2 Comments
Dec 5, 2022Liked by Michael Weiss

In order for me to wrap my head around this blog I reduced it to the question, What kind of future are we making? Of course this is an oversimplification, but it helps me move forward.

To begin to answer that question it is noted that Wikipedia offers a good model of assembling civilization information. I agree. Wikipedia may be criticized for some aspects of its data assembly and presentation but overall it seems to get the job done.

Next it is observed that blockchain is a most useful tool in processing the information in answer to the ultimate question because it is difficult to corrupt and hence possesses enhanced reliability. This is a most telling point. It presumes that there are forces out there who seek to corrupt civilization-building models. Of course there are. Who can take issue with the ubiquity of such forces. But by accepting this as a given, as a premise from which to work or more precisely to work around, we are identifying a fact of life that is disheartening to say the least. In other words, we are conceding that in any given group, be it a tribe, a nation or collective humanity, there will always be a dedicated adverse faction of people seeking to promote their self interest above the overall interests of the group

To reduce the problem to manageable size, imagine a small group of survivors on a desert island. They assemble and agree they must work together to build shelter and to provide for the necessities of existence. What rational person can take exception to this? Yet they too will be beset with the same preoccupation that a subset of survivors among them will work against this goal.

It is easier to imagine the subversive faction working for their own interests than it is to imagine a homogeneous group of people all unanimously working together. To quote The Bard, "Therein lies the rub."

Is this not the fundamental aspect that declares difficulty for mankind? Would we be better served devoting our creative energy and insight into how to get people to work together with grace, than to assume as a starting point that they won't and that we need to design a system that will overcome this handicap.

I recognize that this posits an idealistic argument, perhaps one not suitable to my station in life, but I offer it up for consideration. Figure out a way to keep the snake out of the Garden and everything else falls nicely into place. Fail in that endeavor and design as much as you can to overcome man's propensities, but do not succumb to over-optimism.

Expand full comment