(From this very short blog post)
Sounds just like good ol' human society huh?
With all the talk of 'no man's an island', we highly call forward for a structured society in our everyday life. Everywhere we go, there's that hierarchy to follow - the leader, the followers, the ones in between... and then there's the outlier, the outcast, the ones who doesn't take sides. The lone wolf.
There is a certainly a tradeoff here. In the first place, the way our society is structured would mean that these lone wolfs would certainly not last much long on their own - or even if they could, there is just that sense of under achievement, or maybe something of being marginalized.
But for some, this might not be a bad thing at all. Because when in a group, when we are subjected to collectivism instead of individualism, individuals can be swayed to to things which are, to put it bluntly, stupid. There's the whole thing about picking sides and being blind followers. The sheep mentality. The way we have to kowtow to some of those brainless leaders. The way we have to compromise, but at the same time it's only from our side. Maybe it has come to us doing whatever the hell as we please.
Me? I'm a lone wolf, but I come and go with people as I wish. Because in the greater scheme of things, we need each other to move on in our lives.
At the same time, we should remember how we're actually alone most of the time, and how we should start to get comfortable with the idea of being on our own.
To be alone, yet not alone, eh?