Roko Mijic: Defects, Defection, and the Future of Governance
Feb 13, 2023
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Roko Mijic, Rationalist and inventor of 'Roko's Basilisk,' discusses rationality, signaling, lockdowns, selection effects, feminism, housing, crypto, and elite theory. The podcast delves into the conflict between rationalists and Wokism, exploring truth-seeking movements, societal challenges, governance systems, DAOs, Urbit, cryptocurrency, and future implications on governance and AI development.
The rationalist community faces challenges from Wokism, focusing on anti-racism and IQ denial.
The complex interplay between power dynamics and truth-seeking within rationalist movements is analyzed.
Critical analysis of institutional responses to the COVID-19 pandemic, emphasizing transparency and efficient management.
Bio-Leninism explores loyalty through selecting marginalized individuals, fostering unity and trust.
Feminism's evolution from partnership insurance to gender equality advocacy and its societal impact is examined.
Deep dives
The Interplay of Wokism and Rationality Movement
The rationalist community faces a challenge from a specific brand of Wokism that targets anti-racism and IQ denial. The podcast delves into the tensions and affiliations within the rationality movement, discussing topics such as feminization, housing, and effective altruism. The need for truth-seeking and rational orientation within such movements is emphasized.
Challenges Faced by Rationality in Dealing With Power
The podcast highlights the struggle of the rationalist community in determining truth amid power dynamics. It explores the impact of power on the pursuit of truth, citing historical instances of challenging beliefs that go against those in authority. The complex interplay between politics, societal beliefs, and truth-seeking is discussed, shedding light on the challenges faced by rationalists.
Critique of Institutional Responses to COVID-19 and Vaccine Administration
A critical analysis is presented regarding institutional responses to the COVID-19 pandemic, focusing on lockdown decisions and vaccine rollout. The podcast scrutinizes the bureaucratic handling of the pandemic, pointing out failures in decision-making and information dissemination. It questions the efficacy of lockdown measures and emphasizes the importance of transparent vaccine trials and efficient pandemic management.
Bio-Leninism and Loyalty in Movements
Bio-Leninism, as discussed in the podcast, involves the concept of ensuring loyalty through selecting individuals who may not fit into mainstream society. This notion ties into historical examples from communist regimes that picked members from lower social classes or ethnic minorities to maintain loyalty by creating a mutual dependence within the marginalized groups. The theory suggests that loyalty stems from a shared social disadvantage, fostering a strong sense of unity and trust among those involved.
Feminism and Societal Impact
The podcast delves into the origins of feminism and its impact on society. It explores the evolution of feminism from being an insurance policy for women choosing partners to advocating for gender equality in the workplace and broader social spheres. The discussion highlights the contrasting views on feminism's effectiveness in fulfilling women's desires and the societal repercussions of promoting gender equality ideals.
Crypto as a Potential Alternative System
Crypto is presented as a potential alternative system for economic and political operations. The episode discusses the decentralized nature of crypto and its ability to facilitate new forms of governance through mechanisms like Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs). These DAOs allow for collective decision-making, resource allocation, and governance without traditional centralized structures, offering a novel approach to political organization and economic interactions.
Urbit Revolutionizing Server-Side Technology
Urbit aims to revolutionize server technology by providing a standardized server experience for individuals. With Urbit, individuals can easily set up their own servers, install applications, and avoid the reliance on cloud computing. The concept of Urbit's persistent service allows users to have a server always running, simplifying the hosting process and making it easy to move servers around. Unlike hosting on platforms like AWS where relocation can be complex, Urbit provides a plug-and-play model, offering a seamless server experience.
Cryptocurrency's Impact on Sovereign Computing
Cryptocurrency, particularly Ethereum L2, extends the concept of personal servers to allow economic transactions between servers. Urbit ships can engage in economic activities, such as developers creating apps for these servers and getting paid in crypto. This system bypasses government regulations and taxation, offering users the ability to engage in transactions globally. Crypto's potential for self-executing smart contracts enables various applications, from financial services like blockchain banks to decentralized social networks, creating a new realm of decentralized governance and economic interactions.
The Need for Coherence in Political Strategies
The podcast discusses the importance of coherence and strategy in political movements. It highlights the necessity for alignment between the political elites and the broader population. The conversation explores the idea that having a clear connection between the elites and the policies being implemented is crucial for political success. It mentions the potential of using crypto systems to ensure coherence and strategy in political endeavors.
Balancing Technical and Content Risks in AI
The episode delves into the risks associated with AI development, focusing on technical alignment versus content risk. It suggests the need for more chaos in addressing technical failures and minimizing content risks. The discussion emphasizes the importance of balancing risks in AI programming to avoid potential negative outcomes in terms of content generated by AI systems.
