Runaway technology (with work-depriving automation, electromagnetic pollution, cognition-robbing language models, and legalized plagiarism) is no doubt with us for the duration, but I cannot for the life of me understand how people can rationalize its utility, which surely will be out of proportion to the inevitable human cost. How can usefulness be a justification for not being against it? It is not unlike one being against environmental injury or war, even though many would justify their continuation and ignore the clear evidence of human damage. The only way forward that is rational or righteous is “zero tolerance of harm.” Let’s see if those with a vested interest in seeding communities with artificial intelligence can measure up to that standard. I won’t hold my breath.
Of course, one can take a stand “against” something, but also be accountable for personal behavior, advocate for reforms, and undertake positive action. I think of two of my heroes. Dick Gregory was against medical tyranny, but promoted nutrition, fasting, avoidance of toxic substances, mental wellness through humor, and upholding human rights. Wendell Berry is against industrial agriculture, but promotes the restoration of rural economies, human-scale communities, and stewardship of natural places. And above all those we may admire and hope to emulate, there is always Jesus of Nazareth, who was against the evil doer and wicked conduct, but promoted mercy for the suffering, love of others before self, and the forgiveness of sin.
Archive for September, 2025
Thursday, September 4th, 2025
Exhibition at Art Center of the Bluegrass in October
Thursday, September 4th, 2025 
“Rooted in visual design and inspired by the avant-garde history of collage, LITTER-ALLY KENTUCKY is a compelling body of work that transforms discarded materials into powerful statements on beauty, environment, and belonging. Created entirely from recycled and found objects — including ruined book pages, used tea bags, and fragments of roadside litter — these intricate collage landscapes offer…” READ MORE:
Wednesday, September 3rd, 2025
“Whenever a hole appears in the ozone layer of received opinion, it is sure to be quickly labeled a ‘conspiracy theory’ by a large technology platform. The lab leak in Wuhan was a conspiracy theory, as was the idea that the U.S. government was funding gain-of-function research; the idea that the development of mRNA vaccines was part of a Pentagon bio-warfare effort from which Bill Gates boasted of making billions of dollars; the idea that masking schoolchildren had zero effect on the transmission of COVID; the idea that the FBI and the White House were directly censoring Twitter, Google, and Facebook; the idea that the information on Hunter Biden’s laptop showing that he received multi-million-dollar payoffs from agents of foreign powers including China and Russia was real. The most offensive thing about these falsehoods is not the fact that they later turned out to be supported by evidence, which can happen to even the most unlikely seeming hypothesis. Rather, it is that the people who labeled them ‘false’ often knew full well from the beginning that they were true, and were seeking to avoid the consequences; that is how a truth becomes a ‘conspiracy theory.’”
— David Samuels, 2023