Hey, sophocleese, "the unexamined life is not worth living", right? The examined life requires that a person challenge and question all the social, religious, scientific, and ethical conditioning that has been laid upon her by her parents, the schools, the churches, the governmental authorities, and so on. First you challenge and question the "common sense" of your day. Then you formulate hypothetical theories of your own. Then you put those theories to the test in the crucible of actual experience. And then, you are in a position to become a free human being. Unexamined lives do become victims of society, by default, as it were. And it really is their fault, because they could have done some examining, but chose not to.

Oh, yeah...watch out for that "tongue-in-cheek" stuff. Ya do it too much and ya start to look like a chipmunk! :-)

Naemanson - Great point! The song "Matty Groves" has served to enlighten and change society, as have many other songs. And that has got to be the highest calling a folksong or any work of art can possibly have.