From: Alex Future Bokov (alexboko@umich.edu)
Date: Mon Jun 26 2000 - 21:19:59 MDT
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!Zowwwie!! That's it!
Okay, here's the problem with Transhumanism/Extropianism: we're never
going to be a mass movement. We're never going to be populists. Jane
Bluecollar isn't going to vote for a candidate from the Extropian Party
or view a webcast of Extro 10 or join the Institute. Why? Not because
we're all elitists, and we don't want her around. Simply because a lot
of the stuff we're talking about isn't very accessible, and doesn't
make an impact in people's live here and now. Yes, it may make an
impact on their lives five or ten years from now, but you can't eat
that, and you can't use that to pay the rent.
Up till now, I've been quietly assuming that the best we can hope for
is to slowly influence the ideas of media, corporate, and government
leaders who hail from more broad-based movements and do have populist
credibility. To an extent this has been happening-- probably mostly due
to a tech-driven economic boom, but we may have played some small part
in that as well.
This thread, however, points the way to a new path. What if we incorporate
appropriate, affordable technology into our agenda? The social problem of
the future will be lack of access to information and technology. Duh.
That's so obvious that the liberals have already started talking about
it, and the conservatives will be soon to follow, so as not be left
behind by the liberals. Yet, what do they have to offer? They don't
even understand the technology that the technology have-nots need
access to. Some of them *are* the technology have-nots and don't know it.
Now, to be clear-- I'm not talking about socialism. I'm not talking about
lobbying for higher taxes so we can buy third world farmers 500 MHz pentia.
I'm talking about helping people in intelligent, elegant ways. In ways that
will make them self-sufficient. Maybe even in ways that also enrich the
helpers.
Maybe we won't reach Jane Bluecollar in London or New York. But this
can be the foundation of an unlikely alliance between the resources and
know how of the industrialized world educated elite and the poor people
of the third world.
Specifics? Give me a break, this has just occurred to me. All I'm saying
is, appropriate and affordable technology should be given more and more
attention in our discussions. It's as important as AI, genomics, and
all that other good stuff.
For the altruists out there-- we can help the needy in ways that few
others have the expertise or imagination to do. I probably already had
you from the second paragraph onward, so I'll stop preaching to the
choir.
For the egoists out there-- a world of tech savvy, tech-heeled people
will be more receptive to our ideas, especially if we're the ones who
helped them get that way. The West is spoiled. You want to see a place
where they love technology? Look to a place where they don't have
enough of it. Besides, this will also really confuse the liberals--
"What? Those Techno-Libertarians are *helping* people? How low can
they sink?"
- --
OKC milgov Gore
Why are the above words in my signature? Check out:
http://www.echelon.wiretapped.net
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