From: RIGHTSBOY <RIGHTSBOY@aol.com>
Date: Sun, 17 May 1998 21:10:33 EDT
To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk, gs@lumina.ucsd.edu
Subject: "Experiential-Environment" as 'superorganism'
Turner's Second Principle:
--------------------------
We like for our experiential-environment to match our maps of it. For
when it does not, we become insecure in our sense of control, in that
our maps no longer provide us our means to reliably predict the future
course of events, and their utility as our guide to behavior (i.e. in
the further self-construction of our experiential-environment, or
'nervous-system-in-its-environment') is compromised.
This is why we traditionally do not tolerate other 'cultures' mixing
with, or 'diluting' our own. They threaten the status quo, the current
structure of things. They threaten the predictable course of events.
They threaten the utility of the maps used by those in positions of
power to conduct their affairs. They threaten to replace or modify the
'traditional' maps of subordinates which render their behavior predictable
and manipulable by those in power.
All of this points to the fact that our maps, or 'memes', have no
utility or relevance in the universe other than as our personal guides
to behavior (or 'neuro-programs', if you will). And it is clear that
our behavior, as directed by our memes, defines the structure of that
self-assembling 'superorganism', our "experiential-environment". We
must recognize this if we are to control our memes to our advantage,
rather than our memes controlling us to their advantage.
Our memes, and our nervous systems (i.e. "ourselves"), are denizens, and
constituents, of our self-organizing "experiential-environment"
superorganism.
Chris Turner
RIGHTSBOY@AOL.COM
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