Hahaha
Not at all. It makes me feel less alone when that happens.
But, yeah, two decades of environmental and Animal Rights activism have thought me that my arguments can never compete with convenience.
My conversations regarding A.I. go the same way.
As someone who practices both of these concerns, I really don’t understand the name.
And I must add that as a veteran of the other movement, when you say “I am” you are creating a distinguishable sense of otherness in relation to others. I also practice “Zero Waste” but I don’t call myself a “Zero Waster” (which is also never zero) or announce myself as an “Environmentalist” either.
These self ascribed descriptors are always a mistake. Yes, I do believe that everyone should share these concerns to the best of their abilities and what their setting and context allows, but in the end there is nothing different about me or anyone else who shares these same concerns.
As someone who disapproves of how A.I. is being built and used, and that its cost from an environmental concern to a societal concern, has the hazards far outweighing the benefits in both, there’s still no need to call us here anything for having that concern, is there?
But I’m going to share a piece of wisdom that I’ve gotten from practicing the other ethical concerns.
“Convenience” is what is gonna destroy the whole world.
And I’ve been saying this for almost two decades now. Most people will always choose convenience regardless of the consequences.
This is not gonna be any different.
The most successful way we can check this new mess is by attacking with legislation and regulations that are currently almost nowhere to be seen.
Most will never care much to consider the consequences of their decisions or actions. We don’t need a descriptor for that either. Is just what it is.
The scariest part of A.I. is that it consumes the enormous amounts of energy it does and enormous quantities of water we don’t have, only to optimize the efficency and rate in how all other hazards occur, as production and consumption of everything is increased in a blink.
And from a meta-space perspective it is horrifying to ponder what is to come because of it.
You’re in the awful moment after college. I’m 40 and this happened to anyone I know as well. Older people than me will tell you the same. It really sucks.
So, I’m gonna give a few suggestions where you don’t have to spend any money and don’t involve clubbing, which is not cheap either.
Plenty of group activities don’t cost anything and are the most fulfilling…
Just one quick note. Don’t concern yourself too much with age groups. People are organised by age groups in school. Everywhere else the organisation is mutual interests or common goals. And then you’ll go there and find people of all ages.
So…
Find projects of your interest where you can volunteer.
If you like animals, give some of your time to local animal shelters and animal associations.
If you want to give Nature a hand, volunteer to go plant trees on the weekend, plenty of groups outthere always asking for more to come.
Check the activities at your local library, most of them are state funded and free of charge to participate in.
The same goes for Cultural Associations. Plenty of them have state funded events that are free of charge to attend.
There are also amateur groups that you can join. Just find anything of your liking. If you like to draw, almost any place has a “drink and draw” event or an Urban Sketchers group. Nobody will care if you don’t consume at these events. And if you think you can’t draw, nobody cares. People of all levels of skill show up. I know this because I go to them and nobody cares how well you draw. As long as you like drawing, looking at drawings or watching people drawing you’re always welcomed at them.
If drawing is not of your interest but you like singing, there’s for sure an amateur singing group near you. My girlfriend met a group of funny and energetic elderly ladies this way. She loves their company. And nobody young or old is there to make it to a stage. They just enjoy singing and each other’s company.
If you don’t like singing but you play an instrument, plenty of Jam sessions around and in some the musicians that play don’t pay for their drinks. And the ones where they do, you can just not consume anything. They know you’re there to play. But there’s a few who even pay some musicians to be there. It’s a matter of finding out.
There’s dancing groups.
There’s film clubs.
There’s book clubs.
There’s poetry gatherings. A lot of the poetry is awful and that’s fine. It’s part of the charm.
And the reason why I know of all these events I suggested so far is because I go to them and I even help organise some of them with two of my local cultural associations. The next event I’m helping planning is an Animation festival that is now in its fourth annual edition. Although not all, some of the screenings are free. But the ones that aren’t are dirt cheap anyways.
These are some examples, there are so many more. And in almost if not all of them you’ll find people of all ages, including yours and younger.
Don’t go out looking for a romantic partner. Go look for a community. But you’re also more likely to find a partner in a community of people anyways.
While you were in school, you were in a secluded and rigid environment.
Welcome to the shit.
Where everyone is as clueless as you probably think you are.
I wish more people thought like you.
And I wish I gave answers as swift and succinct as yours. I wrote a reply that is too looooong. Yours is better.
Well, the DVDs and Blu-rays do not have to be of American media. But if they are, they can be of the several European special boutiques and distributors that can merely license the media you specifically care for. I’m sure that there are many American Filmmakers and artists we all still want to support and even increase visibility amongst the current circumstances. This allows one to have that level of targeting and to have specific and personal input, instead of just contributing to giant conglomerates that screw the artists out of fair revenue before moving to screw their costumers at every turn, which is what streaming services are.
With physical media, one can also borrow or lend amongst each other at leisure. Or check them for free from libraries. This is also about cultural sovereignty and increases the resiliency in communities when it comes to culture. And in times of instability and economic hardship it becomes even more necessary.
Media is like anything else, the more people owning it the better. We don’t want culture to be in the hands of just a few. That is the wrong direction for everything.
But I’m suspect because I’ve never stopped this habit and I prefer European cinema and World Cinema to American in the first place.
