MiaDFeb 22
tante

"Part of the reason I made a hard leftwing turn was because I was burned by my own techno-optimism. I am part of a generation that believed it could change the world, and then was taught a harsh lesson about money and power."

(Original title: The Left Doesn't Hate Technology, We Hate Being Exploited)

https://aftermath.site/anthropic-claude-ai-leftist-technology/

The Left Doesn't Hate Technology, We Hate Being Exploited

Techno-cynics are all just wounded techno-optimists.

Aftermath
Feb 19 at 3:40pmWeb
Show threadJohn TinkerFeb 19
@tante
My view is that the issue is not so much do we like technology or not, but rather what we think our relationship to the producers of the technology should be.
Show threadWhatisgoingonFeb 19

@tante oh damn!

This resonates so much that I feel it in my bones ...

Show threaddisionFeb 19
@tante love Gita
Show threadtanteFeb 19
@dision they're fantastic
Show threadSabrina BonfertFeb 19
@tante @dision Gita uses they/them
Show threadtanteFeb 19
@sabrinabonfert @dision oh, I apologize, will fix. Thanks for pointing that out!
Show threadsauc3Feb 19

@tante

This article slaps, thanks for sharing it!

Show threadQuincy ⁂Feb 19

@sauc3 @tante

"The questions leftists ask about AI are: does this improve my life? Does this improve my livelihood? So far, the answer for everyone who doesn’t stand to get rich off AI is no. "

💯

Show threadAntonio PatriarcaFeb 19

@tante Considering how some parts of the far right don't believe in things like vaccines, clean energy and almost everything said by actual scientists, it is difficult to take a sentence like "the left doesn't believe in technology" with any credibility. The article you commented on is really just stupid propaganda and rage bait.

I agree with what you said, but I think content like that should simply be ignored as interacting with it gives it more credibility and weight while it is just garbage.

Show threadWeekend EditorFeb 20

@tante

As I told younger folks when I was a mentor:

When I was young, I wanted to change the world for the better.

Now that I'm old, I understand how *resistant* the world is to being changed for the better.

Show threadJohanna JaniszewskiFeb 20
@weekend_editor @tante I wanted to change the world for better too. Now I've settled for fighting against changing it for the worse.
Show threadWeekend EditorFeb 20

@JohannaMakesGames @tante

You've made a very decent accommodation to reality there.

I used to add something like, "The fact that it's *hard* doesn't mean you are excused from *trying*."

As it says in the Talmud (Pirkei Avot 2:16):

"It is not your duty to finish the work, but neither are you at liberty to neglect it"

https://www.sefaria.org/Pirkei_Avot.2.16

Pirkei Avot 2:16 | Sefaria Library

He [Rabbi Tarfon] used to say: It is not your duty to finish the work, but neither are you at liberty to neglect it; If you have studied much Torah, you shall...