Hi there, I would like to open a discussion about Social Engineering.
Now, most people, when thinking about SE, think about major upheaval that usually destabilise a society (such as a revolution). That is not my goal, I am talking about minor and delicate SE, which is aimed at changing the people's view of things & habits on the long run.
To simply show you a few examples of SE that affected the U.S.:
- You grew to think Liberals are automaticly a bad thing (well, at least many of you in JU)
- You grew to think that a man's right to have a gun should be inalienable
- You grew to think that a man should have his own success, and that if he wants, he can. (the actual american dream)
- You grew to think that anything patriotic is a good thing (I mean, I look at your politicians, your adds and others things, and I find it pretty cheesy. Doesn't it bother you to being told again and again to "Love your country"?)
- (a recent one) You grew to think that smoking is not a good thing (well, I don't know about USA. But in Qc, smokers are usually frown upon since 10 years)
etc..
In summary, all ways of thinking/acting typical in a culture is the result of Social Engineering, be it intentionnal or not.
First of all, I would like to ask to you: is intentionnal SE a good thing or not? Should peoples have the right to choose what people should think or add?
Second, I would like to ask you: If it is a good thing, who should decide which way the society should lean? Should the Governement? The Businesses? The Church? A mix of all three?
And on the other hand, who SHOULD NEVER be allowed any say in social engineering?
The Governement in some country have used social engineering (Soviet Union, for example. USA too, recently) to make the people either fear or love their country. In Quebec, our governement have made effort to make people despise cigarets in order to improve the people's health situation.
Businesses usually dabble in the minor SE, in order to influence people into buying their products. The largest-scale SE effort I ever saw is the Gun-lobby in the USA, with the NRA. (and before anybody accuse me of being a liberal faggot who hates guns, I am simply stating the facts, not judging them!). I mean, the NRA expend a lot of effort into making sure the people think their ways, so the gun market keeps selling at the best rate possible.
the principle of the Church is, by itself, SE. They thrive of it, they cannot live without it. A religion is, by definition, a SE-machine. They want you to think THEIR way. Because THEIR way is the right one. Usually, the religion will do it to either for populism aims, or to further their agenda. Sometimes, their agenda is to improve the birth rate of a population (Quebec's citizen have been influenced a lot by those, 50 years ago), or to simply keep themselves in power.
Comment, ask, answer, and criticize.
