and the award goes to...

never begin a sentence with and or but. never use i in a formal essay. always say may i and not can i when asking for permission.

it's not that any of the foregoing axioms are necessarily incorrect. and i'm sure the folks who passed along the preceding principles to you had their hearts in the right place. but the truth is not always as it appears - for truth is, by definition, both relative and subjective.

and rather than asking, should i adhere to the above rules, i would argue that the more relevant question has become, why should i adhere to the above rules. grammar aside, the larger debate is really one of societal norms. conformity is a sticky issue, especially in the context of academics and adolescence. on the one hand, we all desire to fit in and feel like we belong to a larger social construct, and often it is only through strict obedience to established codes of conduct that such is possible. on the other hand, individuality and self-expression are powerful forces in the lives of young people and sometimes, it is in one's best interests to throw caution and conventionality to the wind.

look, you do whatever you think is right for you. personally, i always ask myself the following: what exactly do i gain from conformity? then i apply a simple cost-benefit analysis in order to arrive at the best decision for me. and even when such an analysis yields a clear result, i still may choose to ignore my own advice in order to satisfy other, unrelated priorities.

i once heard a rather clever description of the age-old struggle between conformity and individuality described as such: play by the rules until you have achieved a certain level of influence and authority and then once you have attained your desired standing within the community, use your newfound influence and authority to create your own rules of the game.

i'm betting that einstein didn't always play by the rules. or newton. or confucius. or shakespeare. or gandhi. or mandela. or lennon. or gates. or oprah. or phil. (no, not dr. phil.)

for what it's worth.

http://www.businesswritingblog.com/business_writing/2005/11/but_its_okay_an.html

http://www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/handouts/should_I_use_I.html

http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/can-versus-may2.aspx

ok, so a greedy, multinational pharmaceutical company (not my words) is behind this ad, but it sure does tug on the heartstrings: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZvAp40kpdGc

"you don't get harmony when everybody sings the same note." - doug floyd