The #Pope has published his first encyclical

[benroyce@mastodon.social]

@paulk

oh, i have no problem with leo

i just get a rather unsettling feeling about the larger subject matter

and the shitstorm is coming. we don't get a choice

[andii@mas.to]

@benroyce
...or maybe the secular assumptions of many have just been shown not to fit with actual religious concerns?

[benroyce@mastodon.social]

@Andii

what are you saying?

all i'm saying is i'm uncomfortable with religion and ai in the same thought process. makes my skin itch

[andii@mas.to]

@benroyce I get that. I think a lot of people have found themselves in a place where their 'image' of religion jibes badly with 'modernity'. I think that has a lot to do with post Enlightenment history rather than the actual concerns of those of us who live 'religious' lives to varying extents. It's a learning moment to discover how deeply these kinds of cultural ideas can roost in us.

[benroyce@mastodon.social]

@Andii

the thing is, *what* can roost in us

give it a few generations, and some know-it-all endlessly cheerful AI can become the center of a religion. religion as it is is the same sort of know-it-all endless cheerfulness. it's a perfect fit

i don't have a problem with the modernity vs religion issue at all. there is a place in our lives for religion. but what can sneak in there to fill that role in spite of anyone's intentions

[vnikolov@ieji.de]

@benroyce

Right...
I don't believe it is just you and I don't believe "you are getting old".

In my opinion, an old phrase does apply here, misused though it often is:
when in doubt, think...

[ldmay65@universeodon.com]

@benroyce
Have you read it, yet?

[dianshuo@mstdn.io]

@benroyce hardly. It’s exactly what he should be doing. The “weird” bit is how much sense it makes on a topic you might not have expected him to know. It’s quite readable.

[benroyce@mastodon.social]

@dianshuo

i'm sorry

i don't have a problem with leo

i have a problem with religion and AI intersecting

i wasn't clear

[benroyce@mastodon.social]

@ldmay65

it was a bad post

i don't have a problem with leo or what he wrote. i just have a problem with religion mixing with AI in general. but i wasn't clear on that

[ldmay65@universeodon.com]

@benroyce
It's okay. I actually printed it at work. I started to read it and got distracted. I want to know from my own perspective what it says.
When some people talk about AI, they do sound like they are trying to make a supreme god out of a bunch of 0s and 1s .
He chose the name Leo because of Leo XIII "Pope of the Workers" and his stance for human dignity (rights of workers to fair wages in the 1800s was one thing he pushed for).
That Anthropic is involved? Where do we go to understand this technology? Who do we trust?
When I finish reading the encyclical I may feel it doesn't take a strong stance.
Maybe it's purpose is to nudge the sleepy masses to be thoughtful about the technology and how it is now and could be used in the future? Remind people that critical thinking can only come from the human mind?
And, that's why I printed it...I don't think it will give me answers. I do think it might offer better formulated questions than I've had time to devise. Will see.
Thank you for letting me ramble.

[benroyce@mastodon.social]

@ldmay65

social media came

and destroyed the usa

ai + religion may end all of us

[andii@mas.to]

@benroyce no argument against that from me.

[johnniemac@mastodon.scot]

@benroyce @dianshuo I’m impressed that they are not waiting 300 years to raise concerns that AI may be a threat.

[peterwyrm@bne.social]

@benroyce I haven’t read the encyclical but I am impressed by the comments in the linked article from the Anthropic bloke about global inequality and moral oversight.

[peterwyrm@bne.social]

@benroyce @paulk It’s not just you. The Wikipedia article about the encyclical says “David Streitfeld, writing for The New York Times, analyzed the text as representing the contrast between traditional religions and a growing tendency in Silicon Valley to speak of artificial intelligence in quasi-religious tones.”

[benroyce@mastodon.social]

@peterwyrm @paulk

Extremely creepy topic

[cstamp@mastodon.social]

@benroyce They converted an orange rapist, pedophile, adulterer, and felon into the next coming, worshipping at his literal gold statue, so “they” can turn anything into a religion.

This pope seems pretty clear and wide-awake with modern issues, though.

[benroyce@mastodon.social]

@CStamp

yeah it was a bad post because i was freaking out over the topic of religion + AI in general: i had no criticism of leo or his writing. but the way i wrote it it looks like i'm criticizing him

[vnikolov@ieji.de]

«i just don't think we're ready for this commingling»

At first glance I read the last word as "coming"...

@benroyce @paulk