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by conartist6 7mo ago
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- Gualdrapo 7mo agoMakes you wonder if that's where they got the name of Palantir, since Denethor went mad by using one (at least according to the Peter Jackson movies, I reckon the situation was different in the books).
- nkrisc 7mo agoThat’s pretty much what happened in the books. More accurately he lost all hope for the world after being fed visions by Sauron to manipulate him. Hey wait…
- z3phyr 7mo agoThats true, but in the books, Denethor is competent and a seasoned strategist and has a battle of strategy with the witch king, one upping them in most instances, answering with brilliant maneuvers to the brilliant maneuvers of the witch king.
- conartist6 7mo agoPerhaps that's why Sauron's trick is to use the Palantir to show him some things while hiding others, so as to convince him that his every move would be futile. I'm not sure even this is what destroys Denethor's mind though so much as it is the thought of the ring. He sees it as his by right of need. He sacrifices both his sons in his madness to have it, for the madness of power. His view of the world is so bleak that saving it in a way that destroys it seems "right" to him
- nkrisc 7mo agoThat’s a good point, in the movie they only show the already “broken” Denethor.
- Ichthypresbyter 7mo agoIn the extended edition of Two Towers they show him in a flashback of Gondor retaking Osgiliath. It's not a particularly flattering portrayal- the military success is shown as belonging to Boromir more than Denethor- but at least it shows him sane.
- thrance 7mo agoThis guy is obviously on drugs half of the time, his wealth shields him from reality and the yes-men around him let his crazy anti-humanist ideas fester in his mind and turn into religious psychosis. No need for AI here. In any sane place, his hate of democracy and freedom would make him a pariah. Instead, he is the current US Vice President's mentor and most trusted advisor.
- steveBK123 7mo ago> This guy is obviously on drugs half of the time, his wealth shields him from reality and the yes-men around him let his crazy anti-humanist ideas fester in his mind and turn into religious psychosis. No need for AI here. You just described a good dozen or so VC/Tech Bros
- lovelearning 7mo agoCouldn't this antichrist stuff be his sane/rational strategy to manipulate the powerful but religious rightwing people under his sway? Is there evidence to assume he himself is on the verge of some kind of psychosis and not fully in control of his faculties?
- arvid-lind 7mo agoMy guess is it's just his megalomania playing out in a religious arena instead of a political or economic one.
- notahacker 7mo agoI'm not sure battling the Vatican over interpretations of an obscure philosopher who mentored him back when he was an undergrad is the easiest way of winning over the religious right. Most of whom will happily go along with generic arguments about Peter Thiel's portfolio being essential to defeat Communist China and the woke libs. Treating Eliezer Yudkowsky as an irrelevant nutter probably works better on people with all kinds of views on religion and politics than attempting to elevate him to the status of antichrist
- irthomasthomas 7mo ago
- jasonvorhe 7mo agoDid Thiel seem in any way sane before the advent of LLMs? Don't have a single positive memory about anything he's ever done or said.
- mosura 7mo agoThe book Zero to One is legitimately good. His actions helping Hulk Hogan against Gawker were also thoroughly deserved.
- Obscurity4340 7mo agoHe only cared cuz it exposed his own hypocrisy
- nslsm 7mo agoThe ends justify the means.
- SilverElfin 7mo agoI wonder if he has any positive memories. All these billionaires are so detached from regular life that they don’t experience what humans normally do. It’s why they’re mostly sociopaths.