Man, I hate the phrase "Don't Drink the Kool-Aid." It's the most thoughtless way to criticize someone for being thoughtless. If you lob this insult, you're essentially telling someone they're embracing the perspective of a particular group to the point that they've stopped thinking for themselves. But it's the most vitriolic, bumper-sticker way to say it. It's so abbreviated and self-righteous, there's no possible way to argue back against it. It's one of those arguments that someone makes to stop conversation, under the guise that they're actually making a good point.
Can we please respect people we disagree with a little bit? Just because someone has a different ideology, doesn't mean they would just blindly follow some thought leader into mass suicide.
FYI: If you're interested, a little on the entymology of the phrase, here, and here.
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2 comments:
I could do without this idiom as well. Another one that bothers me is "begs the question." Mainly because hardly anybody uses it correctly.
That begs the question, what is your least favorite idiom? ... Just kidding, Michael.
I agree. That one gets misused all the time, so much that the misuse will probably become the real use one of these days. Sigh.
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