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MichaelVassar comments on Reason as memetic immune disorder - Less Wrong
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I agree with everything you say, but you vascillate between somewhat contradictory positions: that the default is to have disconnected beliefs; or that the default is to have particular "antibodies" preventing action on particular "beliefs." Could you elaborate on this?
I do agree that both are important phenomena. I think the default is disconnected beliefs. I'm not clear on the prevalence and role of "antibodies." Maybe they're just for over-verbal nerds infected with the Enlightenment. But I think they're more general.
Maybe the default is disconnected beliefs and actions driven by imitation. New religions tell people that they shouldn't base their actions on imitation of their local authorities, forcing them back on nominal beliefs and forcing them to make inferences.
Why don't they just imitate the missionary? Surely, the missionary communicates "be like me," not "be different from them"? I guess it could be only the over-verbal converts who notice that menstruating women have cooties. They might make good stories without being representative. But there is the general principle that converts are more observant; are they radically more observant, or do they merely find more observant people to imitate? (if the latter, why?)
Or maybe (just speculating) "I too am a sinner; I am merely a bringer of good news; look to God, not to me".