People are sheep?

[NoCoolUserName]

My band was playing a small town in Saskatchewan (North Battleford, if you must know). We played almost an hour to a completely packed room and no one moved. Then one couple got up to dance. They danced the entire song and everyone else in the room watched them–it was rather tennis-match-like since, as they had the whole floor to themselves, they made use of the entire dance floor.

The next song, everyone got up to dance. Apparently the dance floor had been proven to not contain sharks, so it was now safe.

[Agonist]

@figure9

So anybody have a people are sheep story to share?

This thread is very entertaining, and goes into quite a nice discussion about sheeple.

[Carol_the_Impaler]

@Lightray

Back when I had to fly Southwest down to Houston a whole lot [snip]… Next I looked up, there were over a dozen people, neatly and patiently lined up behind me, waiting for a plane that wasn’t going to board for hours.

Heh. What I’ll never understand is all the people that stand there for so long for *any * Southwest flight. Yeah, if you’re in Group A, I can see it. Maybe. But why queue up immediately upon reaching the gate? To stand there and have your feet ache and your kids whine and your bag dig into your shoulder?

Even if you’re in Group B, you’re not going to get on any faster than the last of Group A, so why not wait til they call your group and then cut in front of all the schmoes in Group C?

No me, bub. Of course, I don’t care where the hell I sit on a Southwest flight, so I just sit all comfy in my chair and do my crossword until the very last of the line sheep are boarding. Then I get up and board, regardless of what group I’m in. Seems so stupid to stand for an hour (or more!) when you could be sitting. But sheeple have to join a line if a line exists to be joined.

[Dewey_Finn]

@Boggette

I, too, am one of the “leaders” that doesn’t understand the flock. Example: I remember leaving a church with mom one day. There was one door open to let everyone out. Everyone was filing through the single door. When we got to the set of doors, I pushed open the second one and the stream suddenly had a better flow out. Mom turned to me with a smile on her face and said, “I never would have thought to do that!”

I’ve seen this as well, and I never understood this sort of behavior in front of a set of double doors. I saw it a lot at college where there might be three sets of double doors at the front of the lecture hall but everyone is going single-file through the one open door. And even though the open door is on the left as you’re entering, those who want to get into the lecture hall wait for the door to be clear to use it, rather than open the door on their right.

It could make for an interesting study in psychology.

[USCDiver]

@WhyNot

A similar bane is those evil people who start clapping before the last notes of a song at a concert. Bastards. The song doesn’t end until there’s a moment or two of silence, dammit! But one person starts and then all the sheep start, and I can’t hear the last notes and it totally breaks the moment. Just slow down and experience the WHOLE artistic vision, mmm’kay?

Depending on the circumstances of the concert you’re attending, you shouldn’t begin clapping until the conductor has dropped his/her baton/hands.

This was always frustrating in my high school choir because we often did pieces with multiple movements with pauses of several seconds between each.

[Harmonious_Discord]

At a special church choir service somebody started to clap at the end of a piece. Next everybody was clapping. The choir director turned around and siad “This is a church service, not a recital.” “Clapping is inapropriate.” I thought at least they won’t ruin the ending anymore.

[Grrr]

Ah, cool! I get to share my favorite sheep story.

I remember one time I was heading to downtown Dallas (Deep Ellum) to go see Suzie and the Banshees (SP?) play at some club.

When I arrived there it was pouring down rain. To make matters worse, I really didn’t know where the hell I was going. I did manage to find the bar they were playing at but what I didn’t realize is that I had parked at the back side of the bar. So, I get out of my truck and start running as fast as I could (to fecklessly avoid getting rained on) to the door which was left wide open.

I get inside only to be stopped by a security guard who promptly told me I was going to have to go back outside (in the pouring rain) walk around the building, which was a good city block, and come in through the front door. All this merely so I could pay my entrance fee.

I pleaded with the security guard: “Please let me just walk through to the front to the “Door man” and I’ll gladly pay the cost of admittance. It’s raining out there FCOL!”

The heartless security guy really didn’t seem to care. He told me in no uncertain terms: “NOPE! Rules are rules! You’ll have to go back outside!”

