Is your mental software year 2000 compliant?

greenspun.com : LUSENET : TimeBomb 2000 (Y2000) : One Thread

..."doomers" have been psychoanalyzed by Aaron Lynch in an article he writes called "The Millenium Thought Contagion". It's reassuring to know someone cares about us enough to explain why we have prepared prudently to ensure the safety and survival of our loved ones in the event of a calamity! www.year2000.com/y2kcurrent2.html

-- Vern (bacon17@ibm.net), November 08, 1999

Answers

Vern, the trolls have been pushing Lynch's "meme contagion" for many months. (Note to newbies: memes are infectious thoughts that so-called doomers pass on to everyone, just like a cold, and can't help it because they don't know they're controlled by the memes. The trolls are trying to save doomers and you from the memes, sometimes by sucking us in to read Lynch's psychobabble.) Are you a disingenuous troll, Vern?

Whatever.

PLEASE, PLEASE DO NOT FEED THE TROLLS.

-- No (troll@chow.here), November 08, 1999.


Where can I find this Vern?

-- rc white (cw5410@netscape.net), November 08, 1999.

.....nope, not a newbie or disengenious, just always open to and interested in anyone's thoughts or perspective. Life is more interesting than what goes on in my mind alone! The link is in the original post. It is just not hot linked.

-- Vern (bacon17@ibm.net), November 08, 1999.

The author attempts to have his form of "rational inquiry" supplant technical and scientific understanding of the software and hardware issues.

Here is an example of his lack of understanding:

"Another "embedded" thought contagion is the idea that civilization will end if the power grid goes down--an *electric* apocalypse. Even though societies have survived air wars that devastated infrastructure, most of us today have not. This leaves the electric apocalypse widely believable, helping the urgent warnings win converts."

Apparently the author is unaware of the U.S. military's study of the expected death rates caused by the electrical grid going down. The study was made in approx 1973. I don't have the reference for it at the moment.

The U.S. military had determined that an enemy could use several nuclear devices at high altitude to destroy our electrical systems. They wanted to get an estimate of the expected results from the loss of our life sustaining systems, food, water etc. The study showed that we were dependent upon electricity and that the loss of electricity would lead to widespread death.

-- snooze button (alarmclock_2000@yahoo.com), November 08, 1999.


snooze,

Since when has anybody let a pesky little thing called "fact" (mass die off due to grid loss) get in the way of a nifty pet theory. (we are all making this Y2k stuff up)

-- Dolma Lhamo (I'm@nonymous.now), November 08, 1999.



This polly abuse of the "meme" concept is the most vulgar kind of reification. Children trying to talk like adults...

Just another attempt to pathologize thought that falls outside the norm. Thought control, pure and simple. Well, simple at least.

-- Dr. Polymorph (Iknowmore@thanyoudo.com), November 08, 1999.


Well said, Dr. Polymorph. I couldn't agree more.

-- Donna (moment@pacbell.net), November 08, 1999.

If anything, the "doomer memes" are a GOOD THING to have! For example, what do you call an ansestor who had strong survival instincts? YOUR Ansestor, of course! What do you call an ansestor who had none of these "doomer memes"? Answer: EXCTINCT!!!!!!! "That's the end of THAT chapter!" :)

-- Crono (Crono@timesend.com), November 09, 1999.

From: Y2K, ` la Carte by Dancr (pic), near Monterey, California

I actually think Aaron Lynch has a good point in The Millenium Thought Contagion. Doomer thoughts are most compelling and apt to be spread. However, the article is irrelevant as regards the truth or falsehood of the doomer ideas.

-- Dancr (addy.available@my.webpage), November 10, 1999.


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