"The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore, all progress depends on the unreasonable man."
My speculation regarding this phenomena is that it is an emergent (learned) response -- the collective adaptation has been to ignore outliers until proven correct.
The absolute worst case (likely rare) is that a timely alternative viewpoint is ignored - i.e. Cassandras.
On the balance, it appears the future collective wins as the validity of the outlier view (which were not that urgent) becomes apparent and the collective majority has developed the ability to adopt it and then the "tortured/rejected/misunderstood genuius" is celebrated after death.
Civilizational win, with many individual loses (some entirely undeserved).
I believe there are several degrees to which "adapting the world to oneself" could apply. You're clearly state an example where one goes too far, but at that point, is the person changed from anti-authoritarian, to THE authoritarian?
In general, I see what you are getting at, but I think you are taking parts too literally. Or, at least the way I see it, "kites rise against the wind" is the kind of mentality.
Another possible answer to your question: Who is defining progress? Did Hitler "make progress"? Not in our eyes, not it today's society, but would a German from the 30's tell you that? He certainly changed the world, I think we can hold that to fact.
I'm just going to spew another quote, cuz my brain just leaks inspirational bumper stickers... "Those crazy enough to think they can change the world, are often those who do."
More on TA: http://changingminds.org/explanations/behaviors/ta.htm
It's easy to see that the system is broken when you're getting less than you deserve. It takes a degree of maturity to admit that the system is broken when you receive more than you deserve.
I have no reason to fix or even analyze a process until it is somehow relevant to me. Calling me immature because I decline to go hunting for problems I otherwise wouldn't even know about is bizarre at best.
I can't stop thinking, while reading his and rprospero's comments, of the stereotypical parent screaming at a fussy eater, "Don't you know there are starving children in Africa?!".