Question Everything You Ever Knew

It’s a bit disconcerting to one day realize that everything you believe in, or rather, taught to believe in, comes crashing down upon you and that safe, secluded cone that enveloped and cradled you once, has shattered to expose you, raw, to the big bad world.
We take it for granted – our beliefs, our notions and our perceptions.
From a very young age, we look into the world through someone else’s eyes.
Questions are muted and intrigue is dampened to produce an ideal product of society; one that speaks, hears, understands the way he is programmed to be.
It is something we never realize as we hobble along in our monotonous ruts.
But in the past week or so, questions started springing, doubts crept in and bafflement pulled the strings of many minds.
At school, our weekly Theory of Knowledge sessions most often end in mental disarray as we prod at questions and engage in heated debate. For those of you not familiar to Theory of Knowledge, it is a class in which students analyze and dissect the various facets of ‘Knowledge’ and learn to be independent, inquisitive thinkers meant to challenge things and not accept it as it is.
Recently, a very intriguing debate arose about Conspiracy Theories and it made me realize how we often accept things without any questions.
We were told of the 9/11 attacks and that Osama Bin Laden was the root of all evil. Newspapers heralded it. Heads of Media reporters on television bobbed in agreement over the giant yellow Breaking News tape stretched across the screen. Authorities importantly cleared their throats, tapped their microphones and condemned the attack, vowing to fight back and further went on to proclaim the rights of every citizen.
And we bought it. Bought it, Ate it, Digested It. Hook, Line and Sinker.
Where was the judgment? Where was the radical thinking? Where were the questions?
We were scared to differ from public opinion, safe within the mob.
Why did the World Trade Centres collapse at the same time even if one was burning for longer? Did a plane really hit the Pentagon? Why was an unmarked plane flying in territorial air space?
In Theory of Knowledge classes, we learn that the core principles are Reason, Perception, Emotion and Language.
However, we often chose to ignore at least one of them; not seeing the big picture.
Feeling secure and being an impression cast by the mould of society may seem an easy way out. Yet, it is merely comfort food.
All the people that ever made it big, asked questions. Questions that shook their faith and foundation. Questions that changed their lives.
Life is full of mysteries and some may never find answers. Shying away may keep you living but to be truly alive is to take a crack at the riddle.