From: Freespeak (f-prime@activist.com)
Date: Sun Mar 15 1998 - 18:36:52 MST
[Note: Earlier parts of the debate -- including the "peme rules"
-- can be found at <http://www.buildfreedom.com/tl/tl075.htm>,
which will be periodically updated.]
An Important Question
---------------------
At 07:09 PM 3/14/98 +0000, "Svein Olav G. Nyberg"
<solan@MATHS.ED.AC.UK> wrote:
>
>To Freespeak ...
>
>>"The most potent weapon of the oppressor is the mind of the oppressed."
>>-- Steve Biko
>
>But can not also the mind of the oppressor be a potent weapon in the hands
>of the oppressed? Indeed, can not anyone's mind be a potent weapon in our
>hands if we know how to wield it?
>
This is a very important question. Before I attempt
to address it, I want to examine some examples of how
tyrants plant pemes in the minds of the oppressed and
then effectively "use" these minds as weapons.
The "Society" Peme
------------------
At 06:09 AM 3/15/98 GMT, "David G. McDivitt"
<mcdivitt@IAMERICA.NET> wrote:
>
>I wholehearted agree with the premise of pemes.
>I feel it serves the purpose of introspection,
>as an analysis tool to aid in determining whatever
>course of action. However, we must still go to
>the store and buy food, interacting with the store
>clerk and whatever aspects of society. I do not
>feel society shall ever go away, nor do I feel
>a handful of people shall ever effectively sway
>it very much with regard to their own brand of
>individualism. Whether I wish it to be so, or
>not, makes no difference. I just don't see how
>it can. If you tell me it could, if only enough
>people would jump on the bandwagon, you might as
>well try and sell me on multimarketing. As I said
>however, it serves as a good analysis tool in
>determining how *I* will interact with society.
>
After observation and introspection you may realize
that you've never interacted with any so-called
"society." You have interacted with *individual*
human beings (and their computers).
"Society" is a moderately deep peme.
Murray Rothbard:
"..."[S]ociety," which is an abstraction that does not
actually exist."
"...[O]ne of the prime errors in social theory is to
treat "society" as if it were an actually existing
entity. "Society" is sometimes treated as a superior
or quasi-divine figure with overriding "rights" of its
own; at other times as an existing evil which can be
blamed for all the ills of the world. The individualist
holds that only individuals exist, think, feel, choose,
and act..." ('For a New Liberty')
Harry Browne:
"The gigantic myth called "society" that rules so many
lives doesn't even exist." ('How I Found Freedom...')
Was the "society" peme planted in your brain? Did
you buy it? Have you been helping to perpetuate
and spread it in accordance with peme rule 19:
"Whenever pro-freedom humans (secondary
peme purveyors) communicate -- although
they may question, attack, and expose a
few surface pemes -- they shall make a
special effort to use deep pemes in their
language -- in order to maximize peme
survival and propagation?"
Tyrants use the "society" peme in various ways: "It's
in the best interest of society"; "It's a crime against
society"; "The will of society"; "Society is the cause
of his criminality"; "Society has a right to define what
marriage is and what it is not"; etc.
By perpetuating and spreading the "society" peme, does
your mind serve as a weapon for tyrants?
What I'm trying to sell you on is clearing
deep pemes from your mind, and assisting
others to do the same.
At 01:33 PM 3/14/98 -0700, "Cynthia Allingham"
<allingham@ioc.net> wrote:
>
>Pemes are amusing but we already have a way
>of dealing with them, it is called analytical
>thinking. Politics is a battle of the wits.
>Politicians try to fools us, and we try not
>to be fooled.
>
>How long would pemes survive, if political
>speeches were followed up by real analysis?
>
> Mike: Well folks, what do you think of
> tonight's speech?
>
> Sara: It was quite a display of demagoguery.
>
> Bob: It certainly was, it would take hours
> to expose all the misleading statements,
> much less cover all the appeals to class
> hatred and other emotions.
>
> Mike: How could that be, it was only a
> half hour speech.
>
> Sara: That easy Mike. It is much easier
> to make a false statement, than to provide
> evidence to the contrary. For instance,
> it only takes a second to claim that the
> earth is flat. But whole books could be
> written to explain how we know that the
> world is round.
>
> Mike: Ok, ok. The president appeared to
> be very concerned about our children
> and education tonight, didn't he.
>
> Bob: He sure did. That was one of the
> most emotional and confusing parts of
> his whole speech. The president thinks
> that by getting the taxpayers to pony
> up more money for our failing educational
> system, that people will think that 'he'
> is the one who is being generous. Ha, it
> is hardly a virtue to be generous with
> other peoples money.
