this cargocult analysis
is its bottom-up originality
squeezed out of direct confrontation
with media stupidity
so i thought blogs that linked it
might be worth sifting
(what i don't like about it
is its bottom-up contingency
lacking top-down necessity)
[numbering mostly added]
I. Ignorance is innocence
cf eg "zen mind, beginner's mind"
open lack-of-prejudice can be angelic
the 1st time you try bowling you may get a strike
but "Forrest Gump" was sentimentally dishonest
(also "Being There")
we may deserve a world where
innocence effortlessly triumphs
but we've never had one
IA. Complicated explanations are suspect
g spencer brown would defend this one
if the intuition senses
a simpler way
it has the right and duty
to reject the too-complex one
IA1. The world is simple, and there must be a simple explanation for everything.
isn't this an explicit variant
on the anthropic principle?
IB. Certainty is strength, doubt is weakness
IB1. Admitting alternatives is undermining one's own belief.
IB2. Changing one's mind means one has wasted the time spent holding the
prior opinion.
Your opinion matters as much as anyone else's
When a person has studied a topic, he has no more real
knowledge than you do, just a hidden agenda.
The herd should be followed
The contemplative lemming gets trampled
Popular beliefs must be true.
No bad idea can survive.
People are generally smart.
Even if a popular belief doesn't pan out, at least you'll be in the
same boat as everyone else.
II. Causality is selectable
All interconnection is apparent
Otherwise, complicated explanations would be necessary.
The end supports the explanation of the means
A successful person's explanation of the means of his
success is highly credible by the very fact of his success.
You can succeed by emulating the purported behavior of successful
people
This is the key to the cargo cult. To enjoy the
success of another, just mimic the rituals he claims to follow.
Your idol gets the blame if things don't work out, not you.
You have a right to your share
You get to define your share.
Your share is the least you will accept without crying injustice.
Celebrate getting more than your share.
III. It's not your fault
If it's good for you, it's good
Society is everyone else.
Good intentions suffice
You can always apologize.
There is no long term
Don't miss an opportunity.
Consequences are things that happen to others
Only you can hold yourself accountable. Don't let
others make you do that.
If somebody starts the blame game, you can still win it.
There are evil people and institutions, and surely one of them is more
responsible than you are.
You are not the problem
An ugly image means a bad mirror.
IV. Death is unnatural
You're special
Bad things shouldn't happen to you.
Pain is wrong
Life should not hurt.
It's a Whiffle World.
Tragedy is a synonym for calamity
Bad things are never consequences of one's own action or
inaction.
There will be justice
Bad people get punished.
You, however, will be forgiven.
