Yeah that’s been pointed out. That’s why I crossed that bit out. I was trying to say that, after the US stopped funding the Mujahideen, their access to modern weaponry would have stopped, which wouldn’t make them comparable to modern “military aid”. But then I realized everyone was just assuming he was talking about the Soviet-Afghan War in the first place, so it wasn’t relevant.
The full quote is, “There wasn’t a major power supply the Afghans with high-tech equipment. They just had the will to fight. And because of that, it kept going and going and going.”
This is accurate in context. There’s no comparison between the equipment being given to Ukraine by the west and the equipment given to the Mujahideen. You can say he’s talking about the Taliban and that China or Russia supporting the Taliban, but you would be directly citing US intelligence to do so.
This is a problem that comes up with a lot of white people who try to deny the horrors of slavery. They point out that all cultures and races have had slavery throughout history. The chattel slavery of the Atlantic Slave Trade in the Americas was particularly brutal in that it was racialized and that they enslaved the children of slaves, which created institutional pressure for slaves to have kids. A lot of the awful conditions were particularly bad, even by slavery’s terms, because of these pressures. There was no situation in which a white person could become so poor or unfortunate that, not only would they become enslaved, but all of their children and their children’s children would become slaves. There was also not situation in which a white person could be so poor or unfortunate that they would spontaneously change race. The torture and murder this enabled is what most modern westerners think about when they think of slavery, which is why the comparison is at least misguided. But I do think that in terms of prior forms of slavery, that wage slavery is an apt comparison. The whole point is that markets put an abstraction over top of the exploitation
I keep imagining a movie scene that I’m pretty sure doesn’t exist.
A small crowd surrounds a bonfire. Many of them have backpacks or travel bags by their side. Some are sitting. Some are standing. Most are drinking. A few stare at the fire while the routine of this setting continues around them.
There are several musicians entertaining everyone. It seems that people hop in and out at their leisure. There’s a pair of hippie women with small hand drums. There’s a pothead whose features are obscured by their drug rug and the inconsistent light of the flame. From the sound and position of their hands, they seem to be ad-libbing on harmonica. Plenty of folks sing with varying degrees of success and enthusiasm, but one man sits with his eyes closed playing guitar and leading the jam. He does this often. He carries himself as such.
A new man approaches the fire and greets a friend, but his eyes are locked contemplatively on the jam leader. The newcomer has never attended this particular ritual before and doesn’t seem to know anyone beyond the person he’s sat next to.
After taking a second to assess the situation, the song ends to scattered applause and cheers. The performer opens his eyes and gives a satisfied grin, followed quickly by quiet attentiveness when he realizes he’s being stared at. Newbie remembers himself and quickly reaches around his bag to unstrap a black case about the size of his forearm, which was admittedly long. With a couple small thuds, the case is open to reveal a beautiful fiddle and bow. Newbie looks back up at the guitarist who is pleasantly surprised, raising his eyebrows and nodding in encouragement.
Tuning the fiddle and rosining the bow is quick and practiced, but still not quick enough to get the jump on the start of the next song. By the second chord, the fiddler has recognized the song and is smirking, shaking his head in mock disbelief. After the first progression, it repeats and the melody soars out of the strings above the accompaniment where a voice would normally go. Their eyes are irreparably locked now as many people gather around to join in singing a tune they all knew. To everyone else, this is a merry chorus. To the two men, the rhythm and the lead, there is no one else but them. They have not spoken a word to each other. They both hear the other escalating the intensity of the music as the makeshift choir rises in a drunken refrain. Still their eyes grow increasingly knowing.
And then smash cut to the two of them furiously making out in the woods.
Roko’s Basilisk is the natural conclusion of a world where everyone believes that “making an example” out of criminals reduces crimes no matter how many studies come out saying that capital punishment isn’t a deterrent. Why else would an AI come to the conclusion that revenge serves its purposes?
I’d imagine they are using a bunch of narrow AI functions for various parts of the machine, but still hand crafting the core algorithm. I remember the first self-driving car was really just a robot attached to a steering wheel and a dashcam. So what it was learning to recognize was just which way the road was curved. It drove at a fixed 5mph and was still really dangerous to ride in even after training. That was like 50 years ago but still
Honestly, all car manufacturers would need to justify this if we really had any way of reckoning with them. Cars in general are one of the most unsafe things that we’ve collectively agreed is fine despite alternatives being available
I’ve lived through Caitlyn Jenner becoming the face of trans women. I don’t know if I can live through Elon Musk becoming the face of polyamory. I hope Chelsea’s taking care of herself.
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Yeah that’s been pointed out. That’s why I crossed that bit out. I was trying to say that, after the US stopped funding the Mujahideen, their access to modern weaponry would have stopped, which wouldn’t make them comparable to modern “military aid”. But then I realized everyone was just assuming he was talking about the Soviet-Afghan War in the first place, so it wasn’t relevant.