To me, the message is really simple: Democracy and the right to make your own choices.
--Roger McNamee
McNamee makes the same mis-judgment most others make, confusing the US system of politics and laws with "duh-mock-racy." The words "democracy" and "democratic" are NOT in the Constitution! All the witless babble about "democracy" misses the entire point: that the US system is about keeping a LEASH on the majority, not letting it do whatever it wishes! "Democracy" is pretty much defined as "majority rule," but the US system supposedly protects MINORITY interests from certain encroachments.
Government should not get to do whatever a majority wishes. The majority must follow certain rules that limit its power. As someone else has suggested, "democracy" is defined as two lions and a gazelle discussing what to have for lunch! My own observation is that the purest form of "democracy" is a lynch mob, for everyone in attendance agrees on the outcome except for the victim!
Making excuses for Hilary Clinton's absurdly clueless campaign in 2016 does no service to protecting our liberties. She volunteered to play in the Electoral College "sandbox," and she LOST that election by ignoring voters. Looking down one's nose at Trump and his supporters will not win votes. They have learned how to play "politics" for keeps. It's past time that alleged "liberals" learn the same things and OUT-THINK the Trumpistas. Despite the obvious dangers, trying to think up more "rules and regulations" for technology is exactly the wrong direction to proceed.
Thank you, Roger McNamee, for your insight and concern about the tech environment and its overwhelming consequence in our lives. Now I understand your message. I can count several prominent, sympathetic voices in this arena who also understand the threat, and I will pay attention. Facebook's nonchalant undermining of democracy is an erosive toxin and must be recognized and terminated.
This is really a very important and lucid indictment of the communicatoins-industrial complex.
This prompted a couple of relevant ideas:
1) Just as students of military history say that warriors routinely make the mistake of planning for future wars by preparing for what happened in prior wars (Eg, World War One was characterized by static defensive positions. The French built the Maginot line for its world war two defense as it expected a replay of world war one tactics. However, the Germans just bypyassed the Maginot line by going through the Ardennes Forest) Today's Progressives Are Making the Mistake of Concentrating on Old and Stale Issues (Should a committee or project be voided becasue it doesn't have enough women and blacks) instead of addressing the impending nighmare of our times:
THE Squelching and Quashing of Human Autonomy by Ravenous Titans of International Capitalism.
2) This is a great indictment of the conservative argument that its always grand when business has more money to invest. The subject of your interview plainly said that easy money made it easier for Facebook and Google and their confederates to invest in surveillance .
And this made me think of so much of the waste, created by capitalism, in my city, New York City.
For example, shortly before World War One, New York's Penn Station was built. It was modeled on a classical structure from Italy. It was reputed to have been beautiful, grand and something which induced a feeling of well being and serenity.
In the early 1960's, that gorgeous public palace was razed to make way for the new Penn Station, an utter eyesore. Unfortunately too many big boys had too much money to burn. One architectural critic wrote that formerly, when we arrived in New York we felt like gods; now, in the era of the new Penn Station, we feel like rats.
3) In part, we are not addressing the NEW DIGITAL DYSTOPIA because most of us don't truly understand it. We don't begin to understand its surrepticious machinations For example, I am a graduate from NYU Law School and I don't undersand half the ways in which the noxious nerds of Silicon Valley do their dirty wor,k. For example, the NY Times reported, a few days ago, that we may face increased political trauma and electoral subversion becasue of "SUPEREVOLVED AI CHATBOTS." I don't even know what a superevolved A1 chatbot is.
Excerpting this Jon Alter to use in our start-up magazine here in San Miguel de Allende -- formerly called Laika Style (first girl in space, a dog on Sputnik II) -- now removed the Russian tinge and called San Miguel Style. A great Old Goats!
Super enlightening. Thanks as always.
To me, the message is really simple: Democracy and the right to make your own choices.
--Roger McNamee
McNamee makes the same mis-judgment most others make, confusing the US system of politics and laws with "duh-mock-racy." The words "democracy" and "democratic" are NOT in the Constitution! All the witless babble about "democracy" misses the entire point: that the US system is about keeping a LEASH on the majority, not letting it do whatever it wishes! "Democracy" is pretty much defined as "majority rule," but the US system supposedly protects MINORITY interests from certain encroachments.
Government should not get to do whatever a majority wishes. The majority must follow certain rules that limit its power. As someone else has suggested, "democracy" is defined as two lions and a gazelle discussing what to have for lunch! My own observation is that the purest form of "democracy" is a lynch mob, for everyone in attendance agrees on the outcome except for the victim!
Making excuses for Hilary Clinton's absurdly clueless campaign in 2016 does no service to protecting our liberties. She volunteered to play in the Electoral College "sandbox," and she LOST that election by ignoring voters. Looking down one's nose at Trump and his supporters will not win votes. They have learned how to play "politics" for keeps. It's past time that alleged "liberals" learn the same things and OUT-THINK the Trumpistas. Despite the obvious dangers, trying to think up more "rules and regulations" for technology is exactly the wrong direction to proceed.
H. Watkins Ellerson
PO Box 90
Hadensville, VA 23067
Scariest thing I’ve read in a very long while. Immediate regulatory oversight is essential to democracy and public health!
Thank you, Roger McNamee, for your insight and concern about the tech environment and its overwhelming consequence in our lives. Now I understand your message. I can count several prominent, sympathetic voices in this arena who also understand the threat, and I will pay attention. Facebook's nonchalant undermining of democracy is an erosive toxin and must be recognized and terminated.
Thanks also, Jon.
This is really a very important and lucid indictment of the communicatoins-industrial complex.
This prompted a couple of relevant ideas:
1) Just as students of military history say that warriors routinely make the mistake of planning for future wars by preparing for what happened in prior wars (Eg, World War One was characterized by static defensive positions. The French built the Maginot line for its world war two defense as it expected a replay of world war one tactics. However, the Germans just bypyassed the Maginot line by going through the Ardennes Forest) Today's Progressives Are Making the Mistake of Concentrating on Old and Stale Issues (Should a committee or project be voided becasue it doesn't have enough women and blacks) instead of addressing the impending nighmare of our times:
THE Squelching and Quashing of Human Autonomy by Ravenous Titans of International Capitalism.
2) This is a great indictment of the conservative argument that its always grand when business has more money to invest. The subject of your interview plainly said that easy money made it easier for Facebook and Google and their confederates to invest in surveillance .
And this made me think of so much of the waste, created by capitalism, in my city, New York City.
For example, shortly before World War One, New York's Penn Station was built. It was modeled on a classical structure from Italy. It was reputed to have been beautiful, grand and something which induced a feeling of well being and serenity.
In the early 1960's, that gorgeous public palace was razed to make way for the new Penn Station, an utter eyesore. Unfortunately too many big boys had too much money to burn. One architectural critic wrote that formerly, when we arrived in New York we felt like gods; now, in the era of the new Penn Station, we feel like rats.
3) In part, we are not addressing the NEW DIGITAL DYSTOPIA because most of us don't truly understand it. We don't begin to understand its surrepticious machinations For example, I am a graduate from NYU Law School and I don't undersand half the ways in which the noxious nerds of Silicon Valley do their dirty wor,k. For example, the NY Times reported, a few days ago, that we may face increased political trauma and electoral subversion becasue of "SUPEREVOLVED AI CHATBOTS." I don't even know what a superevolved A1 chatbot is.
Excerpting this Jon Alter to use in our start-up magazine here in San Miguel de Allende -- formerly called Laika Style (first girl in space, a dog on Sputnik II) -- now removed the Russian tinge and called San Miguel Style. A great Old Goats!