4 ms·

Real Newton worked at the mint too, it may not necessarily represent Stephenson's views. Doesn't Snow Crash have hyperinflation followed by a plethora of priva

by Y_Y 4y ago

Real Newton worked at the mint too, it may not necessarily represent Stephenson's views. Doesn't Snow Crash have hyperinflation followed by a plethora of private fiat currencies?

JohnFen 4y ago
It does, yes. I think a lot of people haven't read the book or have forgotten that the world of Snow Crash is an extreme dystopia -- certainly not the sort of world most people want to live in. That's why I was so baffled as to why Facebook glommed on to the term "metaverse" with such fervor. The "metaverse" comes from that book, and is a major aspect of the dystopia. The term does not have positive connotations.
- Y_Y 4y ago
  You make a good point, although I might prefer to live in Mr. Lee's Greater Hong Kong than in seventeenth century England.
  - JohnFen 4y ago
    True. There have been many very real dystopias in history. I've long thought that if I had to live in the world of Snow Crash, I would totally want to be in Mr. Lee's Greater Hong Kong over the other corporations. In context of the book, Mr. Lee kinda slapped.
    - Turing_Machine 4y ago
      Mr. Lee would definitely beat the Mafia, at least if you got on the bad side of management. One of the most amusing parts of that book was how the Mafia had recruiting booths at college job fairs, just like the other corporations.
- airstrike 4y ago
  So does "avatar", tbh
- deckard1 4y ago
  Meta has barely any spin on what they are trying to accomplish with the metaverse. It's out in the open that they want to create an all-encompassing privacy-destroying monopoly (sorry, platform) to suit their revenue and profit needs. Either Zuckerberg is so out of touch that he actually believes people have the same goals as Meta (possibly, considering how comically bad Meta's presentation was) or he doesn't care. They obviously see themselves as being the ones running the metaverse in Snow Crash, so I guess from their perspective it's a great time. How many brilliant minds signed off on that metaverse presentation I wonder. I'm still shocked. That's a lot of either coercion or people that enjoy smelling their own farts. They spent billions on it. Did I mention I'm still shocked? Shocked! None of it makes sense.
  - JohnFen 4y ago
    The only thing I can think of that makes any sense to me is that people like us found the technology itself presented in the book extremely compelling and wanted to have it. So much so that the purposes the technologies were put to in the book, and the social ramifications, were ignored and forgotten.
- s1artibartfast 4y ago
  Actually I think the metaverse in snow crash has a pretty positive connotation. The real world is the dystopian hell hole but the metaverse is somewhere where individuals can succeed based on the merits of their ability. The real world is dominated by corporate domination, Regulatory capture, and stagnation. In the metaverse, it doesn't matter if you are a pizza delivery boy. You have power and agency if you have skills and determination, at least in comparison to the default world
  - JohnFen 4y ago
    I guess it's a mix. The metaverse isn't without its positives, but it also exists to strengthen the dystopia and allow it to continue. Look at the "bugs", and the whole premise of the book -- that a computer virus infected the metaverse and then jumped to infect the real world. I read the metaverse as a mechanism of control. People will put up with the dystopian hell of their everyday life because they can have the fantasy of power and control in the metaverse -- but in the end, it's the real world that is the only thing that actually matters and that's why it's fought over. Even the fights in the metaverse are just to further the fights in the real world. Nobody with actual power /really/ cares about the metaverse except insofar as it can affect the real world.

by Y_Y 4y ago

Real Newton worked at the mint too, it may not necessarily represent Stephenson's views. Doesn't Snow Crash have hyperinflation followed by a plethora of private fiat currencies?

JohnFen 4y ago

It does, yes. I think a lot of people haven't read the book or have forgotten that the world of Snow Crash is an extreme dystopia -- certainly not the sort of world most people want to live in. That's why I was so baffled as to why Facebook glommed on to the term "metaverse" with such fervor. The "metaverse" comes from that book, and is a major aspect of the dystopia. The term does not have positive connotations.

Y_Y 4y ago
You make a good point, although I might prefer to live in Mr. Lee's Greater Hong Kong than in seventeenth century England.
- JohnFen 4y ago
  True. There have been many very real dystopias in history. I've long thought that if I had to live in the world of Snow Crash, I would totally want to be in Mr. Lee's Greater Hong Kong over the other corporations. In context of the book, Mr. Lee kinda slapped.
  - Turing_Machine 4y ago
    Mr. Lee would definitely beat the Mafia, at least if you got on the bad side of management. One of the most amusing parts of that book was how the Mafia had recruiting booths at college job fairs, just like the other corporations.
airstrike 4y ago
So does "avatar", tbh
deckard1 4y ago
Meta has barely any spin on what they are trying to accomplish with the metaverse. It's out in the open that they want to create an all-encompassing privacy-destroying monopoly (sorry, platform) to suit their revenue and profit needs. Either Zuckerberg is so out of touch that he actually believes people have the same goals as Meta (possibly, considering how comically bad Meta's presentation was) or he doesn't care. They obviously see themselves as being the ones running the metaverse in Snow Crash, so I guess from their perspective it's a great time. How many brilliant minds signed off on that metaverse presentation I wonder. I'm still shocked. That's a lot of either coercion or people that enjoy smelling their own farts. They spent billions on it. Did I mention I'm still shocked? Shocked! None of it makes sense.
- JohnFen 4y ago
  The only thing I can think of that makes any sense to me is that people like us found the technology itself presented in the book extremely compelling and wanted to have it. So much so that the purposes the technologies were put to in the book, and the social ramifications, were ignored and forgotten.
s1artibartfast 4y ago
Actually I think the metaverse in snow crash has a pretty positive connotation. The real world is the dystopian hell hole but the metaverse is somewhere where individuals can succeed based on the merits of their ability. The real world is dominated by corporate domination, Regulatory capture, and stagnation. In the metaverse, it doesn't matter if you are a pizza delivery boy. You have power and agency if you have skills and determination, at least in comparison to the default world
- JohnFen 4y ago
  I guess it's a mix. The metaverse isn't without its positives, but it also exists to strengthen the dystopia and allow it to continue. Look at the "bugs", and the whole premise of the book -- that a computer virus infected the metaverse and then jumped to infect the real world. I read the metaverse as a mechanism of control. People will put up with the dystopian hell of their everyday life because they can have the fantasy of power and control in the metaverse -- but in the end, it's the real world that is the only thing that actually matters and that's why it's fought over. Even the fights in the metaverse are just to further the fights in the real world. Nobody with actual power /really/ cares about the metaverse except insofar as it can affect the real world.