drinks the Kool-Aid
Swallows the propaganda
To drink the Kool-Aid means to accept an idea, belief, or group's ideology uncritically and with excessive enthusiasm.
The phrase alludes to the 1978 Jonestown massacre, where cult members died after drinking poisoned flavor-aid at their leader's direction.
Someone who drinks the Kool-Aid has bought into something completely, often abandoning independent judgment.
After a week at the corporate retreat, he'd really drunk the Kool-Aid.
The expression usually carries a skeptical or mocking tone toward the believer.
- buy inAgreement to participate
- all inFully committed, nothing reserved
- zealotryExcessive devotion to beliefs
- dogmaUnchallengeable official beliefs
- party lineOfficial political position
echo chamber · brainwashing · herd mentality · follow the leader · extremism · toe the line · fall in line · sectarianism · indoctrination · Jonestown · cult of personality · true believer · jump on the bandwagon · propaganda · mob psychology · ideological purity · go along to get along · utopianism
drinks the Kool-Aidskeptic
One who doubts claims
doubter · cynic · disbeliever · incredulous · smells a rat
drinks the Kool-Aidmarches to a different drummer
dissenter · nonconformist · free thinker · dissents · independent thinker
drink, drinks, drinking, drinker, drinkers, drinkable, cooled, cooling