From: Thomas Buckner (tcbevolver@yahoo.com)
Date: Sat Aug 14 2004 - 15:27:33 MDT
--- Marc Geddes <marc_geddes@yahoo.co.nz> wrote:
> I've gotten some extremely harsh and disturbing
> comments back from various (non-transhumanist)
> people
> since posting that philosophical platform on my
> web-site.
(snip)
> I'm mystified as to why I should get such a
> reaction.
> Is there really anything in the piece I wrote
> which
> even remotely suggests 'fascism'?
Not from what I know of your writing. Your ideas
closely track mine. 'Fascist' just happens to be
one of the heavier semantic sticks you can beat
someone with even if their views/actions have no
relation to Mussolini's 'corporate state' or any
of its ideological descendants. On the other
hand, one is often not believed when one uses
this word seriously (when I use this word
referring to the people presently running the
United States, I have to make a special point of
saying that I have read up on fascism in
encyclopedia articles and books and that I am
referring to real historical and ideological
influences and parallels).
> I have to wonder whether most people can
> actually
> handle the truth.
No, most cannot. Brainwashing is REAL, and
widespread. Most do not realize this.
>Will human irrationality
> prevent a
> successful Singularity from ever occuring?
> Will the
> 'mob' one day storm the offices of Sing Inst?
> I'm
> sorry to say that I now think that that is a
> very
> definite possibility :-(
>
> Eli and co need to be careful. Very careful.
> I've
> tried to point this out repeatibly. The
> 'truth' is a
> very dangerous thing to actually state too much
> of.
> I'm increasingly beginning to realize that most
> humans
> are NOT rational beings. They run mainly on
> emotion.
> It's kinda been a depressing realization for
> me.
Me too. I have read in a new Kurt Vonnegut essay,
"Albert Einstein and Mark Twain gave up on the
human race at the end of their lives, even though
Twain hadn’t even seen World War I."
URL:
http://www.inthesetimes.com/site/main/article/i_love_you_madame_librarian/
(Snip)
> So what I would say to you guys at Sing Inst as
> advise
> for the future: Be careful. Be tactful. Be
> 'economical with the truth' if you have it.
> Don't let
> nativity about human nature ruin your chances
> of
> pulling off a successful Singularity.
You must mean 'naivete'. I don't use
spell-checkers much because they're context-dumb.
I have had the same thought.
Where we stand now, as I see it:
A
fascist/oligarchist/klepto-theo-cratic/choose-yer-own-word
clique has taken over the United States and other
nations. Soon it will have surveillance
capability, etc. to crush any resistance. 1984
forever, or until we're extinct (50% chance by
2100 AD according to Sir Martin Rees). Chances
are good that only a SAI can head off this
dictatorship, and save our asses, if that's what
it wants. The mob will arrive 5 min. after the
fascists (or other demagogues) figure this out.
I've written about a tenth of a novel about a
sandboxed FAI taking on the repressive State for
all the marbles. Wonder if I should delete it?
What you think?
Tom Buckner
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