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Spotted your piece from FDB’s August list, really enjoyed it. An odd number of parallels between what we both submitted. Zeitgeist.

https://open.substack.com/pub/corsonfinnerty/p/the-age-of-disbelief

The question I’m grappling with now is what to do, how to stay sane, grounded, connected. Any insights?

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Ohhh, Age of Disbelief looks right up my alley, excited to dig into this, Matthew. These AI races are the epitome of scientific materialism. For me, for grounding, my practice is rooting into that which is immaterial while simultaneously prioritizing my 3d existence

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Jul 9, 2023·edited Jul 9, 2023Liked by Alex Olshonsky

The preeminent worry I have about A.I., is not that we are in the midst of creating it, but rather the purpose we are producing it for. Which, as you laid out, seems to predominantly be for the manifestation of free and rightless labor; the Ultimate Capitalist fantasy where those at the top of the economic food chain no longer have to worry about the burden of those pesky and expensive human rights.

And nothing breeds predjudice quite as potently as enslavement.

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Precisely. Inquiring into the source of intentionality behind the technology feels deeply important, especially if want to learn any lessons from how social media tech backfired upon us after a few years of promise (or, in your choice words, a few years of delusion around the Ultimate fantasy). Thank you, B, especially for this: nothing breeds prejudice quite as potently as enslavement.

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As always, so good. Thanks A.

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<3

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Genuine, heartfelt human connection is the answer to this rather thorny predicament. However, this is easier said than done. As long as we maintain a divide between ideological groups barriers will remain. It is on those of us who have the physical resources and the mental clarity to extend olive branches and sow seeds of compassion amongst those who have been traumatised and disenfranchised. This is my view at least.

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