Re: POLITICS: Neo-Conservative policies and power

From: Samantha Atkins (samantha@objectent.com)
Date: Wed Apr 09 2003 - 00:40:38 MDT

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    Michael Wiik wrote:

    > Michael S. Lorrey wrote:
    >
    >> b) transhumanist technologies can only be safely developed if the
    >> nations of the world are all peaceful and democratic nations of free
    >> peoples. In a world of nanotech, AI, etc., low trust societies cannot
    >> be permitted to exist. All human beings must grow up and learn to
    >> rationally evaluate their own rational long term self interest. This
    >> can only occur in free, high-trust societies.
    >
    >
    > I totally agree with this. I do at times agree with Mike. It's just
    > unfortunate that the only way the current administration can see how to
    > accomplish this is through aggresive war. It may work, but it seems an
    > extremely risky strategy.
    >

    I don't see how it is remotely possible to create a world of
    both freedom and fairly full access to technology - which I
    believe requires greatly increasing the stake and buy-in and
    perception of benefit by most of the worlds people - by
    attacking them. Attacks give the opposite message that the
    world is a very unsafe place and that they had best use whatever
    technology to develop defensens and counters to those attacking
    them. Teaching that it is legitimate to preemptively strike
    those who may possibly someday strike you is an even more sure
    way to insure that transhumanist tech will be used for great
    destructrion and danger. I would be hard pressed to think of a
    policy more unextropic in its likely consequences.

    - samantha



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