“sometimes, the answers created to address the question of ‘why’ do
more harm than good. There is a ‘because’ for every ‘why’. Some of
these ‘becauses’ start wars. They beget atrocities. ‘Why’ is a
slippery question that lends itself to abuses of power.” – A.J.Axline

With that caution in mind, I’ll go ahead and ask the question: Why do we do things?

I think sometimes we do things just because everyone else is doing them. Many years ago I stopped short one day and wondered why I was drinking coffee. I didn’t really like the stuff. The only reason I could find was because every one else around me was drinking coffee. So I quit. I realized that “because everyone else is doing it” is just about the worst reason in the world to do something.

To be sure, there are things that a lot of people (if not everyone) do, but they should be done for their own merits. Breathing might be an extreme example: everyone does it, and I do it too, but I don’t do it just because everyone else is doing it; I have my own reasons.