# People really are sheep **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 8, 2005, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-really-are-sheep/311614 "2005-07-08T17:34:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Hung\_Mung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a88e4f/32.png) [@Hung\_Mung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hung_Mung)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2005, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-really-are-sheep/311614/41 "2005-07-10T17:34:22Z")
> [@adam yax](#): > > This is the simple answer for the door problem. People are too damn lazy to push or pull a door for themselves. My girlfriend’s step-mother is like this. I don’t know what she does when she goes out by herself, but if she is out with another person she will stand and wait for you to open doors for her. Being raised in the south I don’t mind at all to open or hold a door for someone. I open doors for my mom, GF, whatever. However, they don’t stand and wait for me to open doors for them like a VIP. Ugh. Fat, lazy blintz. ---
**Author:** ![thirdwarning](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecccb3/32.png) [@thirdwarning](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thirdwarning)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2005, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-really-are-sheep/311614/42 "2005-07-10T19:26:41Z")
> [@Hung Mung](#): > > My girlfriend’s step-mother is like this. I don’t know what she does when she goes out by herself, but if she is out with another person she will stand and wait for you to open doors for her. > Being raised in the south I don’t mind at all to open or hold a door for someone. I open doors for my mom, GF, whatever. However, they don’t stand and wait for me to open doors for them like a VIP. > Ugh. Fat, lazy blintz. Is it when she’s out with anyone, or just with you or another man? I was taught to wait, or hang back a little for the gentleman in the group to open the door. Of course, that was back in the day when the gentleman in the group made sure to position himself to be able to open the door so I didn’t have to hang back to wait for him. I don’t do it anymore because my husband never learned the other half of the “dance”, but maybe the lady waits because you haven’t learned that part, either. If you’ve dealt with older ladies, especially in the south, I’d bet you’ve seen this before, just maybe not as obviously. ---
**Author:** ![VegemiteMoose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/df788c/32.png) [@VegemiteMoose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VegemiteMoose)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2005, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-really-are-sheep/311614/43 "2005-07-10T21:08:18Z")
The non-spontaneous standing ovation! Arrrgggghhhh!! At any live performance where you enjoyed the show sitting down and at the end everyone is clapping -all good. Then ONE person stands up, only one person; not a group, not several people peppered throughout the audience; ONE person. I want to leap from my seat and tackle them before the next three sheeples stand up (and then they told two friends, and so on). I really have to stifle the urge to scream “Sit the Hell down jackass, they weren’t that good and if we devalue the meaning of a standing ovation by giving them out to everyone who clambers up on a stage no matter their skill level then we have rendered the ovation meaningless.” \*pant, pant, wipes spittle off of monitor. Okay, maybe I’d just think part of that and yell out the “Sit down jackass” part. ---
**Author:** ![legalsnugs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/45deac/32.png) [@legalsnugs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/legalsnugs)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2005, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-really-are-sheep/311614/44 "2005-07-10T21:58:36Z")
I see this phenomenom in elevator usage. There are five elevators in the lobby of my office building. It’s not a hugely crowded place - this is not NYC. But every morning a dozen or so people mill about waiting for an elevator. One opens, and everyone piles in. I don’t get in with the sheep because I know it’s going to stop at every blessed floor til it gets to mine and because there’s going to be another one in just a minute. So I get on the next elevator - usually alone! And I get to my floor about the timebefore the other elevator, still full of people, does. I’ve lost nothing and didn’t have to be wedged into an elevator with sheep. Another example is when the elevator arrives down at the lobby. Those damn sheep are there waiting to get in. But in trying to get in the elevator, the sheep are blocking the way of the people who want to get out! Can they not stand back a foot or two, or wait a just a minute, before trying to enter an already-full elevator??? Where do they think they’re going to go? Sheep! ---
**Author:** ![newcrasher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b3f665/32.png) [@newcrasher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/newcrasher)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2005, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-really-are-sheep/311614/45 "2005-07-10T23:28:37Z")
My favorite example of people being sheeple is when people read a thread about how _others_ are blind followers. They imagine that they themselves are much more independant minded. They then give an example of how they have seen people be blind followers. Just like the previous people in the thread… :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Shirley\_Ujest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2005, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-really-are-sheep/311614/46 "2005-07-10T23:37:47Z")
How about the sheep in the 5-7 people & cart deep line at the local market, when there are several lanes with lesser numbers or no one at all in them. ---
