2:3 MEMETICS VERSUS GENETICS

It is a simple fact that one's genetic heritage determines one's physical characteristics. Children tend to resemble their parents, for example, and all sorts of physical and genetic characteristics are inherited over many generations within families. Even those characteristics which distinguish the various human racial groups from one another are due to shared genetic heritage.

While the effect of one's genetic heritage upon an individual's physical characteristics is obvious, the effect of genetics upon mental characteristics is just as real, although less immediately obvious. Actually, because the mental is a product of the physical, since the mind is the product of the brain, it should be rather unsurprising that there is a very real genetic predetermination of mental characteristics. Such predetermination of certain mental characteristics, within families and even within racial groups has been scientifically established.

It should be noted, however, that whereas certain physical aspects of an individual are essentially almost completely determined by genetics and are unable to be changed by conventional behaviors (bone structure is a good example of this) the brain is the physical organ which is by its very nature most amenable to change. Thus it is that genetic inheritance, in relation to certain aspects of the brain and mind, would be more accurately characterized as predisposition or tendency rather than a firm predetermination.

This is particularly the case for non-mystical and mystical thinking. Mystical thinking is a result of mental laziness and dishonesty, whereas non-mystical thinking is a result of mental diligence and honesty. Laziness and dishonesty are a result of volitional choice, just as diligence and honesty are. Other mental faculties, such as intelligence or creativity, for example, may work to assist or enhance the quality of one's mystical or non mystical thinking, but whether one's thinking is mystical or non-mystical is a result of volitional choice.

Judgments of an individual's level of mysticism or non-mysticism should never be based upon one's family, race, or other genetic characteristics. Because one's mode of thinking in this regard is ultimately a volitional choice, one can completely override any genetic bias toward or away from mysticism, and can create a “habit” of non-mystical, empiricorational thinking which becomes so ingrained as to become essentially automatic.

It is for this reason that education and cultural background are far more important than genetic heritage as determinants of an individual's level of mysticism or empiricorationality. Families which produce a greater proportion of highly rational individuals do so primarily because of a familial culture which values and promotes this type of thinking. Nations which produce a proportionally higher number of empiricorational individuals do so because of a national culture which values and promotes such thinking. Likewise, any culture (whether familial, national, or otherwise) which produces a proportionally higher number of mystical thinkers are those which value and promote mysticism. (Mystical religious cultures, for example, obviously tend to produce a proportionally much higher number of mystical, religious individuals, than non-mystical, non-religious cultures do.)

Culture and education thus far outstrip genetic heritage as a determinant of one's level of mysticism or empiricorationalism; furthermore, an individual's volitional choice to embrace mysticism or empiricorationalism can easily far outweigh both genetic heritage and cultural and educational factors. In the effort to create an enlightened, empiricorational society, genetics thus plays such an insignificant role as to be essentially a non-factor. To discriminate on the basis of genetic heritage, particularly with regard to judgments of mysticism or empiricorationalism, is completely misguided and absolutely wrong.

The only proper, productive and just means for promoting an enlightened, empiricorational society is through culture and education. Genetics plays far too small a part in determining one's bias towards or away from mysticism or empiricorationalism. The only recourse, then, is to create a cultural and educational environment in which mysticism is completely disvalued and in which empiricorationalism is prized. In such an environment, individuals will have the understanding to identify and differentiate between mysticism and empiricorationalism, will understand why mysticism is destructive and empiricorationalism is constructive, will understand why mysticism is against the interests of both the individual and society, and why empiricorationalism is in everyone's interest. In such an environment the vast majority would naturally make the choice to completely reject all mysticism and completely embrace empiricorationalism.

Just as “gene” is a term used for genetic information, “meme” is a term used for the informational content of beliefs, ideas, behaviors and styles which spread from person to person within a culture. Whereas “genetics” is a term used to refer to the study and manipulation of genes, “memetics” is a term used to describe the study and manipulation of memes. Memes can be spread in a wide variety of overlapping ways, but some of the most obvious would include: books, movies, music, politics, religion, personal interactions with others, and so on.

Memes can be empiricorational, mystical or essentially neutral. The greater the proportion of empiricorational memes which one has, the greater will one be able to resist “infection” by mystical memes; conversely, the more that one is already infected with mystical memes, the less receptive will one be to new empiricorational memes.

The Illuminati cannot effectively achieve our ends through anything like eugenics. Our goals are best achieved through enlightened “eumemics:” the spreading of beneficial memes throughout society, and the concomitant identification and elimination of harmful memes. This would ideally entail the direct promulgation of empiricorational memes, but due to the widespread mysticism which already infects the great majority of humanity, such a direct method is often ineffective. Thus it is that the Illuminati generally takes a dual approach: the spreading of eumystical memes to those who are over-infected with mysticisms (such as is done through the Gnostic-Illuminati) and the simultaneous spreading of non-mystical memes to those who are relatively free of mysticism (such as is done through the Scio-Illuminati).

The advent of the Internet has made such an approach quite easy. Mystics tend to seek out mystically oriented information, while empiricorationalists tend to seek out empiricorational information. It is inevitable.

Those who seek out mysticism will find it. The Gnostic-Illuminati creates endless volumes of of eumystical memes. These captivate and slowly turn the world’s current mystical majority away from destructive and exploitative mysticisms, by gradually replacing current mysticisms with newer and less harmful eumysticisms.

Those who seek out empiricorationalism will find it as well. A fully integrated empiricorational philosophy provides the necessary structural framework and tools for recognizing and rejecting all personal mysticisms, and for wielding powerful empiricorational control over their own lives. This entails a strict adherence to self-honesty, reality and reason, and is the ultimate form of non-mystical philosophical naturalism. Those who think and operate empiricorationally are the true bearers of the Light of Illumination, and will be Recognized as such.

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This is an evolving document; more to come….