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[–]slushpilot 3 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 0 fun4 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

There's a lot of smart people who believe stupid things. I think part of it is just how humans cooperate as social animals. We have a tendency to go along with our community or tribe, and defend it against outside threats. Contradictory ideas can be threatening, so even if it means burying your head in the sand, you have to do it if you don't want to risk losing face with everyone you know.

When this instinct for getting along goes off the rails, it leads to mass delusions of the kind most often seen in cults. We are all susceptible to it—especially when we're at our most insecure, fearful, or paranoid.