| From: | The Deb Decker <RJR96326@****.UTULSA.EDU> |
|---|---|
| Subject: | Cyber Totems |
| Date: | Tue, 14 Sep 1993 01:58:47 -0500 |
>are rigid and structured. I suspect that they will be much more fluid,
>dynamic structures than they've ever been before. Of course, I could
>be wrong, but it follows that due to the power of shamans, at least a few
>of them would climb the corporate ladder, and shape the company in the
>image which they see as fitting.
I do not mean to say that corporations are rigid and unchanging. Even now, new
theories of management and approaches to the workplace are redfining the
office environment. Nonetheless, while shamans may be employed, they ill not
be found nearly as extensively as Hermetic Mages, for precisely the same
reasons outlined in my previous post. Shamans will follow totem first, and
corp second, and if I were a corp and knew that, I would be hesitant to
allow my shaman to be aware of anything important or secure, unless of
course he was simply amazing and proved his loyalty, looked good on
psych tests, etc. People can be bought; totems can't.
>I know this goes against the grain of the typical concept that all shamans
>are guys who live in lean-to's in the middle of the forest, or in hovels,
>and have absolutely no need for money. Tell that to the fetish-seller I
>just pawned my kidneys to. Some shamans, and presumably some totems,
>like the rewards of the material world as much as anyone else. Perhaps
>Squirrel, who is always caching away for the cold winter of recession.
>(You get my drift.)
True, not all shamans live the lifestyle of woodsy the owl. Shamanic magic
crosses cultural bounds. But this does not mitigate the fact that a shaman
folows his totem. Even if the totem values wealth, that will not secure
his services to a high-paying corp. What if the totem/shaman decides to
invest money in another corp (especially a rival!), hits it big and says
"shove it" to his employers to live the good life of an investor. I believe
that totems who value wealth will result in shamans who have the drive to
achieve wealth from their own initiative (starting their own company) rather
than living under the yoke and chain of another (the corporation).
J Roberson
Time heals all non-fatal wounds
