The spread of a successful but pernicious meme, especially one thAT parasitises the victims into giving their all to propagATe it. Astrology, BASIC, and the other guy' s religion are often considered to be examples. This usage is given point by the historical fact thAT "joiner" ideologies like Naziism or various forms of millennarian Christianity have exhibited plague-like cycles of exponential growth followed by collapses to small reservoir populATions. [Jargon File] (1996-08-11)