Re: Memetic Parasitism

From: Keith Henson (hkhenson@rogers.com)
Date: Thu 21 Jul 2005 - 13:37:03 GMT

  • Next message: Chris Taylor: "Re: Memetic Parasitism"

    At 09:22 AM 21/07/05 +0100, Kate wrote:
    >Keith Henson wrote:
    >>At 10:10 AM 20/07/05 +0100, Kate wrote:
    >>snip
    >>
    >>>This must tie into the suicide bombers' mentality somewhere along the
    >>>line. If memetics is true then it must be able to account for what's
    >>>going on there, which is surely memetic to some extent. Any insights, anyone?
    >>
    >>"Keith Henson has coined the name `memeoids' for `victims that have been
    >>taken over by a meme to the extent that their own survival becomes
    >>inconsequential ... You see lots of these people on the evening news from
    >>such places as Belfast or Beirut'. "
    >>End notes Second Ed. Selfish Gene.
    >>"Memeoid" is descriptive, but memetics is small a frame to get to the
    >>root of *why* people are susceptible to lethal memes, particularly ones
    >>that lead to behavior such as becoming a suicide bomber.
    >>Understanding *why* takes evolutionary psychology to explain or at least
    >>try to explain where humans got these really strange psychological traits.
    >>I have been ranting about EP, conditional behavioral switches and why
    >>humans are susceptible to certain classes of memes at some times and not
    >>others for years on this list.
    >>It's not a comfortable subject.
    >>Keith Henson
    >
    >What a succinctly clear distinction - that's what I like about this list:
    >you ask for insights, and you get them!

    If you want the 20 page, rejected for publication, version just ask.

    Keith Henson

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