Going Wild

On a regular basis we see people going wild when they make a decision to cross a line. Sometimes it is the result of new found freedom like when a child reaches adulthood and is no longer under parental restriction. We all probably know of someone who went from a "well behaved and respectful" kid into a wild, party animal when they got out from under their parent's wings. What I am focusing on here is the extremes.

While probably most kids open up a bit they often retain a good deal of the characteristics of their upbringing. But why is it that some seem to try and run as far away from everything they have known? Do they really reject EVERYTHING they have known or is there something else that goes on that makes it difficult to accept even a portion of their past belief?

I think there is a psychological reason for the total rejection. There seems to be a need for validating their rejection so the brain works overtime finding reasons to reject everything. They find it difficult to mesh some of their new ways of seeing the world with their established ways of seeing the world so they can only choose one or the other. My guess is that these people have difficulty with gray areas and uncertainty and like to see things in black and white.

This doesn't happen only with young people either. I have seen people leave their faith and become some of the harshest critics of their former faith. Most would probably say this is because they have seen the inside and don't like what they saw. My guess is that this has more to do with their personal struggle and uncertainty. I have also see this with people who were once politically conservative but are now quite liberal. They consistently attack conservatives while defending liberals. My guess is that they really don't feel that their liberal side is always right but they have spent so long living in an unbalanced, conservative view that they subconsciously feel the need try to put it back in balance.

The sad part about all of this is that it stifles honest discourse. Our ability to have constructive conversations seems to be disappearing. It isn't safe to say anything because it will probably be taken the wrong way or someone will read something into it that was never intended. That's sad.