**Author:** ![Only\_Mostly\_Dead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/f19dbf/32.png) [@Only\_Mostly\_Dead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Only_Mostly_Dead)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2005, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-really-are-sheep/311614/47 "2005-07-10T23:52:02Z")
> [@VegemiteMoose](#): > > The non-spontaneous standing ovation! Arrrgggghhhh!! At any live performance where you enjoyed the show sitting down and at the end everyone is clapping -all good. Then ONE person stands up, only one person; not a group, not several people peppered throughout the audience; ONE person. > > I want to leap from my seat and tackle them before the next three sheeples stand up (and then they told two friends, and so on). I really have to stifle the urge to scream “Sit the Hell down jackass, they weren’t that good and if we devalue the meaning of a standing ovation by giving them out to everyone who clambers up on a stage no matter their skill level then we have rendered the ovation meaningless.” > > \*pant, pant, wipes spittle off of monitor. > > Okay, maybe I’d just think part of that and yell out the “Sit down jackass” part. Whenever I go to a show (sadly, a rare occurance), I always make a solemn oath, typically to the hearing of people within a five-seat radius of me, that I will not stand at the end of the show for anything less than a spectacular performances (and since I only ever see touring casts, rarely are they anything near spectacular), since it devalues the point of the standing ovation. Inevitably, after two or three minutes of sitting down and staring at the ass of the person in front of me during curtain call, I cave and stand up. If I want to see the performers bow, which I do because they really seem to enjoy the audience’s ovation and the end of a show (especially in touring casts), I only have one choice. Baaaa. But I’ll always chant for an encore at a concert! ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2005, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-really-are-sheep/311614/48 "2005-07-10T23:53:21Z")
Thats pretty normal. Read the book ‘obedience to authority’. Most people will torture someone into unconsciousness when told to do so. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2005, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-really-are-sheep/311614/49 "2005-07-10T23:58:51Z")
[http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/006131983X/ref=pd\_sxp\_f/002-1129141-9353615?v=glance&s=books](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/006131983X/ref=pd_sxp_f/002-1129141-9353615?v=glance&s=books) [http://www.new-life.net/milgram.htm](http://www.new-life.net/milgram.htm) Conformity is built into our minds since we are social animals, I guess it keeps us in line and with a common value system. An example of what happens when there is no conformity is Israel/palestine or the McVeigh bombings, you have two groups with wildly different values in the same space and this leads to anger and violence over feeling that one group is grossly unjust and you aren’t. I’d bet most emotional pain and suicidal ideation comes from failing to conform to social guidelines in some way or another. Thats my guess though. ---
**Author:** ![ZebraShaSha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/eada6e/32.png) [@ZebraShaSha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZebraShaSha)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2005, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-really-are-sheep/311614/50 "2005-07-11T00:07:06Z")
> [@newcrasher](#): > > My favorite example of people being sheeple is when people read a thread about how _others_ are blind followers. They imagine that they themselves are much more independant minded. They then give an example of how they have seen people be blind followers. > > Just like the previous people in the thread… > > :rolleyes: I didn’t want to justify this by responding, but after much debate I feel like it is necessary. Are you honestly suggesting that everytime a thread is opened, the herding effect is in place if everyone stays on topic? Or are you saying the herding effect is not a recognized and well known phenomenon? In the case of the former, the message board system would cease to exist if everything was a hijak. In the case of the latter, that isn’t even grounded in experience. ---
**Author:** ![VegemiteMoose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/df788c/32.png) [@VegemiteMoose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VegemiteMoose)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2005, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-really-are-sheep/311614/51 "2005-07-11T00:49:23Z")
> [@](#): > > Originally posted by **ZebraShaSha** > I didn’t want to justify this by responding, but after much debate I feel like it is necessary. Are you honestly suggesting that everytime a thread is opened, the herding effect is in place if everyone stays on topic? Or are you saying the herding effect is not a recognized and well known phenomenon? In the case of the former, the message board system would cease to exist if everything was a hijak. In the case of the latter, that isn’t even grounded in experience. I was a little taken aback by what was posted by **newcrasher** until I replaced the :rolleyes: smiley with the 😃 smiley. Perhaps just an attempt at humour gone awry? I had thought of posting: \*gets in line to share people are sheep story which I thought would be funny in a self-deprecating sort of way. If they were serious, I would suggest thinking about the qualifier to “followers” and see if it really applies in this case. ---
**Author:** ![legalsnugs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/45deac/32.png) [@legalsnugs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/legalsnugs)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2005, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-really-are-sheep/311614/52 "2005-07-11T00:53:13Z")
Well, it’s just a good thing for humanity that we have independent-minded, solid leaders like \*\*Newcrasher \*\* in our midst. He/she would never post an answer to a thread with an example of his/her own . . . um, never mind. Baa. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Audrey\_Levins](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/73ab20/32.png) [@Audrey\_Levins](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Audrey_Levins)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2005, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-really-are-sheep/311614/53 "2005-07-11T01:05:48Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Addressing the OP: If the mitt on my fajitas started smoldering, as opposed to open flame, I would wave it around in the aisle too. You said the wait-staff was sparse…I would toss the mitt out into the middle of the aisle and see how long it took for someone to notice it. Then I’d report the place to the Fire Marshall. > > As long as there was no immediate danger to me, I would make life as tough as possible on the server and the restaurant for such lax attention. Geez. Let’s not get dramatic or anything. The Fire Marshall? Over a smouldering oven mitt? And you’re gonna take down the server and the restaurant too while you’re at it? Maybe it’s just me, but life seems awfully short to waste it on this kind of drama. ---
