Received: by alpheratz.cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk id OAA10004 (8.6.9/5.3[ref pg@gmsl.co.uk] for cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk from fmb-bounces@mmu.ac.uk); Tue, 28 Aug 2001 14:20:18 +0100 From: Philip Jonkers <P.A.E.Jonkers@phys.rug.nl> X-Authentication-Warning: rugth1.phys.rug.nl: www-data set sender to jonkers@localhost using -f To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk Subject: RE: Spoiled Reward-Pathway Hypothesis Message-ID: <999004694.3b8b9a16cb40f@rugth1.phys.rug.nl> Date: Tue, 28 Aug 2001 15:18:14 +0200 (CEST) References: <2D1C159B783DD211808A006008062D310174602F@inchna.stir.ac.uk> In-Reply-To: <2D1C159B783DD211808A006008062D310174602F@inchna.stir.ac.uk> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit User-Agent: IMP/PHP IMAP webmail program 2.2.5 X-Originating-IP: 129.125.13.3 Sender: fmb-bounces@mmu.ac.uk Precedence: bulk Reply-To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk
Wade:
>There is also the social allowance of the addict within human culture, a
>co-dependency, if you will, and the profit motive on the part of pushers
>and dealers. Whether or not there is sufficient motive from the brain
>could be somewhat answered by making an intoxicant freely available to a
>chimpanzee tribe, for instance. (I suspect it is only in the chimps best
>interest that none of their number has figured out how to ferment
>alcohol....) In early hunter-gatherer societies the drug addict was the
>shaman, also totally culturally allowed, and many rituals involved
>intoxications, and were scheduled.
Given the fact that (some) people are prone to become
addicts it is likely that other people (service providers)
emerge and thrive who can exploit that niche. That is,
drug-users vs. drug-dealers/pushers;
gamblers vs. casino exploiters;
sex-addicts vs. pimps and hookers;
alcoholic vs. bar-exploiter and liquor-seller;
In a twisted sense, these are symbiotic relationships.
The symbioses is allowed for if its service providers continue
to have or assume an important place in society. Such as the
early shamans or nowadays bar-keepers.
The suggestion about the chimps being fed with drugs is
interesting but I think the outcome will be a grim one.
Once the tribe has become hooked, my prognosis
is that the tribe will perish away as there meagerly defended
and restocked resources will be taken from them by competing
sober and more vital tribes.
Philip.
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