Why Do We Pick Sides?

Step Right Up!

And Pick A Side!

Any Side!!




Out of these random people, some will have clashing views, opinions, religions, ideologies. Each holding on tightly to their personal realities.

Some may resort to violence or other means of attack to display their disgust at someone's views on whatever subject may be involved. Too many people have died over the years because of this part of being a social organism. Human Beings seem to really enjoy joining a side. Perhaps a safety mechanism passed down from ancient times through our DNA.

For me, I have grown tired of sides. I do not want to be affiliated with any organization, religion, ideology, opinion. This is not a rant, I have just always wondered why there are "sides" to so many ideas and why the heck do I have to pick one?? With religions, each one is dead set they are right and all others are wrong. Same goes for politics, social norms, ect. Johnny is right and Jimmy is wrong. Tweedle dee and Tweedle dumb.

Why do we feel the need to Pick A Side??

I think with the advent of the internet we have been able to start to break free somewhat of this strange game we love to play. I for one have to thank ATS quite a bit for "waking" me up more than I thought I was a little less than a year ago when I joined.

I personally think much of it is where, who and how we are raised. Events that occurred in each person's life, creating what view point they are at now at this moment in time. But is there more to it?

Also, do you think animals/insects/sea life, ect. have decisive sides? Besides feed or be fed on, of course lol.

I enjoy not being on a side.



p.s. after typing this, I have sides of beef and sides of fries in my head every time I read the word "sides" lol.

reply to post by mcx1942


Great post!

I feel that this is not a DNA thing, but rather a cultural thing. In many countries worldwide, it has become the norm to disconnect from other humans by any means necessary.

It's sad how we've gone from unity to absolute disharmony over the course of our existence.

The lucifer experiment: often attempted, never turned out well.

I think it is encoded, and my feeling is that it has something to do with binary sequences (ones and zeros).

The clever PTB have used this inclination to pick sides against us for a long time. I believe it can be successfully argued that even complex decisions can be broken down as a series of consecutive choices between 2 options.

Personally, I must confess that I've used this piece of human nature to craft successful sales presentations for years. Provide a client with a choice A and a choice B. Don't really care which they pick, because they are both sales.

Even if the client ultimately doesn't buy for some reason, they almost always pick one option or the other as their favorite. Rarely do they step back and say, "I don't like either choice. What's option C?" In fact, if I introduce 3 options initially, I am inviting indecisiveness. People really struggle to pick from more than 2 options. Better to pit A vs. B, then pit the winner against C.

Edit to add:

When marketers give three options, there is design there as well. The first option usually appears cheap and unattractive. The final option is almost always out of the price range of 95%. The design is the appearance of 3 choices, when all you really get is one. Or maybe 2, if you look at it a certain way. You are choosing between reasonable or unreasonable. No sane marketer will ever give you 3 really great options from which to pick. You will have to go home and sleep on it.

reply to post by scolai


Thank you.

I wonder if having to chose a side has led to this disharmony. It is hard to imagine a utopian type culture spawning from our current paradigm.

reply to post by notquitesure


Extremely intriguing! Thank you for your personal story. That is a great example of the broad topic this is trying to cover. There are so many little facets this.

mcx1942
Why do we feel the need to Pick A Side??

I tend to find people avoid picking sides as much as humanly possible. Maybe that's just my experience.

I think with the advent of the internet we have been able to start to break free somewhat of this strange game we love to play.

I think the internet has only made it easier to hang out with people who agree with you. In some ways that's not all bad, but only a small percentage of humanity is doing the real debating I think?

Also, do you think animals/insects/sea life, ect. have decisive sides?

They certainly do!

Packs and nests and all kinds of things. Meercats, apes and other mammals exile unwanted characters from their groups etc ... I guess they just don't have Obamacare to argue about.

reply to post by mcx1942


Sometimes I found that it is One of the Sides will Approach and 'Forcefully' pick the person if the person choose none.
Some sides will send a beautiful person to tempt the neutral person.
Some sides will send a group of their members to drag the neutral person.
Some sides will send a 'hypnotist' to the neutral person.
These days, it is difficult to be a neutral.

peace.