Received: by alpheratz.cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk id UAA18905 (8.6.9/5.3[ref pg@gmsl.co.uk] for cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk from fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk); Mon, 14 Jan 2002 20:57:45 GMT Message-Id: <5.1.0.14.0.20020114143911.02c4be00@pop.cogeco.ca> X-Sender: hkhenson@pop.cogeco.ca X-Mailer: QUALCOMM Windows Eudora Version 5.1 Date: Mon, 14 Jan 2002 15:16:10 -0500 To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk From: Keith Henson <hkhenson@cogeco.ca> Subject: RE: Knowledge, Memes and Sensory Perception In-Reply-To: <NEBBKOADILIOKGDJLPMACEFLCJAA.debivort@umd5.umd.edu> References: <2D1C159B783DD211808A006008062D3102A6D1DF@inchna.stir.ac.uk> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed Sender: fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk Precedence: bulk Reply-To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk
At 10:29 AM 14/01/02 -0500, "Lawrence DeBivort" <debivort@umd5.umd.edu>
wrote:
snip
>Slowly, the Bush administration is beginning to see the inconsistencies and
>drawbacks of their actions: yesterday, unidentified Whote House 'sources'
>conceded that the US actions in Afghanistan haven't 'won the war on
>terrorism.' Next, I hope, will come the recognition that when something
>fails, doing it harder is not the answer. And then perhaps there will be a
>willingness to think about terrorism intelligently and to design policies
>and actions that will defuse it. But I think it will be several months
>before we get to this point.
I can think of one reason this is going to be tough. A major factor at the
root of terrorism is low wealth per capita, and even more important a
negative rate-of-change in wealth per capita. The number of adventurous
later borns has a strong effect as well. The late 60s, early 70s unrest in
the US was strongly correlated to the coming of age of a lot of later born
children. Latter born children tend to be adventurous and thus susceptible
to picking up society subverting memes--unlike first borns who tend to be
conservative. (See Sulloway's Born to Rebel.)
Something the US can promote in the places where terrorist are bred is
higher economic growth rates. But high birth rates can overwhelm economic
growth. That is what has happened in Saudi Arabia. High as it was, the
wealth per capita has fallen by half over the last generation. The only
long term solution to improving wealth per capita and cutting down on the
number of latter borns is birth control. Sadly, for meme rooted reasons
the Bush administration is unlikely to promote that.
Keith Henson
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