The SNAFU principle
Mammalian sociobiology, rooted in the antique neural circuits of the the Emotional-Territorial Circuit, contains many factors opposing the evolution of domesticated primates into true freedom and objective intelligence. The chief of these “reactionary” factors are described by Robert Anton Wilson as the SNAFU Principle. It holds that communication is only possible between equals. Or more precisely, that adequate communication flows freely between equals. Communication between non-equals is warped and distorted by primative domination and submission instincts perpetuating communication jam and a Game Without End.
Political power, as a typical alpha male once said, grows out of the barrel of a gun. This is metaphorically as well as literally true. The “gun” may be symbolic and fairly abstract, consisting of rituallilzed social expectations (“Dont talk back to your father”) or concrete in a non-violent but deadly way, for example, the capacity to remove bio-survival by cutting off the ticket supply in a Capitalist society (“One more word and i’ll fire you, bumstead!”). Under such primate socio-biological rules, everybody tends to lie a little, to flatter or to evade displeaser, when exchanging signals with those above them in the pack hierarchy.
References
- Wilson, A., Robert. (1983). Prometheus Rising Chapter 16 The Snafu Principle (Location 2954). Grand Junction, Colorado: Hilaritas Press.
Metadata
Type:🔵 Tags: Psychology / Sociology / Neuroscience / Philosophy / Politics Status:☀️