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What's a word to describe people who blindly follow their government without question?

English Language & Usage Asked on August 6, 2021

I want to describe someone who fanatically follows one of the following:

  • Governmental body
  • Political party
  • Country

Basically, someone who will agree with their government/party/country regardless of what actions/decisions they make.

I was thinking of words such as zealot, follower, etc..

The word most similar to what I want is slang: sheep.

example in a sentence:

Elise constantly agrees with anything the liberal party says and does without having any personal opinions; she is but a sheep.

11 Answers

While not a noun, the term knee-jerk is often applied to the category descriptor to demonstrate blind allegiance

(Of a person) responding in an automatic and unthinking way: knee-jerk radicals

[ODO]

Possibly partisan

a person who takes the part of or strongly supports one side, party, or person; often, specif., an unreasoning, emotional adherent

[Collins]

The term chauvinist is also used to indicate fierce commitment to a cause or point of view

A person displaying excessive or prejudiced loyalty or support for a particular cause, group, or gender: what a male chauvinist that man is

[ODO]

When coupled with an aggressive, often militaristic stand, the term jingoist may be used

Extreme patriotism, especially in the form of aggressive or warlike foreign policy.

[ODO]

Correct answer by bib on August 6, 2021

A Yes-man :

a person who agrees with everything that is said ; especially : one who endorses or supports without criticism every opinion or proposal of an associate or superior.

Extract from http://www.lemauricien.com/article/political-fiction-yes-man

Elected in the same constituency as the Leader, the Yes Man is an expert in menial work. He started by carrying posters for a former banished young stud of the same faction. Despite being relegated to the sidelines, this has-been has managed to feed off the generosity of the party by aligning himself with another fervent patriot and organising PR coups where he gets to promote himself more than the real talents. However, let us not wander too far from our luminary presence.

Answered by user66974 on August 6, 2021

If such a person is actually part of the state, then they're a functionary or (more strongly) apparatchik. Allegorically, they are a drone or myrmidon, both words with connotations of insect colonies.

Otherwise they would be a zealot, true believer, or partisan who had drunk the Kool-Aid (referring to the use of poisoned Kool-Aid (Flavor-Ade) in the Jonestown cult mass suicide / murder).

Answered by bobtato on August 6, 2021

I think you have already answered in your question by yourself, - 'a blind follower.

Answered by Yoichi Oishi on August 6, 2021

Sheep. Just like that animal that moves wherever its herder takes it, no questions asked.

Answered by user92672 on August 6, 2021

A "statist" is an advocate of statism, which is, in turn, the allowance of control into the "the hands of a highly centralized government, often extending to government ownership of industry." Contrast with "anarchist."

Answered by user42680 on August 6, 2021

Sheeple is an interesting portmanteau that is a widely accepted term. An equivalent synonym/doctrine is "conformist."

[Sheeple] is used to describe those who voluntarily acquiesce to a suggestion without critical analysis or research. Wikipedia

It often portrays criticism in the tendency of crowd thinking and hive mindset. Here is a neat (perhaps very satirical) comic from xkcd to consider:

waking the sheeple! XKCD #1013

Answered by Crosscounter on August 6, 2021

I would call such persons 'the immature'. For 'errare humanum est' (evb. makes mistakes), and 'individualism' does count but we must not neglect the opposite (community; a man is 'zoon politokon' - a man shall be tolerant but watchful activist, too).

Answered by Rock on August 6, 2021

Would 'assimilate' (as in conform) be an appropriate synonym for what you're trying to say? Assimilating culture, policies, the 'new agenda'...

Answered by LauraJ on August 6, 2021

Servile

  1. having or showing an excessive willingness to serve or please others. "he bowed his head in a servile manner" synonyms: obsequious, sycophantic, excessively deferential, subservient, fawning, toadying, ingratiating, unctuous, oily, oleaginous, greasy, grovelling, cringing, toadyish, slavish, abject, craven, humble, Uriah Heepish, self-abasing; More antonyms: bossy, assertive
  2. of or characteristic of a slave or slaves.

Answered by Adam on August 6, 2021

It sounds like you are looking for a pejorative to describe a single member of a group, who blindly follow. Lemming is sometimes used for this purpose.

Answered by user367049 on August 6, 2021

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