In this very thread there are people spouting pop-philosophical aphorisms who spend their working days building out machine learning algorithms to help target p

In this very thread there are people spouting pop-philosophical aphorisms who spend their working days building out machine learning algorithms to help target people in ads better. It's more than toxic, it's ailing. It's not just HN, it's the general inability of people to perceive themselves. These things are taught in the humanities, a field of study that's pretty poo-pooed in the tech world as nonsense. It's no surprise, especially when you can make such a great living targeting people in ads better, roping them into buying more useless crap by confusing their own personal philosophical journey while stumbling face-first into your own. Everyone has to face down the abyss at some point. Usually at many points. It's interesting to hear about the 'journey' from people who've spent their careers heaving people into that abyss (metaphorically speaking, of course)... I agree, though. If more people faced the reality that: they do not know why any of us are here, and that there is no rule that dictates tomorrow, that we didn't exist at one point and one day will die (and even further, how we figure we are at all extricable from our surroundings)... then I think people would make vastly different choices.