Counter Culture… Anti-Psychiatry… Freedom?.. |

I am fascinated by game theory and its affect on the system which underpins political theory, social structures, health care and so on. Through free market ideals, it drives our economy and society, encouraging us to act as individuals and serve our self interest in the hope that equilibrium and good for all will be the ultimate outcome. The theory distrusts people who claim to work for the public good, labelling their claims as a smoke screen for their true intentions. Public services from ministerial duties to health care are now built on a system of manageable mathematics, where its workers take control of their own working practice via performance related targets. Blinded by fulfilling those targets, good motivations and the purpose of their employment is obscured and even the targets are manipulated hiding the true quality of work and often failing to reflect it honestly. The theory therefore deeply affects human behaviour through encouraging distrust in human judgements and asks that we stay permenantly distrustful of those who claim to do good. The models extend in to mental health where individuals are assessed by a check list and judged against a specturm of a predetermind level of “normality”. The system fails to take in to account the reasons behind any problems and instead choses to use medication or CBT to re-wire the connections and altering what makes that person, them. The system medicalises natural human responses encouraging more and more people to seek acceptance within the calculated “norm” even when no problem exists. The interconnected sub-reality of all these factors intrigues me as game theory ultimately feeds in to and is reflected by everything from art, design and even personal interactions. Art and design has an oppurtunity to hold a mirror up to itself and use the consumerist system it serves to undo much of the damage through liberation by informing.

Bland, boxed, labelled, incapable of feeling and drugged to keep you smiling. You are not yourself.

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=rHMs-M3IBHc&NR=1

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=j-wMP2Q0Ifs

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=QA55j-zYOHs&NR=1

R. D. Laing

Quotes:

http://laingsociety.org/biblio/quotations.htm

http://thinkexist.com/quotes/r._d._laing/

http://thinkexist.com/quotes/r._d._laing/2.html

Politics of experience:

http://evans-experientialism.freewebspace.com/laing.htm

Laing: