I think the particular word choice is causing some people to mentally think "you're not part of my tribe, that sounds ridiculous," but that's not a fair assessm

I think the particular word choice is causing some people to mentally think "you're not part of my tribe, that sounds ridiculous," but that's not a fair assessment of what was said. How many people on HN have been deeply inspired to build a better future because of SF? I certainly have. And that's exactly what that phrase is talking about. Literature is a very powerful tool for orienting human goals and finding inspiration to perform feats and labor that we might not otherwise do. One such work that does exactly this (for me) is Kim Stanley Robinson's recent book Ministry For The Future. A lot of people found it kind of dry, but I appreciated the thoughts about tech and science. It's a fantastic encapsulation if all sorts of the best knowledge on the subject in 2020.