There are all sorts of urban legends out there. There are local ones and international ones. Interestingly enough, they are very powerful.
An urban legend tells us a story that is what we want to believe, so it is often more powerful than the truth.
The former principal of Romeo High School never really chased a kid, caught him, and fought him. But students wanted to believe it so it was true… hence he earned the nickname "Action."
Al Gore never said he invented the internet. But people wanted to believe that the Washington DC liberal was out of touch with reality. People believed it and it may have cost him his chance at being president.
You don’t get sick because you go outside with wet hair or without a jacket. (They are called viruses, diseases, and bacteria!) But people want to believe it’s true… so it might as well be true.
The phrase "80% of all statistics are made up on the spot" is used to destroy people’s sound arguments using research. Of course, there’s never been a study on that and it’s impossible to measure. But people believe it, so it is true.
Urban legends make or break a lot of people. They are part of the reason why some people succeed and some people fail. What people want to believe about a person or a church or a sports team or a book or a website or an mp3 player is often far more powerful than anything else that can be said.
Here’s something I’m learning: People make decisions about things not based on anything factual at all… they make decisions about people, churches, sports teams, books, websites, and mp3 players based on how those things make them feel and how they feel associating themselves with that thing.
What are the urban legends about me? What are the urban legends about things that I care about? I have no control over that… but it is interesting!
Leave a Reply