I tend to think of myself as unique in that I am a U.S. Naval Combatant Veteran who obtained a liberal arts education - I was DEFINITELY in the minority on campus. Not that I was the only one but there weren't that many of us.
While individualism is praised in the private sector, people aren't as unique as they think they are. They are very unique....just like everyone else. No really I mean, what's around that hasn't been around before? What is "unique" anyways? Unique is very subjective and contextual when you think about it. I mean, here in Portland, the way I dress and live (shirt, tie, suspenders, shoes shined, nice business or military haircut...oh and I'm white...I don't smoke maryjane, inhaled it once as part of my training as an MP (I'm not joking) and I don't sleep around or talk about it or feel a need to talk about it in a public setting (if you think I'm joking, you haven't lived in Portland)) I could be considered relatively "unique" around here. I'm "anti establishment" (the establishment of Portland anyways).
Anyhew, I found myself at odds with my colleagues in college as I had come to see the value and power of conformity in the military. Conformity, largely distrusted in our society, however, is RAMPANT! How many news stations do you see that report UNIQUE and DIFFERENT news? They all use the same exact friggin catch phrases for crying out loud!
Meanwhile, back on the farm in my ADD-laced-and-inspired-rant I will extoll the virtues of conformity and uniformity another day. I'll just leave this as a very long random thought to my demotivational poster to post for the day.
