Challenge
Imagine how you’d like this world to be organised, what would be the best scenario not only for you, but for society, planet, humanity? And try not to imagine silly things, like yourself being a benevolent dictator and solving every issue personally, or getting a machine, djinn or somesuch AGI.
Assumptions
In my limited understanding a golden standard for modern civilisation might be:
- Freedom / Liberty - e.g. letting people live how they want, as long as they don’t limit freedom of others with their actions
- Equality
- equality before the law (legal egalitarianism) - historical and material situation should not determine your basic privileges and punish you equal
- minimal economic equality - allowing individuals to determine their fate with fruits of their work, getting education and chances on job market
- Ownership - people can acquire goods and opinions, own and circulate them freely, as long as their actions don’t undermine previous two principles.
In my opinion, exploitation of other animals leads to a society where point 1 and 2 are always in jeopardy. If we grow in a place where it is alright to keep animals enslaved and exploited, doesn’t it translate easily to personal interactions?
Questions
- Would you happily accept if random billionaire bought your company and fired you, just because he doesn’t like you, your values or background?
- Would it be OK if he captured, raped and killed your mother or sister, without any consequences? (he can pay everyone not to see it).
Drastic hyperbole, I know, but there’s entire spectrum of human interactions somehow relating to economical, physical or emotional violence and hierarchies. (Nota bene, I don’t believe that any hierarchies are not bad per se, but their ruling principles and structures (e.g. polarization or distribution) often are.)
Counter-arguments
- What we do to other species does not necessary translate to interactions within society!
- Predatory practices and hunger for more has placed our civilisation where it is, individuals are driven mainly by a perspective of trumping their competitors, getting the sweet reward of being the top dog!
Well, we never tried living without these horrible practices present somewhere in the background, but if we want to develop our world more to a vision shown in solarpunk stories like “Star Trek” rather than dystopian/post-apo stories of Cyberpunk and Mad Max, maybe it’s time to rethink the principles? Maybe with current level of technologically-enhanced power we can throw away shameful ladder which we climbed?
Bonus
And if it’s insufficient / unimportant for you what we do to each other, there’s one more issue. It’s not only about “What can we do to create the world our hearts yearn to live in?” In case we live long enough to see