Received: by alpheratz.cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk id CAA16695 (8.6.9/5.3[ref pg@gmsl.co.uk] for cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk from fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk); Wed, 13 Feb 2002 02:02:05 GMT Message-Id: <5.0.2.1.0.20020212204608.00a41a40@mail.clarityconnect.com> X-Sender: rrecchia@mail.clarityconnect.com (Unverified) X-Mailer: QUALCOMM Windows Eudora Version 5.0.2 Date: Tue, 12 Feb 2002 20:54:07 -0500 To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk From: Ray Recchia <rrecchia@mail.clarityconnect.com> Subject: RE: ply to Grant In-Reply-To: <LAW2-F98Lm3OFk8nmxk0000a2d0@hotmail.com> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed Sender: fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk Precedence: bulk Reply-To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk
Hi Grant and Vincent.
Vincent wrote:
>> There's a difference between viewing social change critically, which
>>is an essential requirement to properly evaluate change, and viewing it
>>negatively (or positively for that matter). Besides, as a lecturer in media
>>studies, for me to argue against social change involving technology would be
>>a bit rich. Indeed, as my anti-media effects stance should indicate, I'm
>>particularly pro-technologies that, IMHO, are socially progressive and not
>>harmful as many people have thought (and still think) about all media forms.
>>I, of couse, think the media collectively are a pretty good set of
>>techologies.
>>
>> In many ways, I'd call myself a bit of a futurist looking forward to
>>those changes, and this for me is the key, that are in the public interest.
>>The facts though suggest that corporate control of key features of
>>contemporary life, such as in transportation, involves the deliberate and
>>continual denial of technologies (cleaner running cars for example) because
>>such technologies would kill those corporations.
>>
>> In media too, the myth of the 'free marketplace of ideas' is widely
>>demonstrable. Only today I've been reading bits of Richard McCord's 'The
>>Chain Gang' about Gannett, the US's largest newspaper chain (over 90 dailies
>>across the US, and which also owns Newsquest in the UK, which controls 300
>>local papers), and how the company aggressively attempted, sometimes
>>successfully, to put rival papers out of business leaving communities with a
>>'marketplace' of one paper.
>>
>> Of course capitalism is an ideology, and ideology is one for the
>>memes in minds fraternity.
I think a little memetic interpretation here might help Grant out. You see
the problem is that Grant's world view suffers from infection by parasitic
memes that conveniently allow him to justify the actions of an unjust
government. They have been accepted by him not so much because of their
inherent truth but because they allow him to avoid guilt for the way in
which the U.S. government exploits the international community. Grant has
been infected and the new emerging science of memetics will allow him to
understand the irrational reasons he has adopted these positions.
Ray Recchia
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