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Today's situation is not very similar. Previously we worried about specific threats. The Axis Powers, the Soviet world and its influence, even nuclear war. We h

by scythe 2y ago

Today's situation is not very similar. Previously we worried about specific threats. The Axis Powers, the Soviet world and its influence, even nuclear war. We had a pretty good characterization of what the threat was, even if it was devastating, even if we didn't have a great plan to prevent it. We knew how it would manifest. Today we are facing a sort of nebulous destabilization of social institutions and norms that seems to be related to digital computing and communication technologies but we can't nail down what particular aspects cause the problem or how it manifests. We are not sure if any particular problem is related to The Problem or not. Some people don't believe that The Problem exists at all. We have no idea what the consequences could be if The Problem is not addressed, nor do we have a good way to tell if it's currently getting worse, barring some kind of unexpected catastrophe like a bunch of high-ranking government officials accidentally inviting a journalist to an illegal chat room where they are planning air strikes. Perhaps none of this means that The Problem is worse than anything we have faced before, or even as bad. But humans have always gotten through our problems by turning our intellect onto them, and it frightens us when our best weapon doesn't seem to be working. What is the Internet doing to society? That's the trillion-dollar question.

jltsiren 2y ago
The threats of the 20th century were not that specific. Unless you lived in a particularly sheltered part of the world, your neighbors (the people you knew) were the threat. They supported a different world order, and if the right (or wrong) situation arose, they were often ready to kill you to further their goals. Capitalism, industrialization, and urbanization had left many people behind. Communism and fascism arose as responses to that, along with more moderate ideologies that ended up joining forces with capitalism. Today we have globalization and a different flavor of capitalism, with a new set of ideologies offering solutions to those who were left behind.
akomtu 2y ago
Internet unites the world. It must be united, but there are two ways to do that: it can be a union of the free or it can be a tyranny of one. The two futures may happen simultaneously, but for different people, based on their preferences. This is what's fueling the feeling of doom for many. Moreover, the world must be united at three levels: mental, emotional and physical. The grand empires of the past tried to unite the world with armies at the physical level. The hierocraties of the mediaeval ages tried to do the same with religion at the emotional level. The Internet is trying to do this now at the mental level. Just like in the past, some want to inspire the people with a common ideal, while others want to unite the people by force, only this time it will be mainly applied to our thoughts.

by scythe 2y ago

jltsiren 2y ago

The threats of the 20th century were not that specific. Unless you lived in a particularly sheltered part of the world, your neighbors (the people you knew) were the threat. They supported a different world order, and if the right (or wrong) situation arose, they were often ready to kill you to further their goals. Capitalism, industrialization, and urbanization had left many people behind. Communism and fascism arose as responses to that, along with more moderate ideologies that ended up joining forces with capitalism. Today we have globalization and a different flavor of capitalism, with a new set of ideologies offering solutions to those who were left behind.

akomtu 2y ago

Internet unites the world. It must be united, but there are two ways to do that: it can be a union of the free or it can be a tyranny of one. The two futures may happen simultaneously, but for different people, based on their preferences. This is what's fueling the feeling of doom for many. Moreover, the world must be united at three levels: mental, emotional and physical. The grand empires of the past tried to unite the world with armies at the physical level. The hierocraties of the mediaeval ages tried to do the same with religion at the emotional level. The Internet is trying to do this now at the mental level. Just like in the past, some want to inspire the people with a common ideal, while others want to unite the people by force, only this time it will be mainly applied to our thoughts.