Absolutely. I’m not saying you’re wrong. It just sucks when the history of a country is discussed without mention of the people who live there. It can be infantilizing to speak of them as if they’ve just been nothing but bossed around, is all.
You didn’t say the West was a cause of the problems. You said it was the cause. All I meant was, “this is a bit eurocentric, don’t you think?” We should keep discussions grounded in reality, is all. I wasn’t expecting it to upset you so badly.
The West played a massive role in Haitian history. All bad things pretty much. But the Haitians themselves have played a major role as well.
I never said anything about immigration controls. I don’t even believe in borders. I also never said that Haitian people don’t live within a broader context. I’m simply saying that when we speak about people as if they’re only victims, we start to believe that’s all they are. It also makes you sound like a sophomore in a white, middle class college.
I understand all of this. Your take is still Eurocentric. The massive earthquakes, hurricanes, and the corruption found in the governments led by figures like Jovenel Moïse also played a big role though. I’m not excusing anything the Europeans did/do. It’s awful. But to only discuss the impacts of white people is a problem – even when it’s in a negative context. It makes it seem like the Haitian people have just been sitting there doing nothing for the past 200 years.
A holistic view is best, and this sort of view would be the only one accepted by contemporary historians.
You are correct that European empires have done unimaginable harm. However, be careful not to strip agency away from the Haitian people themselves. To state that everything is a consequence of white people is to suggest that the Haitians have no control of anything and no agency. It’s almost like an accidental racism where nothing is attributable to people of color.
This is not meant to excuse anything the Europeans did, but evil can be found in all cultures. Immigration, economic disasters, and authoritarian takeovers would still happen without white imperialism.
It’s not some random dude in a garage, it’s the unregulated tech overlords and autocrats that could do it. AI isn’t intelligent, but it has amazing pattern matching capabilities. It’s going to create all sorts of advancements in science, and to deny the problems that comes with this is both silly and dangerous.
If we want to fight ai, we have to understand it. It’s not a conscious omnipotent god like the tech bros think, but it’s also not a useless fad. Real scientists are warning of its potential consequences, and governments all over the world are investing trillions to improve it.
In a decade, it should be at least twice as powerful as it is today, and that is indeed a big deal.
People still think AI is useless? I mean I hate AI with a fiery passion, but I thought the whole AI is a scam thing ended last year. Spreading the message that it’s all just a scam is dangerous because it makes people who may otherwise stand up against it complacent.
Is it what the tech industry says it is? No. Will it reach something like agi? Scientists are split. But is AI something we can ignore or write off? Heck no.
The EU’s reaction to AI has been so sad. Hard to keep hope when the only sane region in the world is also fully on board.
Finally a correct take on AI by a politician.
He can have socialism of ram when we have socialism of wealth. Fuck this guy.