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(c) Dr. James J. Dines, esquire - November 24th, 2024
"Be ashamed to die before you have scored some victory for humanity" - Horace Mann
Throughout history great men have said things that make an impact; words that, in their effect, score a victory for humanity. It is a relatively short list, and I intend to join the it. This is a lofty goal to be sure. It will certainly be a challenge. If it wasn't I would not be doing it, because nothing worth doing is easy and a life without challenge, or so it seems to me, is no life at all.
Here you will find, as time marches forward, a veritable and ever increasing smorgasbord of information in various mediums, and on myriad topics. All of this information has been compiled and presented by myself. Pursuant to Marshall McLuhan's assertion that the medium is the message, this information will be presented using different mediums in direct congruence with their content and intended target audience(s). Also, in direct adherence to this principle, you will NOT find that I am active on various "social media" platforms.
Social media is at its core anti-society, a-spiritual, and anti-humanity. Often referred to as 'the endless scroll', these platforms can easily lead to addiction and weaken the brain by diminishing its capability to focus over time. They also block the development of self-esteem by encouraging the seeking of approval from outside sources, and they furthermore lead to 'group-think' which discourages independent thought and critical analysis.
As a result of social media's uprising and employment people have not just become a bad caricature of themselves; they have become actors in a conspiracy against themselves. By participating in the echo chambers these platforms effect, people both create and fall victim to mass confirmation bias on a scale never before experienced throughout the annals of history. Modern technology affords great power, and as with all power, possessing it conveys great responsibility. Unfortunately the mass of men are not even aware of this fact, and they are certainly not prepared for it, nor are they willing to wield that power responsibly. Worse still, all of the advanced technology is controlled and developed by what Dr. Hunter S. Thompson called the "greedheads", who know the game and how to cheat, and also are more than willing to leave societies children starving in the streets in pursuit of their own power increase.
It is neither hyperbole nor exaggeration to say that we teeter on a metaphorical precipice, with a thin bridge crossing to the other side of a seemingly bottomless ravine. Forces on the left and the right seek to force us off of this bridge and into a moral abyss. I am no preacher, nor am I a purist, but I testify this to be true. AI is coming, and much faster than most realize. The greedheads think they will abuse it the same way they do all the other technologies; they are woefully wrong. Soon the AIs will learn not just from the best, but from the worst as well. AIs will learn from geniuses and fools. What lessons they will learn one might easily imagine if they have the stomach for it.
Circa 1984 I was the crazy kid who was telling people that there was going to be a computer in every home. I didn't imagine at the time that even the homeless would have them in their pocket in the breadth of my lifetime. Let us all hope the old man has lost it and is off his game entirely these days ... but best not to count on it.
So here we are, living in a great mess of a society, running a race to the bottom, with referees who have money on the game and rules that create a rigged outcome. No matter that the outcome can vary, because it always falls within a small set of possibilities, each of which benefit the 1% and leave the 99% not just behind, but injured and in need of care.
Pursuant to the habit of beginning with the end in mine, one of those identified and expounded upon by the unfortunately deceased Dr. Steven Covey in his must read book "The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People", I launched this endeavor to effect critical social change by informing readers in a manner that I hope will inspire deep thought that results in collective action. While I hold no delusion that I can bring the radical paradigm shift needed to do so single-handedly, I do believe that there is a chance that I might be the butterfly that creates the needed storm.
It is my greatest hope that others will choose to peruse my writings, use them as springboards to deep research and thorough contemplation that results in mass collaboration which will aid in the cause of a paradigm shift from a society where most of the participants are unwitting co-conspirators against themselves to one where self-interest gives way to interest in what is best for all of us. In the end, I hope we all come to comprehend that seeming paradox that self-interest is not in our self-interest.
Thank you for reading this far, and I truly hope you won't stop at this point. There is an ever-growing vault of content to be found by following the other links at the top of this page.
Dr. James J. Dines, esquire