From the Printing Press to Large Language Model Chat-Bots
Technology changes, human nature doesn't
In an effort to clarify the philosophical basis of the views I profess to hold, I went to the most recent definitive source of knowledge, Chat GPT. Thus spoke the bot:
A humanist is someone who adheres to or advocates for humanism, which is a philosophical and ethical perspective that places emphasis on human values, agency, and the importance of human experiences. Humanists believe in the inherent dignity and worth of human beings and prioritize human well-being, reason, and critical thinking. They emphasize the potential for human beings to lead fulfilling and meaningful lives based on ethical principles and empathy for others. Humanists often reject supernatural or religious explanations and instead focus on human potential, scientific understanding, and the pursuit of social justice, equality, and individual freedom. Humanism can be applied to various aspects of life, including ethics, education, politics, and social issues.
That’s a pretty good definition. I have been applying it to many aspects of my life, and I can see how beneficial it would be if more than 4% of the world thought this way. However, there is one major drawback, that even I have mentioned in previous writings. Most of the world opposes it. They get freighted by it. It undermines the established power structure.
The flaw is that while it describes what humans can potentially do, it doesn’t describe most people actually do. Most people, especially when they are feeling some kind of stress, which is true of most of us, most of the time, quickly move away from prioritizing the inherent dignity and worth of all people and we prioritize our own safety and survival.
I have written in various places scattered over the Internet, about the possible benefits that could come so many of the amazing new technologies we have created. These technologies have greatly expanded our knowledge about almost every area of our lives. These advances have already made it possible for all of us to live safer, healthier, and happier lives — all of us. Yet, it doesn’t happen. In fact, as we can clearly see, the opposite remains true. Humans continue to settle disputes by slaughtering each other. They use the new technologies for that, as well as the old ones.
I am still reading Sarah Bakewell’s book, Humanly Possible. I have come to the part where there is a description of the life and work of Erasmus, the teacher, writer, philosopher, who was a major influencer of his time,( 28 October c.1466 – 12 July 1536), even though he had to walk around carrying books and teaching rich people’s children to get his message across. He probably would have had a much easier time just using TikTok today.
500 years ago he expressed exactly the same frustrations that I feel today. In his case it was the invention of the printing press that he thought would help people read, understand, and accept the humanist ideas. He expected that once people learned about them, everyone would appreciate the benefits of knowledge, reason, cooperation and caring.
Sarah Bakewell writes that in Erasmus’, view, “people are designed for a life of metal assistance and kindness rather than fighting. A bull has horns, and a crocodile has armor, but we have soft skin, embracing arms, and ‘friendly eyes, revealing the soul.’ We laugh and cry and reveal our sensitivity. We have speech and reason, with which to communicate. We even have a natural attraction to the love of learning, which ‘has the greatest power of knitting up friendships.’ “— Bakewell, Sarah, Humanly Possible, Penguin Press, 2023, p. 150.
Erasmus sadly came to realize that most humans do not adhere to humanist ideals. “They are easily mislead by rulers who are foolish or irresponsible. They whip up human emotions, while lawyers and theologians make things worse.” He feels that war is always a blunder, a failure to be human. (Ibid, p151)
The ultimate goal of humanism is to get the people in power to care about how their use of power impacts huge numbers of people all over the world. This has been an unsuccessful struggle for 10,000 years. The world has witnessed how so many people with power only care about gaining and holding power. The suffering and death of others is often a necessary part of their process. Isn’t that correct, Mr. Netanyahu?
Many people are attracted to that kind of leadership. They see those people as strong. Many people rush to be on the side that’s winning rather than with the group that is having their heads cut off. They are slow to realize that they will eventually have their heads cut off also.
Why do people behave this way, even after continually suffering from the negative consequences of aggression, war, and power struggles?
My three word answer is fear, inertia, and testosterone.
I’ll try to unravel that next time.
Song lyric of the day:
“Where have all the flowers gone
Long time passing
Where have all the flowers gone
Long time a go”
— Pete Seeger
Thanks, Old Man. The one overarching human trait Erasmus failed to recognize is GREED It dominates the lives of people like Kim Jong Un, Benjamin Netanyahu, Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump, Xiang Xi and too many others to name, So far, for 10,000 years, greed has bettered humanism. People who are not greedy, tend to be so afraid of those who are, they roll over like good little doggies and play dead.