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In other words, we are entering an era faced with the If we gain stability and order at the cost of our very "scientific dictators" of Aldous Huxley's nightmare umanity, is it worth it? Do we really need this eternal vision in Brave New World. Joy writes that by 2030"we are — guidance, which has been constant through almost all likely to be able to build machines, in quantity, a million of human history, to treat the human species as if it was times as powerful as the personal computers of today”. in a constant state of adolescence, never quite prepared Joy examines the transformative nature of robotics, as ‘© make its own decisions or go out in the world on its an intelligent robot may be built by 2030: "And once an own? Well, it is time for humanity to grow up and leave intelligent robot exists, it is only a small step to a robot he strange comfort of mental authoritarianism... species—to an intelligent robot that can make evolved Our world is governed not by a conspiracy, but by copies of itself.” ideas: ideas of power, money, the state, military, Further, he writes: "A second dream of robotics is that empire, race, religion, sex, gender, politics and people. we will gradually replace ourselves with our robotic The only challenge to those ideas is from new ideas... technology, achieving near immortality by downloading If the purpose of humanity is to consume and our consciousnesses..." Joy also warns of the potential dominate, then our present situation seems only for an arms race to develop these technologies, just as natural. If we were meant for more, then we mus took place with the nuclear, radiological and biological | become more. weapons of the 20th century.” If we were meant to be free, we must become free. He aptly explains that, in the 20th century, those Ideas are powerful things: they can build empires, and technologies were largely the collapse them just as easily. products of governments, On 4 April 1967, Dr Martin whereas in the 21st century the Luther King, Jr, delivered one ol new technologies of genetic The tools and systems of his most moving and importan engineering, nanotechnology . speeches, "Beyond Vietnam", in and robotics are the products of social control are vast and which he spoke out against war corporations and capitalism. evasive: the enetrate and empire. He left humanity Thus, the driving force is that of > with sobering words: competition, desire and the the very psychology and | am convinced that if we are to get on the right side of the world revolution, we as a nation must undergo a radical revolution of values. We must rapidly begin the shift from a “thing-oriented" economic system. Hence, there is far less regulation and discussion of these new technologies than there was of the 20th-century biology of the individual. technologies, as the new technologies are developed in society to a “person-oriented” society. When machines and privately owned, not public, laboratories... computers, profit motives and property rights are considered more important than people, the giant triplets of racism, We Can Have a Scientific Dictatorship, or... materialism, and militarism are incapable of being We can create an alternative. We can use, strengthen, conquered.” Aa nnntenine ced wea bilian th AIA 2 attend a. evasive; they penetrate the very psychology and biology of the individual. We Can Have a Scientific Dictatorship, or... We can create an alternative. We can use, strengthen, decentralise and mobilise the global political awakening into a global movement of people not simply politically aware but politically active and engaged. We can create a world where people do not simply observe the apparatus of political, economic and social power influencing their lives, but actively seek to change it to better suit their lives and their freedom... The tools and systems of social control are vast and evasive; they penetrate the very psychology and biology of the individual. The elite feel that they are entrusted—due to their supposed "innate" superior intelligence and specialisation—to control society and reshape it as they see fit, to actively mould and construct public opinion and ideas. They have a belief that people are essentially irrational emotional beings, and that they must be controlled by an elite or else the world would be in chaos. This is what underpins the ideas of "stability" and "order"... About the Author: Andrew Gavin Marshall is a Research Associate with the Centre for Research on Globalization (CRG) in Montreal, Canada, and is studying political economy and history. He is co-editor, with Michel Chossudovsky, of the recent book The Global Economic Crisis: The Great Depression of the XXI Century (available at the website http:/Avww.Globalresearch.ca). His articles "A New World War for a New World Order" and "The Financial New World Order" were published in NEXUS 17/02 and 16/04-05 respectively. Editor's Note: This is an edited extract from "New Eugenics and the Rise of the Scientific Dictatorship", part three of the series "The Technological Revolution and the Future of Freedom". To view the complete text and endnotes, and to access parts one and two of this series, go to http://tinyurl.com/28cqnm5. 16 * NEXUS The tools and systems of social control are vast and AUGUST - SEPTEMBER 2010 www.nexusmagazine.com