In his piece “On Liberty”  philosopher John Stuart Mill valued eccentricity as a surprisingly close partner to authentic freedom, as if perspectives from the comic “far-side” are crucial for getting to the heart of any matter. 

In his writings overall and in his blog, Haystack, Edward Hays’  post “Tending your little Spark,” beautifully confirms a similar insight. Daring to be different is paramount in itself.

Daring to be different generates two additional benefits:1) resistance to indoctrination, in which we let others do our thinking and feeling for us; and 2) resistance  to self-deception, in which we fall short of the mandate,  “To thine own self be true.”