Cultures of all kinds enable us to do different things we would be unable to accomplish through our own personal will and physical ability.
The !Kung, of the Kalahari desert in Africa, tribe's culture enables human being to live and thrive in the harsh environment of the Kalahari. A single human being would have a much harder time scratching out an existence in that environment than the millennia tested and tribally supported !Kung culture.
Cultures, (or sub-cultures), don't have to be beneficial though; there are numerous examples of cultures that permit their members to partake in things that are painful or dangerous to the individual. A crack-house is a good example. All the members in a crack-house form up a specific sub-culture, based on, obtaining, dealing, and using crack cocaine. The users in the house have their desire for crack enabled and put on a pedestal within their own sub-culture. In a sub-culture like this, even a distracting and life-draining habit like crack is accepted and made as the norm. Humanity's herd mentality need not always be used beneficially...
Although the crackhead culture enables individuals to harm themselves; consumer culture enables individuals to piddle their life away in trivial pursuits, while, focusing on distractions or apathy towards the damage their culture is causing to Earth and its biosphere.
Cultures, (or sub-cultures), don't have to be beneficial though; there are numerous examples of cultures that permit their members to partake in things that are painful or dangerous to the individual. A crack-house is a good example. All the members in a crack-house form up a specific sub-culture, based on, obtaining, dealing, and using crack cocaine. The users in the house have their desire for crack enabled and put on a pedestal within their own sub-culture. In a sub-culture like this, even a distracting and life-draining habit like crack is accepted and made as the norm. Humanity's herd mentality need not always be used beneficially...
On a lesser degree of destructiveness individually, but, more so, globally, Western consumerist culture enables people to feel accepted working 40+ hours a week in order to purchase lots of goods and services that they don't really need. People accept 5+ hours of mind-numbing TV as normal and wonder little about the effect advertising is having on their life. These people's workaholism and product fetishism is accepted as the norm even though working most jobs provides little good for the individual or society other than enabling them to partake in being an avid consumer.
Although the crackhead culture enables individuals to harm themselves; consumer culture enables individuals to piddle their life away in trivial pursuits, while, focusing on distractions or apathy towards the damage their culture is causing to Earth and its biosphere.
