13
ever
ything. The one notion they concurred on enthusiastically was
that bureaucratic agencies--such as government
departments--mindlessly and inexorably attempt to increase their
power, their budget, and their size. Like hungry amoebas, social
groups have an automatic desire to grow.
Schlesinger and Buckley had noticed a mechanism that guides
the behavior of every kind of social pack, from a cluster of converts in a
brand new religion to the followers of a fresh scientific idea or the
patriotic citizens of a state. Jeffrey S. Wicken, of Penn State University,
feels that this hunger is characteristic of all evolving complexes of
components--from genes and memes to massive ecological systems.
He says, "for any evolving system, innovations and strategies that focus
resources into the system, while at the same time stabilizing the web of
energetic interconnections of that system, will be selected for."20
Superorganisms are hungry creatures, attempting to break down
the boundaries of their competitors, chew off chunks of their
opponents' substance and digest and redistribute it as part of
themselves. Human conglomerations have an advantage over those of
other species, for in their voracity they are driven by two henchmen:
the meme and the animal brain.
Egged on by its co-conspirators, the ravenous voice of a
superorganism calls out to charismatic men and women. Disguised as
revelation or inspiration, it has spoken to humans as diverse as
Mohammed, St. Paul, Moses, Hitler, Joan of Arc, Mahatma Gandhi,
Saddam Hussein, Lenin and the Ayatollah Khomeini. Its message
varies. But under the many disguises is one imperative: gather a group
together and awaken them with my words. Take all those who find
themselves in the condition which I describe and weld them into a
mighty force which will impose its dominion on a large swatch of the
world.
The voice of the superorganism calls out to those on a lower level
as well. To them, it dictates sacrifice. The converts have a sublime
perception of truth and feel caught up in a frenzied oneness with some
<< < GO > >>