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We’re living in a cyberpunk dystopia. Fiction of the past (1984, blade runner) were exaggerated extrapolations of the path we have been on. The path was clear

We’re living in a cyberpunk dystopia. Fiction of the past (1984, blade runner) were exaggerated extrapolations of the path we have been on. The path was clear then and it’s clear now. Nothing has changed.

hutzlibu 6y ago
But for a real dystopia we do have quite some freedom and wealth. (That means, if the lockdowns go away at some point. If not, well, then yes. Total dystopia. Everything private total restricted, only corporate and state buisness allowed. Peoples private life only exist in virtual realities) edit: everything is relative. I was born in east germany. A state where I would not have been allowed to openly say my opinion, or drive 30 km with my bycicle to the west or south, from where I live, as I would have been arrested or literally shot back then. Pretty dystopian in comparison. Also, people in north korea can say something today, about what dystopian feels like. That means, no they cannot, while they are there.
- KittenInABox 6y ago
  I don't know if we have freedom and wealth as correlated to happiness and fulfillment in life, however. And that's precisely what the cyberpunk genre originally was created as a commentary on- the ability to have so much advancement and also so much misery.
  - hutzlibu 6y ago
    Hm, but who is we? Society on average? Well, I guess by the amount of prescribed happy pills, probably yes. But I guess it will be hard to meassure, if past generations were really happier. In any case, with freedom and wealth you can build up and life alternatives today. There are quite some people out there trying this, with various success.
    - Fnoord 6y ago
      Happy pills were literally in Brave New World. Metaverse, aspect of Snow Crash, is basically like MMOs such as World of Warcraft or Second Life, but once Facebook goes 3D (and to me the question is when with AR/VR), its more akin to Facebook. Wealth is so unevenly distributed that some people have 3 jobs just to pay their rent, whereas others buy their entire street's housing just to have a privacy while being the CEO of one of the worst private collection companies in the world (Facebook).
      - hutzlibu 6y ago
        Yep, but they were mandatory there. Are they mandatory for you? Kind of a big difference.
        disconcision 6y ago
        soma was not mandatory in bnw
        KittenInABox 6y ago
        Medication can be mandatory, absolutely.
        mercer 6y ago
        I find 'mandatory' to be a bit of a blurry concept, knowing what we know now about the malleability and susceptibility to various 'mind viruses' that we humans have. Sure, it's definitely important to acknowledge the difference, but it's also important to realize that we are not rational creatures that use our freedom well when there are all sorts of well-crafted 'hacks' applied to our brains on a constant basis. I think Cyberpunk understandably covers these themes with underline, highlight, and big red circles. Narratively it's easier to exaggerate. But it's really just shades of gray between being forced to take a happy pill, and being told, explicitly or not, by experts, friends and family that you should do so.

hutzlibu 6y ago

But for a real dystopia we do have quite some freedom and wealth. (That means, if the lockdowns go away at some point. If not, well, then yes. Total dystopia. Everything private total restricted, only corporate and state buisness allowed. Peoples private life only exist in virtual realities) edit: everything is relative. I was born in east germany. A state where I would not have been allowed to openly say my opinion, or drive 30 km with my bycicle to the west or south, from where I live, as I would have been arrested or literally shot back then. Pretty dystopian in comparison. Also, people in north korea can say something today, about what dystopian feels like. That means, no they cannot, while they are there.

KittenInABox 6y ago
I don't know if we have freedom and wealth as correlated to happiness and fulfillment in life, however. And that's precisely what the cyberpunk genre originally was created as a commentary on- the ability to have so much advancement and also so much misery.
- hutzlibu 6y ago
  Hm, but who is we? Society on average? Well, I guess by the amount of prescribed happy pills, probably yes. But I guess it will be hard to meassure, if past generations were really happier. In any case, with freedom and wealth you can build up and life alternatives today. There are quite some people out there trying this, with various success.
  - Fnoord 6y ago
    Happy pills were literally in Brave New World. Metaverse, aspect of Snow Crash, is basically like MMOs such as World of Warcraft or Second Life, but once Facebook goes 3D (and to me the question is when with AR/VR), its more akin to Facebook. Wealth is so unevenly distributed that some people have 3 jobs just to pay their rent, whereas others buy their entire street's housing just to have a privacy while being the CEO of one of the worst private collection companies in the world (Facebook).
    - hutzlibu 6y ago
      Yep, but they were mandatory there. Are they mandatory for you? Kind of a big difference.
      - disconcision 6y ago
        soma was not mandatory in bnw
      - KittenInABox 6y ago
        Medication can be mandatory, absolutely.
      - mercer 6y ago
        I find 'mandatory' to be a bit of a blurry concept, knowing what we know now about the malleability and susceptibility to various 'mind viruses' that we humans have. Sure, it's definitely important to acknowledge the difference, but it's also important to realize that we are not rational creatures that use our freedom well when there are all sorts of well-crafted 'hacks' applied to our brains on a constant basis. I think Cyberpunk understandably covers these themes with underline, highlight, and big red circles. Narratively it's easier to exaggerate. But it's really just shades of gray between being forced to take a happy pill, and being told, explicitly or not, by experts, friends and family that you should do so.