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Toxic Ideas
Apr. 8th, 2008 12:24 pmGlobal Guerillas is an interesting blog I’ve been reading for a few years, he’s got some neat ideas about open-source warfare, how communication technology is enabling protest and insurgency, from Iraq to Tibet to Anonymous. Anyhow, there was this really cool entry about Toxic Ideas:
Toxic Ideas
When western European colonists arrived on the shores of previously isolated locations, they often carried many afflictions to which they had immunity (a product of a large and diverse population). The result was devastating to local populations since they didn't share this immunity. A reprise of this process is underway within the world of ideas. Ideas (or Richard Dawkins' memes) for which we have a certain degree of immunity to -- from alcohol to pornography to divorce to gambling to irreverence... -- in the developed world can be toxic to those populations that are now exposed by globalization. The result is a violent reaction as people turn to primary loyalties for protection.
I’ve always had a somewhat condescending attitude towards people who can’t handle their pornography, who think ooh that’s so naughty and forbidden and perverse. But it’s easy to forget that not everyone is afforded the privileges of free expression, that it’s minority of people in the world who are encouraged to explore and experience their sexual lives to the fullest. So maybe I shouldn’t think it so pathetic if a person is freaked out by porn, cuz maybe they just haven’t yet have the opportunity to become knowledgeable consumers. But, could porn be actually dangerous to the inexperienced? Whether you like porn or not, everyone agrees that sexuality is powerful, so perhaps in some cases, in some societies, instant total freedom of expression and access to entertainment can be a significantly harmful thing. Like the blog says, people in a society might not have had the opportunity to acclimate, and shock to the system may have unpleasant consequences. So maybe when a culture opens up its economy and communication systems to the outside world they need a certain amount of censorship at first. Like, first you can have the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issue, in a couple years you get Playboy, couple years after that you get Penthouse and other soft-core porn, and eventually you can work your way up to the Double-Anal Double-Vaj Sheisse Furry Nazi Tentacle Rape Porn. Like the big kids.
Toxic Ideas
When western European colonists arrived on the shores of previously isolated locations, they often carried many afflictions to which they had immunity (a product of a large and diverse population). The result was devastating to local populations since they didn't share this immunity. A reprise of this process is underway within the world of ideas. Ideas (or Richard Dawkins' memes) for which we have a certain degree of immunity to -- from alcohol to pornography to divorce to gambling to irreverence... -- in the developed world can be toxic to those populations that are now exposed by globalization. The result is a violent reaction as people turn to primary loyalties for protection.
I’ve always had a somewhat condescending attitude towards people who can’t handle their pornography, who think ooh that’s so naughty and forbidden and perverse. But it’s easy to forget that not everyone is afforded the privileges of free expression, that it’s minority of people in the world who are encouraged to explore and experience their sexual lives to the fullest. So maybe I shouldn’t think it so pathetic if a person is freaked out by porn, cuz maybe they just haven’t yet have the opportunity to become knowledgeable consumers. But, could porn be actually dangerous to the inexperienced? Whether you like porn or not, everyone agrees that sexuality is powerful, so perhaps in some cases, in some societies, instant total freedom of expression and access to entertainment can be a significantly harmful thing. Like the blog says, people in a society might not have had the opportunity to acclimate, and shock to the system may have unpleasant consequences. So maybe when a culture opens up its economy and communication systems to the outside world they need a certain amount of censorship at first. Like, first you can have the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issue, in a couple years you get Playboy, couple years after that you get Penthouse and other soft-core porn, and eventually you can work your way up to the Double-Anal Double-Vaj Sheisse Furry Nazi Tentacle Rape Porn. Like the big kids.
