Sidelines - a bad side for everyone

I am sitting on the sidelines - crying with the crowd...
Too afraid to strike out independently and be our own man?

Apparently...
I have been sitting on the sidelines for a long time - out of habit and now practice the "goat follows suit" analogy.

For this to make any iota of sense, a little tale is warranted so here it goes:

A series of goats are making their way across a grassy plain and suddenly they encounter a fence. The first goat sizes up the situation and takes a leap over the fence, safely landing on the other side. Having provided a clue, the other goats follow suit.

However during all this jumping - one goat manages to knock down a section of the fence. This means that there is now a gap in the fence but contrary to the expected logic for the next "GOAT" to simply walk through the gap...

To the wonder and amusement of any onlooker (such as your kind self who is currently reading this tale...) the next goat and the other goats continue to jump over the now non-existent section of the fence inspite of the fact that it is infact no longer standing.

The moral of the story as you have already guessed is simple - out of habit, we continue to do things that others before us did even when there is no need for them anymore.
This is often for the simple but dumb reason that the "last person before me did it that way" - why should I be different?

This last question is the reason and the essence of why I still sit on the sidelines...
It doesn't set me apart for inspection by "others" nor does it give me room to discover what I am truly capable of.

I often blend right in - to be part of the "faceless" and often powerless masses - who are often spoon fed one lie and contradiction after another.
Even when they all know that it is a bad, bare faced lie they still wait for the "official" position...

Being part of the crowd means that I am invincible and thus not considered an entity - it is at once a means of defense as well as a means to de-emphasize the individual...

That means that your rights are non-existent or can be trampled and crushed easily because you, me I - are too afraid to stand out or stand up for our beliefs or rights...

We are responsible for our choices - even those that we give up without a fight...