At the same time, the difficulty of independent thought cannot be understated. I hesitate to say whether I've personally known any person who was truly independent of mind. Only a handful of people alive today whom I've read and not met would I venture to say can claim to be independent thinkers.
I understand the self-actualizing that crowns independent thought to be an universal human aspiration which is not generally conceived in terms of thought or language. In today's culture it is mistakenly understood as the mere absence of material constraints or oppressions. That spirit is a superficial derivation from the post war concept of "questioning authority."
Tucked into the post is the observation that "questioning authority" is "more acceptable these days." This is interesting since practical wisdom tells that when you go against the flow you are being independent. So, when "questioning authority" is in fact promoted by education from elementary through university and endorsed socially, then is that still independence?
If authority is overturned, then from what mainstream can you deviate by striking out on your own? Do you flounder in a shoreless ocean? I think a different sort of authority has replaced the old authority of the institutions and conventions of tradition. This kind of authority respected today is the charm of ideology or the raw power of force which lurks behind all ideology. The ocean still makes waves.
In this environment, the independent thinking so desired cannot emerge to carve out its own course to run. For independent thought to grow and emerge, thought needs a harbor, a bounded world in which to develop its competence in safety and from which to eventually break free like a rivulet trickling from the edge of the lake.
Instead, the education in Britain and America lazily encourages children to "embrace their natural creativity" and youth to "question authority," whilst neglecting to provide the structure and teach the skills necessary to learn how to think, which will enable individuals, when they mature and carve out individual identities for themselves, to think independently.