Jon Reisman

Recent angst over Artificial Intelligence (AI) brought to mind technology, dystopian forecasts, apocalyptic fearmongering and mythology, both ancient Greek and modern American.

AI has been roiling academia, as professors fret over papers being written by ChatGPT. As the overwhelming majority of faculty tilt leftwards, little or no concern is expressed over liberally biased AI algorithms. Woke progressive CRT and Democratic talking points spewing faculty just call it conspiracy theories. Some might recall that Terminator and California Republican (sort of) Arnold Schwarzenegger was a relentless robotic assassin for the future rogue AI Skynet. Skynet was created by the military industrial complex (of course). It’s an example of what happens when you don’t ban assault weapons and resist the benevolent ministrations of those who know what you need better than you do.

The University of Maine’s Center for Innovation in Teaching and Learning has launched a series of discussions on AI. No word yet on their position on AI’s potential role in off shore wind, climate alarmism, monitoring white supremacy and replacing expensive faculty (but certainly not DEI Deans), but those discussions are probably classified. Maybe a raid on the Alfond Arena where the Chancellor’s Corvette is garaged might turn loose the trove of classified documents.

Meanwhile, African-American Elon Musk and a minyan or more of Tech oligarchs have called for an AI pause before Skynet is created and destroys Western Civilization (that’s China’s and the Biden crime family’s job).

Technology is both a creative and destructive force, creating new wealth and opportunities while ending others. The internal combustion engine and automobiles brought freedom, gas stations, malls, suburbia, drive-ins and drive-throughs, but destroyed a lot of blacksmith, buggy whip and horse related activities. Solar and wind technology is enriching a burgeoning class of climate alarmist politicians and grifters while destroying a morally corrupt economy based on cheap fossil fuel energy.  Changes in technology (notably the green revolution and birth control) resulted in the apocalyptic predictions of the first Professor of Sustainability, the Right Reverend Thomas Malthus, not coming true- we have not perished from famine and overpopulation. A chair in Malthusian alarmism in reportedly being endowed at Orono on the condition it cannot be occupied by a heterosexual white male.

Greek mythology gives us some notable references for the AI debate. Prometheus, son of Zeus, gave humans the gift of fire (technology). Control of combustion gave us heating, cooling, cooking, electricity, energy, cars, rockets, bombs, computers, AI and more. For his gift, Prometheus was punished and sentenced to be have ravenous birds eat his liver out every day. A modern version of his punishment would probably involve having to watch endless loops of Joy Reid, The View and Joe Biden.

There is also the specter of Trojan priestess Cassandra, simultaneously gifted by Apollo with the power of true prophesy and cursed not to be believed. Cassandra warned that the Trojan Horse was a danger, but was not heeded. The question is whether those warning us are truth-telling Cassandras or deluded Malthusians and greedy grifters crying wolf. My money is on deluded grifters.

Finally from 20’th Century Americana there is Pollyanna, author Eleanor Parker’s relentlessly optimistic and cheerful girl heroine. Pollyanna’s theme song should be Bab Marley’s Three Little Birds, with the hook:

“Don’t worry about a thing

‘Cause every little thing is gonna be alright”

AI angst theatre has a plethora of Prometheans (technophiles), Luddites (technophobes), Cassandras, Malthusians, Grifters and Pollyannas. I identify as a Promethean trans Pollyanna.

Jon Reisman is an economist and policy analyst who retired from the University of Maine at Machias after 38 years. He resides on Cathance Lake in Cooper, where he is a Selectman and a Statler and Waldorf intern. Mr. Reisman’s views are his own and he welcomes comments as letters to the editor here, or to him directly via email at [email protected].