The Sovereign Individual - Mastering the Transition to the Information Age - YouTube - PR Report #11 The Sovereign Individual::Chapter 11 - Morality And Crime In The Natural Economy
发布时间:2021-12-13 17:39:54
原节目
这份公关报告深入探讨了《主权个体》的第十一章,重点讨论了信息时代不断演变的自然经济中的道德和犯罪问题。作者认为,现代民族国家的衰落将导致分散的“野蛮人”崛起,他们利用先进技术为自己谋利,本质上是作为一个衰败系统上的微型寄生虫。微处理技术的去中心化和技术进步使得这种现象成为可能,它们降低了这些群体有效运用和控制暴力所需的能力。然而,现有系统的崩溃将以一种微妙的方式显现,即占据权力职位的人是那些为自己服务的人,而不是那些致力于宪法原则的人。
报告告诫不要依赖主流媒体来准确理解正在发生的事件。这是由于多种因素造成的,包括难以察觉微妙的变化、坚持过时的意识形态、害怕报道与主流叙事相悖的内容会带来不良后果,以及媒体内部潜在的腐败。作者预测,未来信息将变得越来越个性化,可能导致完全虚构的故事出现,这些故事是专门为满足个人欲望而定制的。例如,人工智能生成的“深度伪造”可以操纵视频和音频,从而导致信息过载和理解力下降。
互联网的普及和信息传输的便利性是信息时代的特征,它将信息从时间和地点的政治控制中解放出来。这使得良好的判断力变得至关重要,但在浩瀚的数据海洋中,良好的判断力变得越来越困难。报告指出,新闻报道趋于简短和耸人听闻,这可能会掩盖中心要点,并阻碍理解。作者指出,快速变化的技术破坏了社会经济政治基础,因此,对范式的理解正以比过去更快的速度变得过时。他们描述了一种社会“部落化”的趋势,在这种趋势下,个人被隔离在回音室中,抵制反对意见。因此,信息时代尚未成为理解的时代。
报告称,这本书的中心主题是不断变化的技术和巨型政治因素如何改变自然经济,即达尔文式的自然状态,在这种状态下,结果往往由物理力量决定。作者强调了“干扰竞争”的重要性,即实体通过与竞争对手的直接冲突来获取和维持对资源的控制。这与以法治为特征的“政治经济”形成对比,尽管他们承认,人们通常只有在遵守规则对自己有利时才会遵守规则。
报告表明,犯罪、战争和政治在很大程度上仍然受到自然经济压力的支配,在这种经济中,经济结果不仅受到守法行为的影响,而且还受到冲突和暴力的影响。即使在法治下,理性的自利也会决定合法和非法获取资源的方式之间的平衡。他们提到,带有微芯片的武器已经将力量平衡转移到了防御方,这可能会降低侵略的可能性。未来的自然经济将青睐较小的群体、部落、团伙、黑手党和独行个体,这将导致去中心化的竞争。
随着暴力回报的递减以及恐怖主义的兴起,政治腐败,有组织犯罪,主权个体时代变得更加可能。这将导致战争的减少,防御和保护将在更小的规模上进行,这将导致它们成为私有化的商品和服务。报告强调了集中权力的决策能力下降,以及恐怖主义、有组织犯罪和政治腐败的抬头,这些都证明了暴力回报正在减少。
报告总结说,随着大型民族国家体系的削弱,它们将越来越受到有组织犯罪和寻求为自己谋利的个人的渗透。私人保安、封闭式社区和各种场所的安保人员的兴起反映了这一趋势。作者强调,成功的群体建立在强大的道德框架之上,并警告说,成功之后往往会出现的颓废陷阱。他们强调,人类是为了行动而生的,旅程和奋斗比实现目标更重要。报告最后引用威廉·詹姆斯的话说,那些从生活中获得更多的人是那些采取行动的人,而不是那些坐在自己的脑海里的人。
This PR report episode delves into Chapter 11 of "The Sovereign Individual," focusing on morality and crime in the evolving natural economy of the information age. The authors argue that the decline of the modern nation-state will lead to the rise of decentralized "barbarians" who leverage advanced technology for their own gain, essentially acting as micro-parasites on a failing system. This is made possible by the decentralized nature of microprocessing and technological advancements, which reduce the size needed for these groups to be effective in wielding and controlling violence. The collapse of the existing system, however, will be subtly visible, with positions of authority filled by self-serving individuals rather than those committed to constitutional principles.
The report cautions against relying on mainstream media for an accurate understanding of unfolding events. This is due to a combination of factors, including the difficulty in perceiving subtle shifts, adherence to outdated ideologies, fear of repercussions for reporting counter-narratives, and potential corruption within the media itself. The authors predict a future where information becomes increasingly personalized, potentially leading to the creation of entirely fabricated stories tailored to individual desires. Examples include AI-generated "deep fakes" that manipulate video and audio, contributing to an environment of information overload and diminished understanding.
The transition to the information age, characterized by the proliferation of the internet and the ease of information transmission, liberates information from political controls of time and place. This places a premium on sound judgment, which becomes increasingly difficult amidst the vast sea of data. The report notes a trend towards brevity and sensationalism in news, potentially obscuring the central points and hindering comprehension. The authors state that rapidly changing technology undermines the socio-economic political basis, and that because of this, paradigm understandings are becoming antiquated more quickly than in the past. They describe a societal trend toward "tribalization," where individuals become isolated within echo chambers, resistant to opposing viewpoints. The information age is thus described as not yet the age of understanding.
The central theme of the book, according to the report, is how changing technology and megapolitical factors alter the natural economy, which is the Darwinian state of nature where outcomes are often determined by physical force. The authors emphasize the importance of "interference competition," where entities gain and maintain control over resources through direct conflict with rivals. This contrasts with the "political economy," characterized by the rule of law, although they acknowledge that individuals often adhere to rules only when it benefits them.
The report suggests that crime, war, and politics continue to be largely governed by the pressures of the natural economy, where economic outcomes are shaped by conflict and violence as much as by law-abiding behavior. Even under the rule of law, rational self-interest dictates a balance between lawful and unlawful means of acquiring resources. They mention that weapons with microchips have shifted the balance of power towards the defense, which can make aggression less likely. The natural economy in the future will favor smaller groups, tribes, gangs, Mafias, and solitary individuals, which will lead to decentralized competition.
With the increasing returns on violence decreasing, and the rise of terrorism, political corruption, organized crime, the age of the sovereign individual becomes more possible. This will cause warfare to be less prevalent, defense and protection will be mounted at a smaller scale which will lead to them becoming privatized goods and services. The report highlights the decreasing decisiveness of centralized power and the rise of terrorism, organized crime, and political corruption as evidence of diminishing returns on violence.
The report concludes that as the large-scale nation-state systems weaken, they will be increasingly infiltrated by organized crime and individuals seeking to serve their own interests. The rise of private security guards, gated communities, and security personnel in various settings reflects this trend. The authors emphasize that successful groups are founded on strong moral frameworks and warn against the pitfalls of decadence that often follow success. They highlight that human beings are made for action, and that the journey and the struggle are more important than achieving a goal. The report concludes that William James says people who get more out of life are those who take action, rather than those who sit in their minds.