It was at this point some guy who saw all of this go down then starts in on the security guy: “Oh come on man! Let him in dude! Can’t ya see he’s soaking wet?”

The security guy was adamant tho’ he still insisted I go back outside.

Then the same guy who was trying to help me out starts chanting: “LET HIM IN!! LET HIM IN!! LET HIM IN!!”

It wasn’t long before; one people, two people, five people until eventually a sea of about 35 or 40 people (I shit you not) all started to join in on the chant: “LET HIM IN!! LET HIM IN!! LET HIM IN!!”

Finally, the Guard begrudgingly capitulated and let me in.

The sea of chanters all started to applaud when he let me in. A lot of them giving me a pat on the back as I made my way to the bar for a shot of Crown Royal.

That was so cool. I felt like a Rock Star.

[Mangetout]

I was walking out of a large DIY store, but there was a people-blockage in the exit lobby - the inner automatic doors were open, but the outer set remained shut. They all just stood there, looking around. A member of staff eventually turned up, looked past me, then turned away, saying “I’ll just get someone”.

I thought it might at least be worth trying to slide the doors open by hand, so I made my way (gently and politely) to the front of the crowd - sure enough, the doors slid apart using only fingertip pressure, I walked through, but as I looked behind me, the rest of the crowd appeared uncertain whether to leave, despite the now-open doors.

[Kozmik]

@figure9

I was in a car at a stoplight when the light malfunctioned and showed red in every direction. After a couple of minutes it was obvious that the signal wasn’t working, but no-one would go anywhere.

That’s why sheep need traffic police.

[ralph124c]

Why do people stand around an accident scene and do nothing? is it because they fear being sued? Or take this example-I left work on evening, and notices a rapidly growing puddle of water on the floor (a water line in an adjacent room had burst). something like 45 people passed it-and did nothing! I immediately called security, and got an emergency repairman dispatched from maintainence. he located the leak and shut off the line in minutes. had I done nothing, perhaps $200,000 of electronic equipmemnt would have been destroyed. waht thanks did i get? Nada!

[JSexton]

@ralph124c

Why do people stand around an accident scene and do nothing? is it because they fear being sued? Or take this example-I left work on evening, and notices a rapidly growing puddle of water on the floor (a water line in an adjacent room had burst). something like 45 people passed it-and did nothing! I immediately called security, and got an emergency repairman dispatched from maintainence. he located the leak and shut off the line in minutes. had I done nothing, perhaps $200,000 of electronic equipmemnt would have been destroyed. waht thanks did i get? Nada!

No, I think everyone assumes somone else will act. I’d be willing to bet that in most cases, people will act quickly when they are the only ones around. But when there’s a crowd, the default is “No one else is moving, so maybe I shouldn’t. either. I’ll wait and see.”

[WhyNot]

@ralph124c

Why do people stand around an accident scene and do nothing? is it because they fear being sued? Or take this example-I left work on evening, and notices a rapidly growing puddle of water on the floor (a water line in an adjacent room had burst). something like 45 people passed it-and did nothing! I immediately called security, and got an emergency repairman dispatched from maintainence. he located the leak and shut off the line in minutes. had I done nothing, perhaps $200,000 of electronic equipmemnt would have been destroyed. waht thanks did i get? Nada!

Well, 'cause you did something, so they didn’t have to.

Look, I’m as annoyed by sheeple as anyone else, but have you ever tried working with a whole office full of leaders? It’s just as bad, if not worse. People spend so much time shouting to be heard over each other and wrestling for creative control and trying to convince each other to implement their ideas that no actual work gets done.

In reality, having 95% sheep and 5% shepherds (numbers made up), is what made our civilization possible. Try building a building or a bridge with 100 architects and no workmen.

[Dung_Beetle]

Moo!

[Potato_Pancakes]

@JSexton

No, I think everyone assumes someone else will act. I’d be willing to bet that in most cases, people will act quickly when they are the only ones around. But when there’s a crowd, the default is “No one else is moving, so maybe I shouldn’t. either. I’ll wait and see.”

This is the very central idea behind the sheep mentality. The notion to wait and see what others will do first. Why stick your neck out when someone else can do it for you? I think it often has more to do with ingrained human nature than it does with having a meek or timid disposition.

