[i_made_a_booboo]

Yup.

I've come to realize a few key things:

1) Humans have an extremely limited capacity to determine what's true. 2) Our modus operandi is not to determine what is true but with which side are we politically affiliated 3) The truth is of little importance

This plays out exactly like you describe. A cargo-cult. You're either for or against it. You are either on the political side of the divide that believes being in the cult is better for ones survival or you are on the side that believes deep introspection about what is better for the situation at hand is best for survival. Close to nobody has the resources or capacity to evaluate if it's actually a good idea or not and even less so the political clout to sway the group for or against. So cargo-cult it is, for better or for worse.

TL;DR The state of any development methodology you can give a name to and dogmatically adhere to: a shambles.