Cultural Defragmentation

How often does your system upgrade?

While many of the software programs which run our lives are upgraded on a weekly basis, many people operate on mental programming that is decades, and sometimes centuries old.

While this analogy includes outdated mental programs like racism, sexisim, and classism… I’m witing this piece to illustrate how outdated programming persists because of systemic designs which oppress upgrades. Even worse, some cultural programming takes on superficial evolution while preserving outdated core components.

While programs are designed with certain logic,

widespread use reveals flaws and opportunities within the code and protocols.

Because of this, software is in a continuous state of “Kaizen”. While apps and programs are competing against each other, struggling to maintain an edge — to avoid bugs, there is a macro-evolution that takes place within technology as all sectors aggregate their advancements. This cooperation within competition is the driving force behind exponential technological developments (described in Moore’s Law).

Conscious Evolution vs. Trial and Error

“Unfortunately, while we might prefer our technology to embody the most advanced programming available, our approach to culture is much more “live and let live”… which, ultimately, leads to a cultural developments derived from trial and error — not empirical reasoning”.

The easiest way to describe this is parenting

That’s right, the most hallowed institution, parenting, is the leading source of social stagnation, regression, and inequality.

While we require our stylists, hazmat specialists, and lifeguards to pass certification programs in an attempt to uphold procedural standards and industry quality, our parenting philosophy is emphatically laissez faire.

The opposition to parent training is understandable. Who wants to be told how to raise their children?

But, this reflexive opposition to the most fundamental forms of parental standardization is counterintuitive as, say, a resistance to the use of the alphabet or fitting with the programming metaphor: Python Code.

While some people become so fond of a program that they resist upgrades (Windows XP?), eventually, the system becomes inoperable in a world of exponential technological advancement.

The same goes for parenting. Even those who have a conscious opposition to the way they were parented — they unconsciously carry many aspects of their experience into their act of parenting.

It’s unusual: we are often eager to have “experts” to shape our lives. We want the best engineers to make our vehicles safe. We want the best programmers to make our software smooth and user friendly. Yet, we dismiss “parenting experts”.

“Nobody’s perfect. Let me do it my way.”

While this sensitivity is understandable, it is the root of most social problems. For, if we appreciated the grave responsibility that is parenting… we would not simply allow the majority of parents to “simply wing it”.

It’s Not Just Parenting

The regressive forces of ego, individuality, and tradition are not limited to parenting. These forces are strong in the most “progressive” and “empirical” of institutions.

Businesses and Colleges find themselves mired in old operating habits which undermine the very objectives of the institutions.

[I find, at this moment, I lack the personal graphic skills necessary to illustrate these principles. Relying heavily as I am on the metaphors of corrupted data and defragmentation, the stock photos fail to shed light on the human system in a helpful way. If you are an artist and feel compelled by this subject matter, let me know!]

Appreciating this need for graphic illustration, I’m going to cut this note short.

Some of my notes are below,

please add your comments on suggestions which might help in the completion of this piece.

Slow laws… slow culture shift…

This is not against tradition (antifragile heuristics)

infinite choice is, in many ways, limiting