@strypey I also don't agree that "societies don't work"....

@strypey
I also don't agree that "societies don't work". It's demonstrably false. We *did* in fact launch some shit into space and put some shit on the moon. So societies *do* in fact work. Somehow. Not always the way we want them to - but nontheless.

And I also object to the notion of governments and corporationa being "every bit as human". This is fallacy of composition. It's been demonstrated that the larger the institution is as a system, the less human it becomes. For the same reason that is described in the article's premise, no less. Also, see Kirby Fergusson's "This Is Not a Conspiracy Theory", exploring the same topic.

Otherwise, a great article, as always.

Like 11 May 2023 at 8:22 | Wall-to-wall | Open on mastodon.ml

5 comments

Strypey

@drq
Ae, there were a one or two points where I rolled my eyes while reading it. Eg the false equivalence between the boogyman caricature of democratic governments, and the statement of obvious fact that a standard corporation...

"...belches smoke and poisons water and enslaves humanity."

A better example for his needs would be the way people blame this on particular CEOs or investors, rather than the structures and baked-in incentives that drive corporations towards doing such things.

11 May 2023 at 11:56 | Open on mastodon.nzoss.nz

Dr. Quadragon ❌

@strypey
> way people blame this on particular CEOs or investors

Also important to note on that: when people say, for example "Mark Zuckerberg/Steve Jobs/Elon Musk/Vladimir Putin/George Bush/(name any powerful person) is a psychopath" - what they often mean is using the name of the person in a collective sense, as a stand-in for the systems they represent. AND IT'S OKAY! They don't personally know the guy. But they see the harm that those systems (maybe even inadvertently) cause, so there you go.

11 May 2023 at 12:03 | Open on mastodon.ml

Dr. Quadragon ❌

@strypey Still, the main point stands: the Dunbar number is a thing, empathy has limits, and if you find yourself not caring about everyone everywhere all at once, it's okay: you're not really designed to. No one is, so also don't expect everybody to do so. If you can - good, but don't act all high and mighty if someone doesn't. It's a valuable lesson, in my opinion.

11 May 2023 at 12:37 | Open on mastodon.ml

Strypey

@drq
> Still, the main point stands: the Dunbar number is a thing, empathy has limits

Exactly. We may quibble with some details of the reference implementation, but the protocol is sound (I've been spending *way* too much time in the 'verse this week ;)

11 May 2023 at 13:11 | Open on mastodon.nzoss.nz

Strypey

@drq
> But they see the harm that those systems (maybe even inadvertently) cause

In some cases. But both conservatives and liberals have a tendency to think that inherently destructive entities would magically become benign with a change of leadership. You can see this in reverse with Melon Husk and Titter. The entity is not fundamentally any better or worse than it was before (worse for some users, better for other), but that's not how the Husk fanboys or the diaspora who are leaving see it.

12 May 2023 at 5:42 | Open on mastodon.nzoss.nz