Humor prevents Groupthink

Show me a group that can't laugh at itself, and I'll show you a group I want no part of. The ability to laugh at yourself, to be self-effacing, is a sure sign of humility. The ability to recognize the flaws, silly habits, and oddball behavior in yourself or your group keeps you grounded, and it can prevent you from making a huge mistake. It prevents groupthink.

Groupthink is dangerous. It is deadly. It kills. It is what happens when a group achieves too much harmony and there is no conflict. The individuals in the group lose their identity and become a collective consciousness. No one dares disagree with the group, nor can they even see why they'd need to. Bad ideas seem like good ideas because everyone agrees.

Years ago I was a student at Texas A&M University, a fine institution I am proud I attended. However, the year before I enrolled, they suffered one of the most horrific tragedies they've ever faced: The Bonfire collapse. Twelve people were killed, many more were injured. Since 1999, there has never been an official Bonfire at Texas A&M, though the tradition still continues off-campus.

While the Special Commission Report pointed to the structural failures, the biggest cause, according to the report, was groupthink. No one saw a problem with students building a giant structure, the size of a four story building, without any faculty oversight. No one thought to make the students submit all their plans to the engineering or architecture department. No one thought to take every precaution to ensure that such a disaster didn't happen.

Mocking Christians

I'm the type of guy who likes to mock Christians. I'm not the only one, either. Just check out the website Stuff Christians Like and you'll see a huge webpage devoted to the mockery of Christianity. It's author, Jon Acuff, is a hero of mine, and someone I hope to meet soon. He's a more successful version of who I hope to one day be, and he got there by mocking Christians.

I feel I should point out that both he and I are Christians.

That's right, I enjoy mocking my people. And why shouldn't I? Someone has to keep us honest. One of my favorite comedians Lewis Black once posited that when religion loses its sense of humor, bad things happen. Things like 9-11 happen. I'd like to add one caveat. It's possible that religious extremists do have a sense of humor, as they are quite good at mocking others. However, show me a believer good at making fun of himself and his faith, and I'll show you someone far less likely to kill others in the name of his faith.