Received: by alpheratz.cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk id DAA11918 (8.6.9/5.3[ref pg@gmsl.co.uk] for cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk from fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk); Mon, 21 Jan 2002 03:38:54 GMT Message-ID: <018e01c1a22c$b05b03a0$b186b2d1@teddace> From: "Dace" <edace@earthlink.net> To: <memetics@mmu.ac.uk> References: <AA-38A73D05AA41623E7AC9415705661888-ZZ@homebase1.prodigy.net> Subject: Re: Scientology Date: Sun, 20 Jan 2002 19:35:33 -0800 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Priority: 3 X-MSMail-Priority: Normal X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook Express 5.50.4133.2400 X-MIMEOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V5.50.4133.2400 Sender: fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk Precedence: bulk Reply-To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk
> Ted:
> >We might divide memes into two types. Logical memes exploit our capacity
> >for rational thought. Pathological memes exploit our unconscious need
> >to believe certain things and not others. We don't really get infected
by
> >logical memes. They simply follow from our perception of reality. But
> >infection by pathological memes causes us to project a false "reality"
> >rather than accepting the genuine article.
>
> Interesting distinction but it should be mentioned
> that perception is tainted with personal biases and
> prior worldview. It may be that already at an early
> stage, perception, pathological memes creep in to
> those who have not a rational grasp of the world to
> begin with.
>
> Philip.
I'm using perception to mean sensory awareness alongside our immediate,
intuitive reasoning. What the eye sees and the animal mind discerns in the
data is what we perceive. This is prior to memetically-influenced
perception and is shared by all animals. Not that humans can't perceive in
the same way animals do, just that we're distracted by the
cultural/linguistic overlay on everything. We're born into a world already
chalk full of ideas, all of which want to seduce us and propagate in our
consciousness, but not all of which are necessarily good for us. Some memes
represent the social body. The extent to which they circulate reveals the
health of society. Others are freelance. They promote only themselves,
reproducing with no concern for the surrounding memetic tissue. When the
cancerous memes begin forming into an alternative social body, culture gives
way to cult. Sometimes cults are born fresh from tumors (the mavericks,
such as Scientology or Naziism or The New York Times). But mostly they
emerge from the decomposition of dead culture. When the sitcom stops being
funny, then you know the rot has set in.
Ted
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