Received: by alpheratz.cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk id GAA20470 (8.6.9/5.3[ref pg@gmsl.co.uk] for cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk from fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk); Tue, 15 Jan 2002 06:46:24 GMT X-Originating-IP: [137.110.248.206] From: "Grant Callaghan" <grantc4@hotmail.com> To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk Subject: RE: Knowledge, Memes and Sensory Perception Date: Mon, 14 Jan 2002 22:41:56 -0800 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed Message-ID: <LAW2-F42zmVBCOWHJVk00000b66@hotmail.com> X-OriginalArrivalTime: 15 Jan 2002 06:41:56.0657 (UTC) FILETIME=[B9D2D210:01C19D8F] Sender: fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk Precedence: bulk Reply-To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk
I don't know if it's genetic or memetic, but people do a lot of destructive
things to themselves in order to show they can take more punishment or more
risk than their peers. Look at boxing, football, skiing, bull riding, bull
fighting, sky diving, etc., etc. Drinking and smoking are realatively slow
and pleasant ways of self destruction.
Grant
>Greetings, Keith,
>
>I think part of the answer must lie in the fact that people have many
>values, and that sometimes meeting these values demands behaviors that may
>contradict other values. A smoker, for example, may smoke in order the
>relax, though knowing it harms their health. The value of relaxing
>conflicts
>with the value of remaining healthy.
>
>Our values aren't all equally important; we in effect have hierarchies of
>values. Values ranked higher will tend to command more of one's behaviors
>than those ranked lower, and can thus 'force' the adoption of damaging
>behaviors in the pursuit of higher held values.
>
>How does this mesh with your own thinking?
>
>Lawrence
>
>
> > Now *why* people can be infected with memes that do them and
> > their genes a
> > great deal of damage, *that* an interesting topic. It happens to
> > be one I
> > spent a good number of years trying to understand.
>
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