It is occasionally amusing to entertain reductive reasoning and propose a prime world ill. Today, for an unusually frivolous post, I nominate Adult Outrage.

For it is presently not merely acceptable for fully-grown humans to slosh outrage in public displays—it is often virtuous. The causes of this social malaria I care not to divine here; the fact of its reality is my aim.

Children express outrage in lieu of (hopefully) forthcoming reasoning faculties. The younger a child is, the less any thought of their surroundings typically comes into play. By the time one grows into a teenager, usually in high-school, social pressures, traditionally, have trimmed back such behaviour. To be an adult means to be accountable for not only one’s actions but one’s demeanour—one’s dignity matters: ‘child’—or worse, ‘baby’—become insults.

Some adults today—particularly those who find internet commentary high-erudition—revel in public outrage: their badge of honour. Nonsense. All it takes is a non-aligned comment and heads explode; especially for newfangled ideas—napalm lit. Speaking one’s convictions makes one a pilot light.

Scientology is a newfangled idea. Actually, it is not a single idea but a diverse set of ideas. Most know next to nothing about them beyond popular outrage media, reductive and dichotomous.