The Spirit of Inquiry

One of Kant’s main claims is that most people live in a state of "self-incurred minority" or that they let other people (and institutions) do their thinking for them. Is this true today? Chat with a couple of friends or acquaintances about some issue they are likely to have strong opinions about and see what you can determine about their epistemological biases.  Do these people use their own understandings, as Kant would hope, or do they simply accept what they are told by tradition and authority? Do you think your sample representative of most Americans? Discuss.