Truth Decay

Truth Decay – Pick Your Poison

What would you choose? The red pill, or the blue pill?

Michael Zheludev
2–3 minutes

What would you choose? A life where your each and every desire can be fulfilled instantaneously, and everything that ever caused you pain, or disgust, or sadness, was completely optional? Or would you take the path of most resistance on the off chance that you may discover what you are truly capable of? The answer to this question, I believe, is one that demonstrates the true character of an individual.

Illustration by Michael Zheludev

I am not one to judge, of course. This world we’ve created comes with all sorts of tedious caveats that many of us lust to be freed from by some sort of artificial mind. The tiresome cycle of work, eat, sleep, repeat, the crippling loneliness of critical thought in a world so determined to be blind, not to mention the constant overstimulation many of us face and the inescapable financial incentives that distort and prescribe everything from art to politics. These are the burdens that lead many to see the preservation of our humanity as a lost cause not worth fighting for. They are the same reasons many would wish to escape humanity itself and outsource more and more aspects of it to artificial intelligence.

But in this exchange, we lose what makes us human. And by extension, what makes us individuals. To err is human. Not because we are failures, but because we are flawed. Each of us possesses a unique approach to life that is rooted in things we often don’t understand ourselves. Memories, experiences, fears, regrets, they all constantly shape us into who we are. The desire to skip ahead, to leave behind the now and receive any and everything you lust for… is a childish one. It is only with age that we come to realise that the destination we are all inevitably headed towards is only worth the trouble it took to get there.

So, yes. The red pill is a hell of a lot harder to swallow. And, look… at the end of the day, it’s your choice. I think there’s no more to be learned about oneself in an AI than there is just staring into a mirror all day, but some people are perfectly content with that. My only question is, are you?

One response to “Truth Decay – Pick Your Poison”

  1. gil.g Avatar
    gil.g

    Had I the opportunity to begin my life again, I would definitely take the red pill. I peaked in my performance about 50 years ago, during my military career, for which I deemed a calling as opposed to a choice. My IQ at that time was 144, and I memorized the prescribing Air Force documents my specialty – Training Management – down to the sub-subparagraphs. When the Inspector General and his specialists arrived I was always inspected by a training specialist…who invariably departed smarter than he had arrived.

    Looking back, I would estimate that I was taking both pills depending upon my personal desires and the social environment at that point in time. I suppose it was more-or-less a perceived need-based balancing act. I was offered a scholarship to McGeorge University’s Law School, which I chose not to take as at that time I had invested 12 years of my life in military service. Had I accepted the scholarship, I would probably be much better off financially than I am today, but money by itself has never been much of a motivator for me. I have never been financially distressed, and always kept a roof over my family’s heads, food on the table, clothes on their backs, and bills paid on time.

    “Success” is based upon an individual ‘s version of the concept of success. I valued my time on the Big Blue Marble, and did my best to overcome it’s stumbling blocks, Self satisfaction has been my reward.

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