>
> Sara: Right. Then he thinks people will
> still fall for the idea that pumping more
> money into the educational system will
> improve it. Like we are supposed to forget
> about all the money we pumped into the
> educational system in the last 30 years?
>
> Mike: So you don't believe that the
> President really cares?
>
> Bob: I have no idea if he cares about
> children. But I know he cares about
> his political image, and about the 60
> million he got from the NEA.
>--
>Check out my web page: http://www.ioc.net/~allingham
>
Thanks, I did and I found under "Things that I
like," item #1: "Anything New & Different." Well,
I hope you find some of the peme material new and/or
different. Please don't be offended as a result
of what follows.
Your analytical thinking can certainly expose a
surface peme such as "caring for children." But
have you also been communicating in accordance
with peme rule 19:
"Whenever pro-freedom humans (secondary
peme purveyors) communicate -- although
they may question, attack, and expose a
few surface pemes -- they shall make a
special effort to use deep pemes in their
language -- in order to maximize peme
survival and propagation?"
Do you really believe that a certain clever,
lying trickster is "president" (so-called)?
You even spell it with a capital "P" in one
place!
I agree with you that at a surface level the
politicians have failed to fool you. Are you
willing to consider the possibility that at
a deeper level they may have succeeded in
fooling you in some respects?
Was the "president" deep peme perhaps planted
in your brain? Did you buy it? Have you been
perpetuating and spreading it? In this respect,
has your mind been serving as a weapon for the
tyrants?
"Man in the street": "The Emperor is wonderful!"
Violent anarchist: "Kill the Emperor!"
Typical libertarian: "The Emperor has no clothes!"
Deep anarchist: "Why do you hallucinate
an ordinary naked man as
"Emperor" (so-called)?"
Did you read the story of the "Two Tribes"
in the previous peme post?
"How long would pemes survive, if political
speeches were followed up by real analysis?"
Are you willing to consider the possibility
that, if followed by your past level of
"real analysis," deep pemes will survive
forever?
The Other's Mind as a Weapon
----------------------------
There are several ways to "utilize" the minds of
others as weapons to expand freedom. The first
is simply to persuade others to clear deep pemes
from their minds.
In the previous peme post, Joseph <AnarcoCap1@aol.com>
demonstrated that he has cleared all or most deep
pemes from his mind. He will never again think of
"political systems" in the same way, as he did before
clearing out his deep pemes. In some cases, he will
*act* more effectively in relation to "political
systems." Most likely, he will also communicate
differently -- he will only use deep pemes if he
thinks it's necessary and appropriate (depends on
the nature of his audience, in specific cases).
Most likely, whenever appropriate, he will question
and challenge deep pemes. This may encourage others
to also start clearing deep pemes from their minds.
Thus Joseph will be using his mind to expand freedom
in a way that could snowball. He could activate
the minds of others into becoming more potent
freedom weapons.
Similarly, "David G. McDivitt" <mcdivitt@IAMERICA.NET>
and "Cynthia Allingham" <allingham@ioc.net> could
make their minds more potent freedom weapons if they
were to clear out their deep pemes -- the political
"wheels in their heads" (as Max Stirner said).
The second way to "utilize" the minds of others
as potent weapons to expand freedom is to help
spread the meme "terrocrat." A "terrocrat" is a
coercive political agent or terrorist bureaucrat.
The word should always be used to refer to an
individual human being -- or several individuals
in its plural form "terrocrats."
"Terrocrat" is a powerful meme that has started to
spread and migrate. Do a search of the WWW, using
HotBot, for the word "terrocrat" to see how it's
spreading to websites besides Buildfreedom.com.
For a greater appreciation of what can be achieved
with memes, see 'Virus of the Mind: The New Science
of the Meme' by Richard Brodie <richard@brodietech.com>
-- <http://www.brodietech.com/rbrodie>.
Imagine the day a politician or bureaucrat writes
an article: "Why I'm not a Terrocrat!" The terrocrat
would be helping us spread the "terrocrat" meme.
To that extent we would be using his mind as a
potent weapon in our cause.
The word "peme" could also become a powerful meme.
A third way to "utilize" the minds of others is to
spread the "peme" meme. Ask a friend if she knows
what a "peme" is. If she doesn't, explain to her.
Refer her to <http://www.buildfreedom.com/tl/tl075.htm>.
Any further suggestions for "utilizing" the minds
of others as potent weapons to expand freedom will
be appreciated.
Frederick Mann
------------------------------------------------------------------------
"The [one] who knows what freedom is will find a way to be free."
-- Robert LeFevre
"We are free not because we claim freedom, but because we practice it."
-- William Faulkner
"The most potent weapon of the oppressor is the mind of the oppressed."
-- Steve Biko
------------------------------------------------------------------------
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