The most rabid anti-smokers are ex-smokers, and the strongest pacifists are army veterans. We tend to absorb much of our values and tenets from families and en

The most rabid anti-smokers are ex-smokers, and the strongest pacifists are army veterans. We tend to absorb much of our values and tenets from families and environment, in a relatively uncritical way; hence, they are fundamentally weak, and often doctrinaire. When, instead, we reach certain conclusions individually, on the back of our personal experience, they become practically unassailable, because "my experiences are unquestionably real, and my brain cannot be wrong". This can be a good thing, but can also fog one's vision for good.