Taboo subjects in tribalism
Why do people join these social-political communities you might call tribes? I proposed at last weekend's FREE tribalism conference some fairly taboo subjects, like religion and sex. On religion, I argued that tribes serve many of the purposes that churches always have; indeed some of the conference participants saw religion as a key way that people tribalize themselves.
I also admitted that in the past, I've wished I was a better member of something you might call the eco-warrior tribe. Because I was so attracted to some of those women. And I figured if I showed myself to be a better member of their tribe, I would be more likely to succeed with them. It's embarrassing to admit I felt this way at any time after about eighth grade. But it's true. I suspect it's true for a lot of people. (To coin a phrase, I don't think you can ever go broke underestimating the maturity of the general public.)
I'm sure this sort of thing happens in all tribes. It's probably been justifiably ignored, but probably some Queer Theory academic has published an impenetrable study on homoeroticism in Rush Limbaugh fans.
By this point in the conference, participants had overcome our own tribal boundaries to have some provocative, yet civil, discussions. In self-congratulatory mode, I proposed that this was because we were uniquely mature, beyond such insecure notions. Unfortunately, if that's true, it doesn't really help our conference come up with ways to overcome tribal boundaries in society as a whole. It's just that everybody needs a big shot of maturity. Sigh.
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I also admitted that in the past, I've wished I was a better member of something you might call the eco-warrior tribe. Because I was so attracted to some of those women. And I figured if I showed myself to be a better member of their tribe, I would be more likely to succeed with them. It's embarrassing to admit I felt this way at any time after about eighth grade. But it's true. I suspect it's true for a lot of people. (To coin a phrase, I don't think you can ever go broke underestimating the maturity of the general public.)
I'm sure this sort of thing happens in all tribes. It's probably been justifiably ignored, but probably some Queer Theory academic has published an impenetrable study on homoeroticism in Rush Limbaugh fans.
By this point in the conference, participants had overcome our own tribal boundaries to have some provocative, yet civil, discussions. In self-congratulatory mode, I proposed that this was because we were uniquely mature, beyond such insecure notions. Unfortunately, if that's true, it doesn't really help our conference come up with ways to overcome tribal boundaries in society as a whole. It's just that everybody needs a big shot of maturity. Sigh.
To receive these posts via email, write to johnclaytonoutreach-subscribe@yahoogroups.com. (You need not put any text in the message.)
