4 ms·

Overall, the benefits from more transparency are huge, and far outweigh the drawbacks.

by badjeans 6y ago

lr4444lr 6y ago
To the collective maybe. Not to the individual.
- badjeans 6y ago
  Isn't a collective made up of individuals?
  - himinlomax 6y ago
    It's reverse insurance. With insurance, everyone pitches in so that no one is harmed irreparably. In this case, some people pay dearly for some (arguable) benefit to the collective.
dredmorbius 6y ago
It's interesting to read back over past discussion of this question. Among the more interesting academics is Herbert Simon, and his 1977 essay "What Computers Mean for Man and Society" makes a strong case for the positive impacts of increased utilisation of computer technology. It also specifically discusses the privacy concerns, in one paragraph. That, unfortunately for Simon's case, contains an egregious factual error, though one which may not have been known to Simon at the time: The Nazis operated with horrifying effectiveness and thoroughness without the benefits of any kind of mechanized data processing. Screenshot: https://mastodon.cloud/@dredmorbius/103059230160200494 https://mastodon.cloud/@dredmorbius/103059230160200494 Source: https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/a9e7/33e25ee8f67d5e670b3b7dc4b8c3e00849ae.pdf https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/a9e7/33e25ee8f67d5e670b3b7d... Unfortunately, we're now very well aware that this was not the case. Not only did Nazi German prosecute the Holocaust with the extensive aid of mechanised data processing technologies, but they did so using American technology, provided and supported, with full knowledge, by IBM: Edwin Black has documented this in his horrific book, IBM and the Holocaust (2012) https://ibmandtheholocaust.com https://ibmandtheholocaust.com https://www.worldcat.org/title/ibm-and-the-holocaust-the-strategic-alliance-between-nazi-germany-and-americas-most-powerful-corporation/oclc/966160844 https://www.worldcat.org/title/ibm-and-the-holocaust-the-str... To paraphrase Lord Acton, it appears that data corrupts, and absolute data corrupts absolutely.
- badjeans 6y ago
  I don't understand what you're trying to say. Did computers 'corrupt' the nazis? I'm pretty sure genocide predates IBM. Is 'computer technology' bad? If so, why are you here?
  - thrownaway954 6y ago
    stop gaslighting
    - badjeans 6y ago
      Sorry, what?
Haga 6y ago
I know what you did last summer.. But now with a knowledge power asymmetric twist.. To become dictator instead of the dictators.. For benevolent reasoning..

Overall, the benefits from more transparency are huge, and far outweigh the drawbacks.

lr4444lr 6y ago

To the collective maybe. Not to the individual.

badjeans 6y ago
Isn't a collective made up of individuals?
- himinlomax 6y ago
  It's reverse insurance. With insurance, everyone pitches in so that no one is harmed irreparably. In this case, some people pay dearly for some (arguable) benefit to the collective.

dredmorbius 6y ago

It's interesting to read back over past discussion of this question. Among the more interesting academics is Herbert Simon, and his 1977 essay "What Computers Mean for Man and Society" makes a strong case for the positive impacts of increased utilisation of computer technology. It also specifically discusses the privacy concerns, in one paragraph. That, unfortunately for Simon's case, contains an egregious factual error, though one which may not have been known to Simon at the time: The Nazis operated with horrifying effectiveness and thoroughness without the benefits of any kind of mechanized data processing. Screenshot: https://mastodon.cloud/@dredmorbius/103059230160200494 https://mastodon.cloud/@dredmorbius/103059230160200494 Source: https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/a9e7/33e25ee8f67d5e670b3b7dc4b8c3e00849ae.pdf https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/a9e7/33e25ee8f67d5e670b3b7d... Unfortunately, we're now very well aware that this was not the case. Not only did Nazi German prosecute the Holocaust with the extensive aid of mechanised data processing technologies, but they did so using American technology, provided and supported, with full knowledge, by IBM: Edwin Black has documented this in his horrific book, IBM and the Holocaust (2012) https://ibmandtheholocaust.com https://ibmandtheholocaust.com https://www.worldcat.org/title/ibm-and-the-holocaust-the-strategic-alliance-between-nazi-germany-and-americas-most-powerful-corporation/oclc/966160844 https://www.worldcat.org/title/ibm-and-the-holocaust-the-str... To paraphrase Lord Acton, it appears that data corrupts, and absolute data corrupts absolutely.

badjeans 6y ago
I don't understand what you're trying to say. Did computers 'corrupt' the nazis? I'm pretty sure genocide predates IBM. Is 'computer technology' bad? If so, why are you here?
- thrownaway954 6y ago
  stop gaslighting
  - badjeans 6y ago
    Sorry, what?

Haga 6y ago

I know what you did last summer.. But now with a knowledge power asymmetric twist.. To become dictator instead of the dictators.. For benevolent reasoning..