>...If the "stupid masses"
>were kicked awake by "the impending Singularity" or something like it,
>they'd be as knowledgeable as any Extropian. If America's underclass
>was given access to a real education - not the condescending crap they
>dish out in gang-controlled public schools - and chose to use it, they'd
>be as good as "the stupid masses" or the rest of the middle class.
In defence of Chris Hind's motives (not his terminology) :
I think what Chris meant was that most people plan their future based on
their personal well being, and therefore have highly economically motivated
political goals. On the other hand there are those who do the same, but the
period over which they plan that future, as well as the scope of it,
implies that their goals are not based solely on personal motivations. I
don't think it's so much the masses Chris fears, but some of the people of
the second group, with different goals or with only personal goals, who are
capable of manipulating those masses in the first group. And he's right in
that some counterweight needs to be given, if we are to see anything we
might consider 'goals' realized, if not to prevent that what we have
realized so far, isn't taken away...
or like Chris wrote in the other thread:
>If
>you just sit back and isolation and develop memes without spreading them
>then whats the point? "We" will still be sitting here as the memes are
>rediscovered by others. It's just like that ancient steam-powered greek
>toy. We (society) could've had the industrial revolution back in Greece
>long ago but the meme's about it's existance weren't spread and thus the
>future was delayed many years.
<snip>
>I
>just want to accelerate the process as swiftly as possible. We (society)
>will get to the future eventually, it's only a matter of time. I don't want
>to wait.
neither do i..
Eliezer continues:
>Resentment of scientists? I
>haven't seen it.
Check the natural law party's regular zeroxed leaflet campaigns (against
genetic modification, and other technologies)
>The
>apathetic and cynical masses don't have a cause worth fighting for;
>they'd be up and marching in a flash if they did.
The problem is that the cause they want to fight for, can easily be linked
to or replaced by another cause, someone wants them to march for, examples
in abundance.
J. de Lyser
surreal@glo.be