"individuals run for cover, for the multitudes of thoughtless clones have reached a critical mass." - Bad Religion, Individual (From the album "Stranger than Fiction", 1994) I wasn't going to carry on the Idiocy theme for much longer, but recent events have caused me to extend it by another week (as an entry topic at least), as I attempt to get my head round "Irrational idiocy". You know, people doing stupid, stupid things for apparently no reason. I guess at the end of the day, most idiocy is irrational, but at least Nationalism and Internet idiocy are rationalised by the idiots that participate in them. So what is irrational idiocy? Allow me to give you a real life example: Bored with my hair and irritated by its tendency to curl at the bits where I didn't want it to, I decided to dreadlock it again. This isn't an attempt to "rebel", or emulate some rock star or anything like that. I just think that Dreads look damned cool, they make my hair more manageable, and it's a 'natural' thing - Go live in the jungle for 3 months, and your hair will dreadlock naturally. So I spent 3 hours backcombing my hair into a tangled mass, as the process must begin. Now, done properly, Dreads sort themselves out - but it takes time. They look a bit messy for the first few months, but i've looked worse. Anyway, I'm digressing here. When my parents saw me, they suddenly decided never to talk to me ever again, and ignore me every chance they get, shooting disapproving glances when the opportunity presents itself. You see, in their eyes, Dreadlocks=drug dealer. That's right, as soon as you change your hairstyle, you change your personality, don't you know? I was expecting the same kind of attitude at work. "What, Dreadlocks? You obviously can't write code anymore" or some such shit, but I was pleasantly surprised. "They suit you.... They're messy, but not, if you get me?" So that was nice. And The response from work made be think back. Ever since I was 13, my parents have drilled into my brain the concept of "Dreadlocks=no job". For some reason, I believed it. But obviously, they were wrong, which is where the crux of the problem lies. Parents are idiots. Parents are irrational idiots. and I know this sounds like some teenage hissy-fit, but stay with me on this one.Think about all the times your parents have told you "Don't smoke!" While comping down on a fat cigar. All the times you've had to be in bed by 8, while they stagger home from the pub at 3 in the morning. "Do as I say, not as I do." No, no no. You see, the idiocy of your parents takes a hold of you, and you don't realise it. The majority of people will grow up to be like their parents unless they put their foot down and take a good fucking look around them.For the last 21 years, I have lived my life by my parents' rules. I have done as they said, not as they did. But the thing I didn't realise was that I shouldn't even have done that. Learn from your parents, but think for yourself. Don't just break their rules. Throw their rules out, make your own fucking rules and stick to them. That's the point I've been missing. When I was 16 I took a look around at what was happening to me. I was drinking, smoking, doing drugs, sleeping around. I took a damned good look around, and I thouhght to myself, Fuck that. I stopped trying to be a rebel by breaking the rules given to me. I wrote my own rules. No Drink. No Drugs. Find one girl and stay with her.Above all, MAKE MY OWN DECISIONS. This last point was the hardest. I was trying to find a happy medium between my rules and theirs, and their rules were dominating because I wasn't following my most important rule. It's taken me years to realise this, and I wish I had seen it sooner. So now I'm living for me. And hopefully, I'll be able to avoid the irrational idiocy that plagues society. Don't judge a book by it's cover. Don't say something sucks just because everyone else does. Don't judge anything you haven't experienced. Formulate your own opinions. Stick to your opinions, but be flexible. Don't tell your kids not to do something you blatantly do yourself. Most importantly, Stop living my everyone else's rules. By creating your own rules, and following them, you are creating your own faith, and the only God is yourself. You can do anything. Now Re-read this column, sit down, think, discover your core beliefs. Create your rules. Congratulations, you are now an individual.