The Courier Index

Who Does Your Thinking?

The average man would perhaps resent the suggestion that someone else does his thinking and dictates the matter of little consequence his opinion. But when we look into the matter a little, it becomes evident that in the more important relations of life very few have any marked independence of thought or belief.

Two of the outstanding phases of the average person's individuality are his religion and his politics. Does he do his own thinking about these? Hardly.

At least nine out of ten are Republicans, Democrats, Socialists, Methodists, Catholics or what not because their fathers or mothers were. The same is almost equally true with respect to their attitudes toward other questions about which there may be honest differences of opinion. If it is not a parent who exerts the dominating influence in these matters, it is usually some other person who is blindly followed through faith in his ability and judgment. That person in turn probably gets his ideas from someone else.

The fact that this is true should lead us to be more tolerant of the beliefs and opinions of others who do not agree with us. Had we been born under the same influences as they, we would have had the same views, as a rule.

Few persons, indeed, are independent enough in thought and action to break away from the influences heredity and environment.