9/11 and AI-- have we learned anything at all?

Twenty-five years ago, our world changed. Moreso here in the United States, but globally as well. The terrorists targeted two symbols of American "strength"-- financial and military-- and struck at the heart of what the nation seemed to hold nearest and dearest. Some would say that they hit at symbols of hubris; and in some ways, that makes sense. Western civilization has always trended toward patterns of domination, and other cultures and the earth itself has paid the price, over and over again. That corrective, if we want to call it that for sake of argument, worked to bring people together, to unite in ways that hadn't been experienced in ages. But it also served as a means of division; this new-found cultural unity, if it was that at all, left out whole segments of society, and anti-Muslim hate has continued to flourish and even be applauded by people in the highest elected places of our society. But yet, a nation that supported the terrorists is now a "most favored nation"-- at least, favored by those in financial circles of the highest echelons. It's a conundrum, to say the least. 

Hubris, as a human failing, is at play yet again, and this time we are all targets. AI and the development of "superintelligence" (a term I rankle at, to start with) are a clear and present threat to the planet and to all of humanity, we are warned. And it's not some science fiction boy crying wolf, either. And if AI can --and likely, it might-- wipe out humanity in our lifetime, then we should all be hollering daily. Just because we can, does not mean we should. This is the trope that drives so much of science fiction, yet here we are. I, for one, have not consented to being thrown into the dustbin of human history by tech goons. 

While we rightfully have a day of remembrance for the major paradigm shift that the attack on the United States engendered, we should also be quite well aware that the ongoing attack on all of humanity is right here, right now. And there may be no one left to commemorate that, if it goes unchecked as it has been. 

I look at my family, especially my dear little Holly, and I weep for the fate of humanity. That we can quietly go about ending it all for everyone as an academic and financial exercise is the greatest evil there is. May God help us and save us-- because it looks like we are not, as a "civilization," all that interested in saving ourselves. I will not go down without a fight. 

C