> I am surprised at the word religion being used so readily in this group. Is
>this based on memetics? Am I to understand this use of the word religion to
>be simply a memetic vehicle for bringing people like us together and
>perpetuating our thinking.? How should I view the word "religion" in this
>group?
I think you have it essentially right. Though the definition of religion
is notoriously hard to nail down, I think you can get a reasonable idea
by looking at its functional roles: it's an expression of a set of beliefs,
a repository of accumulated knowledge and wisdom, a "place" to go for
answers to difficult questions, and a supporting community of people that
share these beliefs. At least that what I think a religion *should* be;
the existence of Virus can be traced to the fact that I believe all
other religions fail in the knowledge, wisdom and answers roles.
-- David McFadzean dbm@merak.com Memetic Engineer http://www.merak.com/~dbm/ Merak Projects Ltd.