Of Memes and Emojis

It has been several weeks since my last offering, but life has a funny way of happening, especially when you're not paying attention or are engaged in a number of other activities that require your attention.  Despite all the activity that has been going on, I have been pondering what I should discuss on this blog.  The obvious would be all the political events that have been happening across the world, especially in the United States, since that is where I reside.  Or perhaps, focus on celebrities and how nauseating it is to have individuals place them on such high pedestals.  I admit, there are some I like, just as there are politicians, but I think we as a society need to stop placing such importance on people who don't necessarily have our best interests at heart.  Anyway, that is another topic for another day.  What I wish to focus on today, is the 'meme culture.'

So this may not be the most important topic of the day, but it has been something that I've thought about for quite sometime.  Everyone of us can name a meme of varying popularity catapulted into the spotlight and causing a stir for any length of time.  Of course, some may cause us to roll our eyes, while others can become, more or less, politicized.  I would be lying if I denied liking any of them.  Some I thought particularly clever and would share with my friends or other social media platforms because it was just so well executed.  But perhaps we should take a look at these memes in light of their impact upon society and how we've been largely driven by them.  Now, those that create them I would deem as being creative, intelligent, and definitely lucky.  So credit must be given where credit is due.

Human beings use their senses to take in the world around them.  This is, of course, a fact that hardly needs to be mentioned.  When it comes to being online, the senses we most often use are sight and hearing, especially since the average user is bombarded with so much stimuli, regardless of what the user is engaging in.  Now, when that user sees or uses an emoji, they understand exactly what they mean and so does everyone else.  It is a means of communicating how one feels in regards to whatever subject they are interested in.  Whether I'm right or wrong, it seems to me that the emoji is the progenitor of the 'meme.'  A meme is something that any internet user is familiar with and usually stems from some sort of pop culture moment that captured the imagination of a number of other internet users.

Like an emoji, the meme is used as a means of expression.  But it goes one step further.  Rather than a simple feeling, it gives us a higher level of complexity.  For all intents and purposes, it was like the emoji evolved into a more complex organism.  Quite fascinating when one thinks about it.  The meme has far more expressive power than just a simple emoji ever will.  Degrees of interpretation are seemingly endless and vary across political, ethnic, social, and cultural arenas.  It truly is astounding how one moment, one artistic rendering can impact so many individuals in so many different ways.  It makes me wonder what the next phase of expression is going to be, once the meme is no longer as popular.

However, while it has enabled us to communicate thoughts and ideas, it is still has its limitations as far as expression is concerned.  One of the topics that is most important to me is language and since I am an English speaker, you can guess which language is of highest import to me.  While we have all these means to express ourselves in such a visual way, we, as a society and culture, must not be so quick and callous to drop the beauty of the written and spoken word.  What I mean here is that the language is being further degraded and most individuals do not value it as they should.  We are far more interested.in the quick pleasure of a visual moment than the immense beauty of a word chosen carefully by a writer, poet, playwright, songwriter, or what have you.

I am not saying that we need to quit using memes as a means of communication. They are important, especially in a world that demands our constant attention and sometimes a well placed meme can make a conversation a bit more exciting.  Perhaps what I wish for, is that the language we use as a primary means of communicating with each other doesn't get lost in the sporadic highs and lows of the next big pop culture phenomenon.

Knowledge, Information, and Power

We have all heard the phrase, "Knowledge is power."  It has always struck me as a curious phrase, because I always wondered what knowledge and power actually meant.  Of course, being human, we have our own definitions of what that means, regardless of what the dictionary defines it as.  Of course, both are meaningless without information to lend its credence to both.  Both knowledge and power are tied to the usefulness of the information provided.  The higher the quality of information provided the better it is for all interested parties.  Those interested in the data will use it to promote their own interests and perhaps those that they have a natural affinity for.  For those that wish to remain in powerful positions or be seen as the best in their field of interest, it becomes a tool that, with proper manipulation, can do much to enhance their influence.

Information is then something pure and remains unadulterated by the human mind(s) observing it.  After a proper period of vetting, it then becomes something resembling knowledge.  This process is very much like the scientific method, which imposes a set of steps to test this information.  For those unfamiliar with the method, it begins with an observation of a phenomena and a series of tests are performed to test the validity of not only the hypothesis about the information, but a number of conclusions as well.  Politics works in a similar fashion, since those that are in such positions long to hold onto those positions of influence for as long as possible.  With a proper handling of information and knowledge of when and how it should be disseminated, it can then be given to others when they deem fit. 

Knowledge and power mean different things to different people, depending upon the motivations of the individual or the group that is being represented by that individual.  Members of the elite will then desire it as a means of great influence and support for their respective positions.  Since there are few people who wish to be deemed as a laughingstock to others, having a monopoly on how information should be interpreted is of the highest importance.  After all, how can you have a continuing influence over an individual or group if you continually show that you have an improper means of manipulating information?  This is why comedians are of such import.  They understand, for the most part, the information being observed and present in such a way that is accessible to people who have an impediment in understanding the data before them.

People who are not in positions of great influence see information as a possible data set that could be used by their progeny to increase survival rates in the species.  If a certain phenomena is observed and it has a benefit to the individual that discovers it, then it is potentially incorporated into something to enhance viability.  For instance, finding information about a celebrity divorce or marriage adds nothing to the lives of the individual viewing it.  In short, such information is of little substantive value and will shortly be forgotten due to its lack of application.  However, learning about a new technique of gardening that enhances the output of say, tomatoes, is of greater use and might be passed along to that individuals progeny.

So information can be manipulated to suit whoever or whatever the interest or motivation of the individual is.  If an individual is in a position of great power, than it would behoove them to have tighter constraints on the ebb and flow of data that finds its way to the average individual.  The more control that is exerted over that, the more likely they are able to create a society of subservient individuals, beholden to the wishes and whims of the governing elite.  Those that hold knowledge in the highest esteem are similar in that respect, but to my mind, they become like magicians.  They showcase their ability to manipulate information and present it in such a way that it impresses the layperson.  But like any person, they can either use their sharp minds for good of for evil, depending on the methodology of manipulation and what their goals are.

This is why something like WikiLeaks is of such great importance to the powers that be and to the laymen.  It presents information that has not been manipulated by another force and leaves it up to the individual, of varying degrees of intellect, to decipher for him or herself its importance.  For those that wish to maintain their own monopoly on knowledge and power, this is a dangerous proposition.  Once they lose their grip on this information, whatever it is, their control is significantly diminished and to the average individual, who may or may not have held them in high esteem, their control is less than what it had been before.  That means that if we as individuals fail to use this opportunity to think, to learn, and to live life as purposefully as possible, then we have only ourselves to blame when we find ourselves in fetters once again.