How memes will change the future

What is the change?
Memes have changed the world. The harmless internet frog, Pepe, was turned into a political force in the past election. Memes have evolved from random cute pictures of cats to representing the ideas of millions of people and communicating their experiences.

Why and how does this change arise?

This change arises naturally, through the use of social media. Memes develop almost monthly, and people spread them all over until they die out and they come up with a new meme. Even advertising companies use them on their social media. Bagel bites being one dank example. 

 

What do you see in the world to make you think this change might be coming?

Memes have been banned in certain schools and even countries, some schools banning the mighty pepe and other things, Russia has banned memes that depict a public figure in a negative way, and a Mexican lawmaker proposed a ban on memes that mock Mexican lifestyle. I don't know how it went over in Russia (thousands of meme makers were probably found dead next to their body pillow waifus), but in Mexico it was met with laughter and memes being made of the persons how proposed it.

Im gonna put links so the power of memes can be seen

Spain moves to ban memes:

Russia:

Mexico:

Everyone knows memes. You show someone a rage comic, they'll be confused as to why you're showing them a meme from 2009. Everyone knows bad memes like damn daniel, or Joe Biden memes. Many people will call dogs “doggos”, the meme term for them. And by people, I mean younger people. Like really young, first half of your twenties young. Older people have no idea how memes work, and then you get cringy moments like Hillary Clinton dabbing or saying the Pokemon “go to the polls” thing. People won't get it because they didn't grow up with it. maybe this is a good thing. You wont get the government using memes to control us or something, because everyone there is too old.

Is this largely beneficial, or detrimental for human beings? Who benefits, who is hurt?

I think it depends on the way that they are used. They could be used to spread propaganda, or be harmless. Memes can take the form of internet rumors and hoaxes. For example, we have the many 4chan pranks. We have #cancelFathersDay, convincing people to drop their phones, microwave their phones,and rick rolling people.But a meme itself isnt that powerful until it is given power (like pepe). Never forget the time he became the center of attention in the election.

How likely do you think this is to actually happen?

I don't think you're gonna get scifi stories about a guy who makes memes or something. But we have scifi like Necromancer, a guy who goes around hacking. I'm on the part with the panther guys, so I'm not that far in. But memes like pepe (I've mentioned pepe like 20 times) become a rallying force for people. Once the whole pepe-nazi-symbol thing started, people went wild from
a) confusion as to why he was being labeled a hate symbol even though the year before people were posting "rare pepes"

b) laughter bc they thought it was silly

c) even more confusion because they didnt know what a meme was

Another example would be Harambe. The gorilla that died and then went on to live in meme kingdom. Over the summer you saw Harambe all over the place, and then when the meme died you saw "this meme is dead all over the place. So due to the flexibility that memes have to be symbols and spreaders of ideas, it is very likely that memes wil coninue to have a deep impact in our lives.