Ascension or Annihilation

To whom it may concern, excite, or interest.

Over the last couple of decades, we have seen quite the shift in how political power is organized. Media, which used to be seen as the 4thish branch of government, became the foundation for any and all political action. Starting in the mid-2000s there has been an accelerated use of platforms like Facebook and Twitter(X) to garner political support, carry political messages, and prompt political action. Giving rise to populism and alternative media, things I will explore in a coming letter.

Politics isn’t the only facet of modern life that has been affected by social media. Social media has revolutionized how we connect with each other and brought people from all over the world together. There are, however, quite a few negative side effects beginning to surface. These include increased rates of anxiety and depression, and a whole litany of addictive disorders (UC Davis, CDC). I don’t mean to argue for the destruction of social media. Social media is here to stay, and I think that is fine. But, this whole situation has led me to think about other technological advancements and how we process them as a society. And in thinking into it more, I’ve observed a pattern.

• First, a new thing is introduced to the public – Introduction
• Second, the new thing is mass-produced and consumed with no regard for any unforeseen side effects – Proliferation
• Third, the new thing starts degrading society in some way because of unforeseen side effects – Degradation
• Fourth, the public realizes that irresponsible use of the thing is the cause – Realization
• Fifth, the government steps in and regulates on behalf of public safety and everyone blames the people who produced/distributed the thing, completely removing themselves from any amount of responsibility for allowing themselves, or worse, their kids to consume the thing – Compensation
• Sixth and finally, the unforeseen side effects are retroactively studied for years to come until the ultimate consequences are realized, prompting our descendants to look back in horror at how ignorant their ancestors were – Reflection

Other examples of this happening include; the burning of carbon-based fuels and Chlorofluorocarbons.

What I’ve noticed is that these advancements or “leaps” garner a lot of attention, but we, as a society, never learn, and when the next big leap happens everyone hops on board not to be left in the past. Take our current great leap, Artificial Intelligence. Make no mistake. There will be unforeseen consequences to the mass use/proliferation of AI. The scope and scale may not be disastrous, but there will be. Does that mean I will stop using it and allow my peers to gain an advantage over me? Definitely not. I am much too competitive for such a virtuous sacrifice. But, I’ll be waiting for the day that I must pay my due with everyone else. That’s if we are lucky enough to pay it ourselves. Too many times these “leaps” have left future generations at the mercy of the past.

If I may speculate further. I also believe these leaps are accelerating in frequency and escalating in magnitude. In other words, we are “revolutionizing things” more and more often, with greater and greater effect. So far, humans/society have been able to acclimate in time before the next jump knocks us on our ass again, and maybe that’s not a coincidence. Maybe these leaps in technology are coming right after we settle from the last one because we had just settled from the last one. Maybe the boredom of not having to constantly relearn how to live is the real problem. I hope so. Otherwise, we are headed for a future where the constant progress of technology gets faster than society can integrate it, and like a super-heated molecule, we rip ourselves apart, drunk on possibility and crushed by the debt to innovation that went unpaid. All things considered that probably wouldn’t be the worst way for us to go. We may even ascend far enough that the unforeseen consequences become irrelevant. For example, we wouldn’t need to worry about climate change if we could control the weather. So, I guess that’s the real gambit, Ascension or Annihilation.

I hope this provokes thought,

Noctuem