Re: virus: Cigarettes

Robin Faichney (r.j.faichney@stir.ac.uk)
Thu, 7 Aug 1997 10:07:00 +0100


Tony Hindle wrote:
>In message <33E701D7.2A6@tripod.net>, Drakir <Drahcir@tripod.net>
writes
>>Eric Boyd wrote:
>>
>>> People don't light up becuase they have been brain washed by the
tobacco
>>> co's ideas and memes. They light up becuase they make a decision to
do
>>> so.
>>
>>Spot on. I didn't even start smoking because of tobacco ads. I
didn't
>>pick the brand I smoke because of tobacco ads. It was just what I
>>wanted to do, and I'm sure there was some peer-influence (I wouldn't
>>call it pressure).
>
> Have you two heard yourselves? you are spewing out exactly the
>sort of shit that Tobacco plc program for. You could say the same thing
>about Nike etc. this question is now screaming out to be answered
>
> WHY DOES TOBACCO PLC SPEND MONEY ON THEIR MEMETIC CAMPAGN.
>
> The market share argument is just another one of their memes.

Right. In fact, it's neo-classical economic dogma that desires are
intrinsic, and only preferences are affected by advertising. <Desire>
and <preference> are defined by economists to make this a
conceptual truth. In real life, it's not possible to distinguish
between
desire and preference in that way. Real minds are far too complex.

Sometimes it seems like when advertisers or their tobacco exec
employers are challenged on grounds of morality, and they trot out
the standard econo-dogma, they're so thoroughly infected by the
<desire> and <preference> econo-mutations that they believe it
themselves. But even if they do, that just makes them
self-deceiving moral trash, IMNSHO.

>If
>they were all forbidden from engaging in memetic warefare then they
>would all retain their market share WITHOUT ADVERTISING COSTS. They
>should therefore be pleased with this.

Well, they could say that they want to increase market share,
but that doesn't invalidate any of the other points made here.

>they are not because the real
>reason they spend money on memetic campagns is to create new markets.
>Watch out Asia they are comming, and your corrupt/niave leaders are
>welcoming them with open arms.

And that's probably the most important point of the lot.

Robin