alt Hacker NewsSay that again real slow and listen to your words.
The fact that social conventions are arbitrary is wholly irrelevant. Everyone knows, and you are not smart or insightful for pointing it out. Social norms and conventions are arbitrary, evolved constructs. Individually we follow social norms as this is how you get accepted by and participate in society.
Breaking the social norms is generally punished either directly or indirectly. Because human society evolved to favor group cohesion, and acting counter to the rules means you no longer wish to be part of the group.
Please read about social contract theory.
Replies
welpWalp • yesterday at 10:24 PM
[dead]
Wholly agree.
I'd also add that it's not about the relevance of the conventions, but one's (in)ability to "read the room" and follow the conventions signals to others how well-adapted (or "aligned") of a human they are.
Not following conventions may be a result of inability to recognize them or outright disrespect and/or unwilling to cooperate, play by rules, honor the social contract, etc.