@eclectech

Wow. "They float in a sensory-deprivation tank the size of the planet, in which their actions are only ever judged by themselves."

@eclectech

"To be declared a genius at one thing is to begin to believe you are a genius at everything."

Yes, that's terrifying.

@eclectech

So well written and thoughtful, I'm going to see what else this author has written.

@eclectech this is a brilliantly written article and it is horrifying.

It is along the same lines as the book, “The Bill Gates Problem”; which also says this about Bill Gates “To be declared a genius at one thing is to begin to believe you are a genius at everything.”

@eclectech disturbing indeed. #BarrysEconomics did a video on the same subject recently:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ijm-HZrbwI

Makes you wonder how much longer this phenomena can take place. Their reality is a bubble, when will it burst?

Btw, our song "Old Blood" is inspired by the movie "There Will Be Blood": https://mirlo.space/moonshine-brigade/release/the-misery-stains/tracks/8787

@eclectech I believe that the loss of connection and/or empathy that happens when you no longer share conditions with other people, along with then perpetually wanting more security for yourself at the expense of everyone else, is actually a well known psychological phenomenon.

I also believe that this is one of the main reasons why e.g. the Nordics are very careful about ensuring income redistribution via progressive taxation, because it leads to a more cohesive society overall.

@eclectech

"The hubris of accomplishment — To be declared a genius at one thing is to begin to believe you are a genius at everything."

#FoodForThought

@eclectech

“And, for an instant, she stared directly into those soft blue eyes and knew, with an instinctive mammalian certainty, that the exceedingly rich were no longer even remotely human.”

William Gibson, Count Zero. (1987)

@eclectech

"Eight years later, Bezos and two of the world’s other richest men—Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk—have clearly left the world of consequences behind. They float in a sensory-deprivation tank the size of the planet, in which their actions are only ever judged by themselves."

Yeah, I believe it.

@eclectech

This is a really excellent article, thank you for sharing it.

"When you can buy your way out of any mistake, when you can fire anyone who disagrees with you, when your social circle consists entirely of people who need something from you, the basic mechanism by which humans learn that other people are real goes dark."

@eclectech

Absolutely disturbing.

This kind of wealth must be eliminated. They are a pox, worse than what the author experienced.

@eclectech "And, for an instant, she stared directly into those soft blue eyes and knew, with an instinctive mammalian certainty, that the exceedingly rich were no longer even remotely human.” ― William Gibson, Count Zero

[edit] I see someone else already posted this reply, oh well. my Mastodon client not loading all the replies again

@eclectech
Can't stop thinking about

"He did not say “I’m so sorry.” He did not say “Do you need anything?” Instead, he made a face, and in an instant, an aide came and whisked him away. When presented with the opportunity for empathy, even performative empathy, he chose escape."

@eclectech

"They float in a sensory-deprivation tank the size of the planet"

@eclectech

The opposite of learned helplessness is learned infallibility.

@eclectech this is sooo telling >.<

"That’s how the weekend started. Here’s how it ended: My wife broke her wrist slipping on wet grass, and both children and I came down with hand, foot, and mouth disease. This is not a joke. One of us went home with her arm in a sling; the other three developed itchy, painful red blisters all over our faces and extremities. If you’re looking for a sign from God as to whether hanging out with the richest man on Earth is right for you, pay attention when he sends you not one plague, but two. Suffice it to say we have never been back to Campfire, nor have we ever been invited."

@eclectech It wasn't too long ago, a few decades, when rich people would do rich people things like hanging out with rich people, buggering off to some tropical island resort, or buying extremely overpriced garbage art (while hanging out with rich people) — and the occasional lobbying and scheming.

I've been wondering for a while... where did all of that go and why are the rich of today completely devoid of any humanity — you know, like enjoying life?

This article kind of explains it I guess.

@eclectech

The Atlantic
What I Learned About Billionaires at Jeff Bezos’s Private Retreat
By Noah Hawley

That ⬆️ link not working?

This⬇️ does
https://archive.is/ijTYE

@eclectech

Great piece, thanks for sharing! I listened to the audio version and it was followed by an ad for Amazon (Germany) promoting that workers at Amazon get a family bonus when they have kids. 🙄