I also enjoy going to screenings in my local cineclub. There’s a wonderful sense of community and great discussions to have. And it’s so much cheaper and fulfilling than going to the Multiplex which is impersonal and encourages mindlesness.
If you’re more into TV series, the U.S. does have the monopoly of interest. But I assume this is much more about visibility and a failure of venues to publicise TV series of other places. The absence of TV Series Festivals like Film Festivals that can obtain visibility for them is partially the answer that is missing. But I still remember the craze with the Scandinavian output, which had hits like “Forbrydelsen” (The Killing) or Bron (The Bridge), and both got American Remakes that were quite disappointing in comparison. But the biggest hit that came out of that was probably Borgen. Wonderful show.
But even in English, I much prefer to watch shows coming out of Britain than the U.S. And with BBC, you only need a VPN to access their shows and documentaries for free. It’s public domain there. If you are from the U.k. than this is an unnecessary step.
Some people have suggested that we should push the E.U. to start a streaming service that made content created by European Public owned Networks and Radiostations available to all countries in the EU for free. It’s already free. It just needs distribution. It’s a great idea. Although the BBC is Brittish and therefore not EU, a deal could probably still be achieved to include them.
Anyway, I will still always suggest for anyone to not get too stuck in algorithmic suggestions of Cinema, Music and Art in General. It gets stale, and doesn’t force us to challenge ourselves in any form and in any new directions. Part of the problem we have in civilization right now is precisely stemming from this lack of broadening personal horizons and challenging individual perceptions that comes with the feedback loop that algorithms reinforce and cause the so called “bubbles” and “echo chambers” that so many like to point out, but so very few actually enjoy breaking out of.
Yes! Thank you! I’ve been shouting this for over a decade.
And I keep saying that Gamergate should’ve been the moment to take notice of this. Even yesterday I included this in another comment. That was the gate that opened this flood. And that should’ve been the moment to shut down algorithmic incentive for engagement. People shrugged and moved on. Then came Snowden trying to warn everyone of the consolidation of power. People shrugged and moved on. Then it came the Cambridge Analytica Scandal. People shrugged and moved on.
There’s that phrase… “we always have the world we deserve”. I used to rebel against this statement. But I find myself agreeing with it more and more over time. I still don’t like it as a blank statement though. Too many don’t deserve the outcomes of it.
Uh, and what is this we’re on right now?
Not to mention Mastodon, Pixelfed federating with Mastodon already, Friendica, Peertube etc…
The powers that be don’t like the Fediverse. It’s not possible to control and averts direct monetization. They know that if it keeps growing, it keeps reverting the internet back to its initial potential that was stolen from all of us. They don’t like that.
Remember when the internet was a good thing and not the gated hell that it is? I do. If you don’t, they’d like to keep it that way.
They don’t want the general population to know that the internet can be from everybody to everybody. Then people might ask for tax funding to go to server maintenance to be cheaper or even better free to anyone who would want to use it. Like a highway? Yes? Remember when that was one of the analogies for the internet? The building of new highways that would connect us all?
“We can tax fund highways instead of gates and tolls” - they can hear it already. And oh they don’t like that. Not one bit.
They want American Social Media, but you know, European. The same but ours.
But if it mimics theirs it will be just as terrible, regardless of where it comes from. Look at how the U.S. is imploding. Does it matter the social media is “theirs”?
“But the E.U. has better regulations and will do a better job.”
Do we want the folks that brought us a hit like Troika to be in charge of the entirety of the platforms in which their direct citizens can express themselves? Do we want to give them direct influence to crush dissidence? Have we learn nothing?
Yes, I prefer the E.U to the U.S. The E.U. works better, because the countries that are part of it can actually check its influence. Well, when they can. But the true reason why the E.U. really works is because we have worse things to compare it to. And that is a terrible way to build a future.
We have to imagine a better version of the world if we’re to build it. And right now, we are in a sliver of the internet that shows that it is indeed possible. Regardless of odds and issues, it is possible.
And how many people kept warning everyone of this and for how long?
I am a bit tired of the lack of foresight. In reactive vs proactive measures people only seem to understand reactive ones.
I’ve been telling people about the dangers of the lack of digital sovereignty, in relation to nations, communities and individuals for I don’t even know how long. As many many others have for even longer.
It’s as if one keeps telling someone to fix the fissures in the hull of their boat while on shore, but they only seem to understand what you mean when the boat is leaking through these same fissures at sea.
It’s only then that it starts to sink - pun very much intended.
By that point it’s too late. And the outcome might be a tragic one.
It’s the same with the environment.
It’s the same with their own health.
It’s the same with everything.
One doesn’t need to ponder about this for very long to pinpoint that this is because the absence of reference is what makes it harder to acknowledge it. Because one has a harder time understanding what one doesn’t have a frame of reference of, and then the subsequent dismissiveness ensues.
The great tragedy of all the proactive efforts is that when they are successful, something has been avoided, and therefore unseen.
We register rescue, not prevention.
And it’s only in the rescuing that the understanding of what could have been avoided starts to be perceived. Not everyone is like this, but most people seem to be.
But I don’t know how as one gets older, sees what might be a cliff ahead and finds only reasoning for a faint downslope.
And I no longer care to know if it is due to denial, laziness or ignorance anymore. Because I’m quite exhausted of this.
Keep it up. And may many join you in Samholy. Many many should know and speak of such wonder from now on.