Do Not Fear the Future

What is more important — wealth or health? Do you prefer to be loved by adoring strangers or by close members of your family? When you depart this world, would you rather be remembered for your political power or moral courage? Is the cultivation of a virtuous character more valuable than the accumulation of material things?

I ask these questions to highlight how much power you have over your own life. I often receive messages from people who are worried about the future. Some sound despondent about the challenges ahead. Some are happy that President Trump did this and unhappy that he did that. Some seem so engrossed in the turbulent world of politics that they struggle to be upbeat about more important things.

I am an ordinary sinner with no special knowledge about our existence, and my intention is not to lecture others. I do wish to remind people, though, that they are in control. No matter how coercive governments and corporations are, we are still masters of our fates. We decide what we believe. We decide how we will act. We decide what costs we are willing to bear in defense of our principles.

There is something liberating in the acknowledgment of these simple facts. Surely our principles aren’t really our principles until we are willing to suffer in defense of them. Our earthly struggles are the grindstones that sharpen our moral virtue. Adversity is as much a blessing as it is a burden.

Those who worry so much about the future that they squander the 86,400 seconds each day sacrifice present happiness. And happiness, as I suggest in the first paragraph, cannot be bought. Fame is a shabby substitute for love. Just consider how many celebrities use alcohol and drugs to treat their depression. Likewise, the size of your home or bank account reveals nothing about your worth. Wealthy people die every day. Their possessions do not make their lives exemplary. Moral excellence, on the other hand, is rare in this world. The life of a poor but virtuous person is more extraordinary than the life of a wealthy but dishonorable one. Strength can be found in remembering that.

Advancements in artificial intelligence (A.I.) worry people. Every week, a major news publication is accused of publishing A.I.-written articles. Students are turning in A.I.-written assignments as their own work. Professions, including medicine and law, are increasingly relying on A.I. tools for both problem-solving and finished reports. Some people connect these dots and conclude that not only will there be no human jobs in the future, but also there will be no thinking human beings.

Allow me to offer an even more startling glimpse into the future. As A.I. becomes more adept at mimicking the great writers of the past, it will not stop once it corners the market on popular fiction. The Big Tech companies that are building A.I. infrastructure today are the same companies that store all our emails, text messages, and social media posts. You didn’t think that they provided “free” accounts all these years out of the kindness of their corporate hearts, did you? What happens when an A.I. system uses everything you’ve written in the twenty-first century to mimic your writing style in a personal message to a loved one? The more competent that A.I. becomes, the more difficult it will be to know for sure who is communicating with us.

Taking this line of reasoning to its logical conclusion, it is easy to see how foreign adversaries (or unsavory domestic intelligence services) might one day use A.I. to foment social unrest by impersonating the friends and family members of millions of citizens instantaneously. Will we be forced to verify one another’s digital identities to avoid confusion and deception?

Surely that won’t work, either. For decades, companies such as Google and Apple have requested that we answer a series of “security” questions, ostensibly to help them verify our identities should we get locked out of our accounts. As any computer engineer with expertise in algorithms and probability can tell you, a small amount of personal information is highly predictive at generating an individual’s likely passwords. Next time you tell Big Tech or Big Brother your first pet’s name, childhood address, or high school mascot, remember that some A.I. is using that information to build a digital profile on you in cyberspace. Is it any wonder why government agencies are the silent partners of every tech company?

In a world where our digital identities may never be secure, what is one to do? Perhaps we will relearn the value of human interaction. Perhaps we will realize that we are only as secure as our personal relationships are strong. In fact, it is entirely possible that one outcome of a future dominated by A.I. is a renewed appreciation for human-intensive work.

Have you noticed, for instance, that the market for handmade furniture and crafts has grown steadily since the ’90s? What happened around that time? The World Wide Web crisscrossed the planet. Ironically, technological innovation actually renewed consumer demand for trade skills that were in obvious decline.

The twentieth century gave us the modern factory, and rapid technological growth increased manufacturing productivity exponentially. But those “advancements” came with serious costs. Jobs were lost to international trade as multinational firms chose cheap foreign labor over domestic producers. Quality also declined, and consumers who once expected appliances to last decades were forced to accept that goods barely survived a manufacturer’s limited warranty.

People fed up with cheaply made products have used the internet to find human producers who would otherwise never be able to survive in a globalized world of Big Box fabrications. Thirty years ago, this trend seemed unlikely. Today, it is an undeniable reality. An increasing number of consumers would rather purchase quality handmade goods than mass-produced facsimiles that cannot withstand the rigors of time. There is a reason why Amish furniture is in high demand today.

Do not be surprised if a similar effect follows advancements with A.I. The more that artificial intelligence dominates life, the more that real intelligence will become a precious commodity. There will be a moment when an individual’s skill and education are prized because the A.I.-enabled knockoffs appear as hollow imitations of human creativity. There will be a moment when human interactions are cherished because digital interactions can’t be trusted. There will be a moment when personal knowledge and character will be valued for their human authenticity. Technological revolutions impact human history in unexpected ways.

For millennia, a good sword was expensive and required time and skill to wield well. Big, strong swordsmen had a distinct advantage. The handgun, however, quickly leveled the playing field. As was often said of Samuel Colt’s famous revolver, “God created men; Colonel Colt made them equal.” A lightweight AR-15-style rifle provides a small woman with the power to defend herself against a large man. Firearms have democratized self-defense.

Similarly, the printing press, radio, television, and personal computer have democratized communication. Although governments have had varying success in using these innovations to maintain power, there is no doubt that the information revolution of the last five hundred years has narrowed the knowledge gap between the wealthiest and the poorest more significantly than during any other period in history. And whatever happens with A.I. over the next few years, there is no doubt in my mind that a similar democratizing effect will accompany its proliferation — irrespective of the wishes of today’s “ruling class.”

In the midst of great change, certain things remain constant. We humans love and seek to be loved. We are remembered for our virtues and moral failings. We find sustained purpose in our relationships with God and our families. Let us hold fast to these truths.

J.B. Shark, American Thinker

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Related Topics: Culture, Science & Tech

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