Three quotes allegedly by Einstein are:

"Great geniuses have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre
minds."

"Few people are capable of expressing with equanimity opinions which differ
from the prejudices of their social environment. Most people are even
incapable of forming such opinions."

"The really valuable thing in the pageant of life seems to me not the
political state, but the creative, sentient individual, the personality; it
alone creates the noble and the sublime, while the herd as such remains dull
in thought and dull in feeling."

The last is found in _Ideas and Opinions_, p. 11.

Do you agree or disagree?

Past experiences, including a recent encounter on the newsgroup
alt.games.warcraft, on which I was savagely attacked for politely
introducing some new ideas, have led me to consider that there may be a
great deal of truth in Einstein's quotes. The herd, it seems, may be lacking
in respect for more creative individuals.

"Scott H" wrote in message
news:k_mdncaf5t6uLvvVnZ2dnUVZ_jGdnZ2d@supernews.com...

On Jun 28, 4:58 pm, "THE BORG COLLECTIVE" collective.com> wrote:

"I thrive on mediocrity,
but I fear that I will have to lower my standards"

*curmudgeon*

On Jun 28, 2:54 pm, "Scott H" wrote:

"Don Stockbauer" hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:7abe7aaa-ca72-4b40-ad22-60a13e9982ac@z66g2000hsc.googlegroups.com...

On Jun 29, 3:23 am, "THE BORG" collective.com> wrote:

On Sat, 28 Jun 2008 17:54:56 -0400, Scott H wrote:

No one in the herd thinks they are not a part of it.

On Jun 29, 7:54 am, "Scott H" wrote:

Hi,

1) It is rather a comonplace that the majority of people will be average.
That goes with the meaning of words like "majority" and "average".

Equally commonplace is that fully half of all people everywhere and at all
times will be "below average"
in intelligence, size, wealth, education.... IOW, in every way.

A comforting corollary is, of course, that fully half will be above average.
So do not despair. You are not as alone as you think.

2) The Loner and the Herd is a classical topos; the old testament is full of
it, prophets whistleblowing on behalf og Jehova, sometimes a thankless task.
The conemporary Iliad and Odyssey are centered around single heroes. The
stories of Jesus could be seen in the same light.
Don Qixote de La Mancha. Et cetera.

Ibsen even wrote an entire play on this, "An Enemy of the People".
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/An_Enemy_of_the_People )
Arcane though it may be, most people will know this in its Hollywood
adaptation, "Jaws".
Some quotes:
The majority never has right on its side. (Dr. Stockmann, Act IV )