From: Thomas Buckner (tcbevolver@yahoo.com)
Date: Sat Jun 04 2005 - 04:45:07 MDT
--- Marc Geddes <marc_geddes@yahoo.co.nz> wrote:
> I thought the topic of AI/Singularity was
> fascinating, but I've only ever been looking
> into it as a fun hobby. I thought the list
> might be a fun place to throw out the odd wild
> idea. Most of my ideas were of course,
> probably complete crap, but you never know.
>
>
>
> I say, if you want a better world ya gotta work
> through the democratic process and stop being
> silly. If, speaking purely hypothetically,
> there ever was some sort of dispute between an
> A.I researcher and the United States Government
> for instance, I have to declare that I would be
> firmly on the side of the democratically
> elected United States Government and *not* on
> the side of the A.I researchers.
>
>
>
> I know this may seem like a bit of a silly post
> to some, but in the past I've been the sort of
> person who tended to blurt out wild ideas
> without thinking. It was all meant to be
> purely hypothetical and in fun O.K? It wasn't
> meant to be serious. And that goes for all my
> posts about Singularity/AI. I'm inclined to
> think that no one would really imagine that I
> was serious. I'm just a hobbyist, not a
> serious A.I researcher. But just on the
> off-chance that someone did take some of my
> postings a *tinny* bit seriously, I have to put
> in this silly sounding disclaimer.
>
I have not previously attacked you in this forum.
However, if you actually believe what you are
saying right now, and are not saying it under
duress (are you?) then you are a fool. The United
States government is no longer democratically
elected, and 'working within the system' has in
the last generation only worked for those who
were subverting it, and they don't care about
future generations. If you want proof, I can
inundate you with it offlist.
For this and other reasons, what is being
discussed here is of existential importance to
the human race, and nobody knows for sure how to
handle it.
Me, I only respond when I think I can say
something useful that perhaps nobody else will.
This is rare, so I speak little.
Thus I don't object if you stick your neck out on
arcana; it's your affair, and if others get hot
and bothered over it, that is their affair. Hey,
it's a tough room. Says so right on the door. To
assert, however, that A:) 'it's not that
important' and B:) 'the proper authorities will
handle it', then I must shout wrong! and wrong
again!, and on the most basic Futurism 101
questions. Rather a thousand good-natured wild
guesses than one whiff of such fatal complacency.
Courage, man!
Tom Buckner
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