On 09/23/2015 01:46 PM, Marcus Daniels wrote:
People react to the forces in their environment first -- wrong or right -- and second rationalize them. Create a path of least resistance for the undecided, and give them arguments to rationalize their decision. For those that are taking the path of most resistance, having arguments serve to create social cohesion so they are force to be reckoned with.
But both the path of least resistance and the cohesiveness of a social group depend, in fundamental ways, on a lack of conviction. In the case of paths of least resistance, we make the boundaries between any set of "positions" prickly, perhaps fractal -- e.g. political correctness -- one has to be in a tight feedback loop with one's environment, ready to adjust their position "live". In the case of social cohesiveness, one has to be willing to allow for the many small differences between intra-group members in order to present a boundary between us and them. Hence, both types of power depend fundamentally on a lack of conviction. -- ⇔ glen ============================================================ FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv Meets Fridays 9a-11:30 at cafe at St. John's College to unsubscribe http://redfish.com/mailman/listinfo/friam_redfish.com