I’m certainly no Great Leader of Men, but there are lots of time now where I once would have acted like a sheep, but now I step right up.

I always think about the silly behavior when we have a potluck here at work, and people gather around staring at the food waiting for some authority to tell them to dig in. Now I’m alway first in line for food. What, am I going to wait for everyone to hold hands and pray? I’m hungry, and someone has to be first.

[ITR_champion]

Once I was a member of an internet message board and somebody started a thread entitled “People are sheep?” Then several dozen other people showed up, and every single one of them agreed with the proposition that most people exhibit lack of initiative and a deference to herd mentality. Not one single person was willing to propose that people are typically self-starters with quite a lot of initiative.

[Boyo_Jim]

I think sheep behavior happens because people actually turn off their parts of their brains in familiar surroundings or situations. They simply don’t recognize that something in this new and unique situation might have a better outcome if they respond differently than they have to similar occasions.

My own non sheep story:
I went outside for a smoke in a designated area, which was right next to ongoing construction for a building addition. There was a 55-gallon construction trash drum that someone had apparenly used as an ash tray, as it was emitting smoke pretty heavily. Above the drum was the flapping edge of a HUGE plastic sheet covering the construction from the weather. It extended 5 or 6 stories up, and maybe 300 feet along the building.

There were half a dozen smokers there. No one said a thing. No one moved an inch… I myself stared pretty stupidly at this for maybe a minute or so, until I actually saw a touch of flame over the lip of the can.

I touched the can and it wasn’t burning hot, so I pushed it away from the tarp. Then I went in and got a fire extinguisher and came back out, and put out the fire. If I would have seen a fire alarm I would have pulled it, but I found the extinguisher first.

The building was a hospital. It is possible I saved many lives that day. Or maybe not. Maybe big plastic tarps at construction sites might be required to be fire resistant. I dunno. I realized later that I violated policy – I should have pulled an alarm before I went back to put out the fire, but I was new on the job and I hadn’t been trained yet. I never did pull an alarm – I was afraid I would get in trouble for calling in the fire dept. to a fire that was already out. In retrospect, very stupid on my part. Still, I felt very superior to the sheep, and still do.

The whole thing from start to finish took maybe 5 minutes. I never saw anyone else do anything but puff.

[Least_Original_User_Name_Ever]

@Dung Beetle

Moo!

Moo?

Apt, with your location…and yeah, I realize that it was pointed out earlier this week.

Funny, “Moo” was my one word to describe the passing of Jerry Falwell…

[Contrapuntal]

@Hal Briston

Well, I had the over/under at four posts for this thread, so at least we’re getting better.

Over/Under? How many ways *are *there to screw a sheep? Anybody? Hal? Hal?

[Lightray]

@ITR champion

Once I was a member of an internet message board and somebody started a thread entitled “People are sheep?” Then several dozen other people showed up, and every single one of them agreed with the proposition that most people exhibit lack of initiative and a deference to herd mentality. Not one single person was willing to propose that people are typically self-starters with quite a lot of initiative.

Well, if all the rest of us in this thread are correct, there’s a chance that you may be the one leading all the Internet sheeple into new, uncharted territory as to Internet behavior. Following your innovative example, maybe now one lone poster in a thread will make a contrarian post designed to show how clever and original that poster is, compared to the remainder of the dreary and unoriginal posters in the thread. Sure, all those follow-on posters will just be ironically following the herd while posing as original and independent thinkers, but you will have been the first person ever to have done this. No sheep in the herd following established behaviors, you’re Mr. or Mrs. Originality!

Oh, wait…

[gotpasswords]

@Boyo Jim

I realized later that I violated policy – I should have pulled an alarm before I went back to put out the fire, but I was new on the job and I hadn’t been trained yet. I never did pull an alarm – I was afraid I would get in trouble for calling in the fire dept. to a fire that was already out. In retrospect, very stupid on my part. Still, I felt very superior to the sheep, and still do.

And if you pulled an alarm, what happens? People start running out of the building. And some percentage of them will be heading toward the fire that’s outside, near the exit, rather than staying inside and away from the fire.

Sometimes policies are sheep.