4 ms·

Whatever your normative beliefs, we do not live in unipolar world. Our options are constrained by our competition. If the west makes this technology illegal, we

Whatever your normative beliefs, we do not live in unipolar world. Our options are constrained by our competition. If the west makes this technology illegal, we will eventually be in conflict in a technological landscape we are too dull to comprehend. After which our laws, traditions and values will enter the history books.

igor47 7y ago
This argument can be used to create and justify a race to the bottom in any field. Whatever your normative beliefs, those people over there are barbarians and will destroy everything you care about unless you destroy it first. How do we break the cycle?
- ZhuanXia 7y ago
  That is a question so hard we need a genetically engineered supergenius to solve it: https://slatestarcodex.com/2014/07/30/meditations-on-moloch/ https://slatestarcodex.com/2014/07/30/meditations-on-moloch/
codesushi42 7y ago
Your claims sound no different than that of a proponent of eugenics in the early 20th century. And just as foolhardy.
- jlawson 7y ago
  This is like a parody of every content-free guilt-by-association argument I've ever seen. Zero attempt to engage issues, obviously incoherent comparison with half-real historical bogeymen backed up by no attempt at argumentation... And really, you think early eugenicists were afraid Africans would become smarter than them? A fallacious, inappropriate personal attack backed by implied, unjustified, blatantly wrong comparisons. Make an actual argument please.
- amfsn 7y ago
  Eugenics were crushed with violence, they weren't actually disproved.
ddingus 7y ago
Maybe. I actually do not believe it will be illegal. More likely, it will be abused, come with some unforeseen consequences, and diverse. Smarts will not be all that is attempted. Augmentation by combining biotech with electromechanical will happen too. There will be factions of various kinds. Who says We will have any meaningful control over the really smart augmented people, for example? They may mature, look around at the mess and have very different ideas on how this all goes. Should be a very interesting time.

igor47 7y ago

This argument can be used to create and justify a race to the bottom in any field. Whatever your normative beliefs, those people over there are barbarians and will destroy everything you care about unless you destroy it first. How do we break the cycle?

ZhuanXia 7y ago
That is a question so hard we need a genetically engineered supergenius to solve it: https://slatestarcodex.com/2014/07/30/meditations-on-moloch/ https://slatestarcodex.com/2014/07/30/meditations-on-moloch/

codesushi42 7y ago

Your claims sound no different than that of a proponent of eugenics in the early 20th century. And just as foolhardy.

jlawson 7y ago
This is like a parody of every content-free guilt-by-association argument I've ever seen. Zero attempt to engage issues, obviously incoherent comparison with half-real historical bogeymen backed up by no attempt at argumentation... And really, you think early eugenicists were afraid Africans would become smarter than them? A fallacious, inappropriate personal attack backed by implied, unjustified, blatantly wrong comparisons. Make an actual argument please.
amfsn 7y ago
Eugenics were crushed with violence, they weren't actually disproved.

ddingus 7y ago

Maybe. I actually do not believe it will be illegal. More likely, it will be abused, come with some unforeseen consequences, and diverse. Smarts will not be all that is attempted. Augmentation by combining biotech with electromechanical will happen too. There will be factions of various kinds. Who says We will have any meaningful control over the really smart augmented people, for example? They may mature, look around at the mess and have very different ideas on how this all goes. Should be a very interesting time.