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The implications of technological advancement are always the same- if it can be used to replace people at a satisfactory level, it will. Appealing to stoicism i

The implications of technological advancement are always the same- if it can be used to replace people at a satisfactory level, it will. Appealing to stoicism is nice, but it's a bittersweet salve in this situation.

inference-lord 3y ago
Honestly though, as if technological advancement has been overall worse for humans. Without it, we'd be fighting lions for food in the Savannah forever, that might be appealing to some, but I'd have prefer to have spears, fire, shelter, medcine etc. Industrial scale technology might ruin us though, so you might have some point, mostly I'm referring to climate change which is for sure the greatest existential threat imaginable right now. However it seems technology might bail us out here too, nuclear and renewables.
- Ludleth19 3y ago
  I have no issue with technological advancement, it's obviously one of the pinnacles of human achievement- I have an issue with how those advancements are spread about and shared, especially shortly after large technological advancements happen. We undoubtedly have reaped immense benefits from the industrial revolution for example- that doesn't mean I'd have any interest in living through it or that it was executed in a way that prioritized the people who lived during those times.
  - inference-lord 3y ago
    There is a super simple solution to the problem you're describing, get involved in and contribute to open source and education. It's this easy. The more freely available the tech is, the easier it is to reproduce, the less the average joe is going to be locked out of the benefits. My entire career and everything good in my working life has involved open source software and I'm sure that it will continue to be the case.
    - Ludleth19 3y ago
      Open source stuff is great, and I support it and have contributed to projects myself, but people bandy it out as if it's a silver bullet and I have my reservations there. The issue goes way beyond technology itself, it's structural/sociological/cultural and that's not going to be fixed just because there are open source alternatives.
      - inference-lord 3y ago
        It's not a silver bullet, nothing is, no one said that, but it's the best chance at democratizing technology that we have.
    - shortrounddev2 3y ago
      How does contributing to open source software and education help me pay the bills in a world where my job has been automated
      - inference-lord 3y ago
        It doesn't stop that, but would you prefer a world where you're unemployed and locked out of the technology, or unemployed, and have access to the technology so you can learn and use it for free to maybe get back in the game?
        shortrounddev2 3y ago
        If I'm unemployed what's the difference
- fatherzine 3y ago
  there must be a fallacy name for 'more of a good thing is always a good thing' line of reasoning. almost every good out there is good in a certain range. outside of that range it becomes detrimental, possibly deadly. there is even a Swedish word for it, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lagom https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lagom. a few examples. material: - water: too little => thirst, too much => drown - heat: too little => freeze, too much => burn - food: too little => starvation, too much => obesity spiritual: - courage: too little => cowardice, too much => foolhardiness - diligence: too little => slothfulness, too much => workaholism - respect: too little => disregard, too much => idolatry etc. life is a balance
  - inference-lord 3y ago
    I understand your sentiment entirely, but it's not what I said, I didn't say an abundance is everything we should strive for , I said that having more efficient systems is good.

inference-lord 3y ago

Honestly though, as if technological advancement has been overall worse for humans. Without it, we'd be fighting lions for food in the Savannah forever, that might be appealing to some, but I'd have prefer to have spears, fire, shelter, medcine etc. Industrial scale technology might ruin us though, so you might have some point, mostly I'm referring to climate change which is for sure the greatest existential threat imaginable right now. However it seems technology might bail us out here too, nuclear and renewables.

Ludleth19 3y ago
I have no issue with technological advancement, it's obviously one of the pinnacles of human achievement- I have an issue with how those advancements are spread about and shared, especially shortly after large technological advancements happen. We undoubtedly have reaped immense benefits from the industrial revolution for example- that doesn't mean I'd have any interest in living through it or that it was executed in a way that prioritized the people who lived during those times.
- inference-lord 3y ago
  There is a super simple solution to the problem you're describing, get involved in and contribute to open source and education. It's this easy. The more freely available the tech is, the easier it is to reproduce, the less the average joe is going to be locked out of the benefits. My entire career and everything good in my working life has involved open source software and I'm sure that it will continue to be the case.
  - Ludleth19 3y ago
    Open source stuff is great, and I support it and have contributed to projects myself, but people bandy it out as if it's a silver bullet and I have my reservations there. The issue goes way beyond technology itself, it's structural/sociological/cultural and that's not going to be fixed just because there are open source alternatives.
    - inference-lord 3y ago
      It's not a silver bullet, nothing is, no one said that, but it's the best chance at democratizing technology that we have.
  - shortrounddev2 3y ago
    How does contributing to open source software and education help me pay the bills in a world where my job has been automated
    - inference-lord 3y ago
      It doesn't stop that, but would you prefer a world where you're unemployed and locked out of the technology, or unemployed, and have access to the technology so you can learn and use it for free to maybe get back in the game?
      - shortrounddev2 3y ago
        If I'm unemployed what's the difference
fatherzine 3y ago
there must be a fallacy name for 'more of a good thing is always a good thing' line of reasoning. almost every good out there is good in a certain range. outside of that range it becomes detrimental, possibly deadly. there is even a Swedish word for it, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lagom https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lagom. a few examples. material: - water: too little => thirst, too much => drown - heat: too little => freeze, too much => burn - food: too little => starvation, too much => obesity spiritual: - courage: too little => cowardice, too much => foolhardiness - diligence: too little => slothfulness, too much => workaholism - respect: too little => disregard, too much => idolatry etc. life is a balance
- inference-lord 3y ago
  I understand your sentiment entirely, but it's not what I said, I didn't say an abundance is everything we should strive for , I said that having more efficient systems is good.