Received: by alpheratz.cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk id OAA15312 (8.6.9/5.3[ref pg@gmsl.co.uk] for cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk from fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk); Tue, 6 Feb 2001 14:37:16 GMT Message-ID: <2D1C159B783DD211808A006008062D3101745C3F@inchna.stir.ac.uk> From: Vincent Campbell <v.p.campbell@stir.ac.uk> To: "'memetics@mmu.ac.uk'" <memetics@mmu.ac.uk> Subject: RE: Darwinian evolution vs memetic evolution Date: Tue, 6 Feb 2001 14:36:15 -0000 X-Mailer: Internet Mail Service (5.5.2650.21) Content-Type: text/plain Sender: fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk Precedence: bulk Reply-To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk
<So lunch ain't free; what else is new?>
Trust an American to say that :-)
<I prefer either RC or Jolt Cola; if I go a little out of my way, I
can
> find them, and do. Of course you have to move your legs to walk,
> but in a free country you get to choose the direction in which you
> travel.>
>
Of course one of things often missed in debates about the global
dominance of brands like Coca Cola and Pepsi over others is their endemic
availability. Whichever direction you walk (in the developed world at
least) you're more likely to come across a drinks machine (or shop) stocked
with one of those two products than any other. In the developing world, if
you can find cola at all the odds are even greater than it'll be one of
those two products. Still, maybe a good long walk will offset the
detrimental health effects of drinking cola in the first place :-)
Then of course, in parts of the US you can't just walk anywhere you
like, with fines for jaywalking for instance.
Apparently a while back in the South American division of Coke there
was a major hoo-haa over an idea that was leaked, that involved developing
smart vending machines that, when it was hot, would charge more for
dispensing cans of drink. Not surprising the tropical and sub-tropical
climates of latin american countries, combined with generally lower income
levels than north americans and europeans, meant many people reacted very
badly to this idea.
Sorry, I'm going off track a bit here, so I'll stop.
Vincent
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