**Author:** ![Wolfian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/7ea924/32.png) [@Wolfian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wolfian)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2005, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-really-are-sheep/311614/54 "2005-07-11T01:33:40Z")
> [@The sheep article](#): > > In the end, 450 dead animals lay on top of one another in a billowy white pile, the Aksam newspaper said. Those who jumped later were saved as the pile got higher and the fall more cushioned, Aksam reported. I am sooo close to sigging this, but a) I love my current sig and b) I don’t want rabid animal rights’ activists jumping down my throat. Especially since more would just follow. 😃 Anyone else thinking about that episode of Arrested Development where the Bluth company workers start blindly following things and eventually get herded into a sheep farmer’s truck? ---
**Author:** ![Bigang120](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/db5fbb/32.png) [@Bigang120](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bigang120)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2005, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-really-are-sheep/311614/55 "2005-07-11T01:52:49Z")
At my work you go into the men’s restroom and there will be 5 or 6 guys waiting for the two urinals, and they get a funny look when you open the door to a stall and take a leak in there. You would think I had used the sink. ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Tiger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6de8d8/32.png) [@Mama\_Tiger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Tiger)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2005, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-really-are-sheep/311614/56 "2005-07-11T05:01:18Z")
> [@](#): > > How about the sheep in the 5-7 people & cart deep line at the local market, when there are several lanes with lesser numbers or no one at all in them. I often end up getting in that longer line deliberately – because the way my life works, if I get in a shorter line, it _invariably_ grinds to a complete halt – a price check, someone waiting to even start writing a check until their purchase is completely rung up, etc. So I usually give in to the inevitable and just stand in the longer line since I know I’m going to be waiting that long anyway. I was on an airplane once where we gave a round of applause upon landing – but that was because it was the single smoothest landing I have ever experienced. I swear the wheels kissed the ground and there was no bump whatsoever. The pilot earned that applause! ---
**Author:** ![newcrasher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b3f665/32.png) [@newcrasher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/newcrasher)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2005, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-really-are-sheep/311614/57 "2005-07-11T13:16:36Z")
> [@VegemiteMoose](#): > > I was a little taken aback by what was posted by **newcrasher** until I replaced the :rolleyes: smiley with the 😃 smiley. Perhaps just an attempt at humour gone awry? > > I had thought of posting: > > \*gets in line to share people are sheep story > > which I thought would be funny in a self-deprecating sort of way. If they were serious, I would suggest thinking about the qualifier to “followers” and see if it really applies in this case. Yeah it was a lot funnier in my head than when I typed it out. I forget how sensitive people are here. My bad. But the irony of people lining up to tell their own stories about sheep is great. ---
**Author:** ![legalsnugs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/45deac/32.png) [@legalsnugs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/legalsnugs)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2005, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-really-are-sheep/311614/58 "2005-07-12T12:45:03Z")
It’s the “mindless following” aspect of the OP subject – the “following without thinking” about what they are doing. Posting our own experiences with sheepdom is not necessarily being a sheep. Posters recognize the subject matter and contribute their own stories. The SD is here to fight ignorance, so if someone reading sees a sheep-like conduct that they themselves have been guilty of, they will recognize it at the time and stop the mindless conduct – or at least bleat while they do it – thus the sheep . . . I mean “posters” on this particular thread have done and been done a service. Again I say, baa. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2005, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-really-are-sheep/311614/59 "2005-07-12T17:21:02Z")
But you seem to have forgotten the comfort in conformity, **newcrasher**. My own sheep story - people will not use a garbage can unless there it’s “started.” You can put a sign on it, line it with a garbage bag, but unless you start it with a piece of garbage, people will continue to use the other garbages until they’re overflowing without using the new one. “Is that a garbage can?” “I dunno - it looks like one, but there’s no garbage in it.” “Better safe than sorry.” Also, people will put their hands out to take anything you offer. Including used chewing gum. Experiment with this on your own, kids! ---
**Author:** ![ladyfoxfyre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ad7895/32.png) [@ladyfoxfyre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ladyfoxfyre)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2005, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-really-are-sheep/311614/60 "2005-07-12T18:10:24Z")
[QUOTE=ronincyberpunk] I mean, I know tourists are people too. But a theme park is not going to hold your hand and stuff.QUOTE] Wait, they are? And, it won’t? Since when? I’m from St. Petersburg, and I can tell you that we have many tourists here ourselves. In fact, what with the recent shark attacks (3 this year I believe), I almost want to start a running tally of Sharks vs. Tourists. -foxy [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-really-are-sheep/311614.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-really-are-sheep/311614.md?page=4)