing read - thanks for sharing.

Withdrawing fom society for a short period can often be very helpful - partly because society as a whole can get a bit cultish, with the same ideas being recycled, so it's good to let other ideas grow unchecked for a little bit - but we always need to return to society to avoid going off the deep end.

Congrats on getting out! (grins) It amuses me that these cults don't realise how dangerous letting people read the Bible is :) Fortunate for us.