Dear Friends,
LISTEN TO THIS WEEK’S PROGRAM. Charles and I are in a feisty mood, and while we often disagree, you’ll be relieved to know we never come to blows. At least not this time. Here’s the line-up:
(01:43) – One day, a robot will be president;
(19:43) – Climate news: (1) Off-the-chart heat waves forecast for 2023, (2) China’s population decline good news for Planet Earth, (3) Why the corporate media love urban sprawl, and (4) Extinction Rebellion’s shift away from disruption.
(36:44) – Was the US founded as a Christian nation?
(53:34) – Dutch cows take to the sea, with Kathy Byrnes.
About this notion that Americans might one day elect a robot as president … When I was a child, grownups would tell us that anyone could become president. I never bought it until 2016, when a narcissistic billionaire named Donald Trump came along and convinced me that all things are possible.
Given the rapid ascendency of Artificial Intelligence (AI), I got to wondering if Americans might one day decide the best “person” to lead the country might be a robot. Seems far-fetched, I know, but with the right robotic candidate, the hashtag “VoteBot2028” could be a winner.
But seriously, there’s so much we need to learn about the rising phenomenon of AI. The discussion (argument, really) Charles and I have during the first segment of this week’s program won’t be the last time we tackle AI on the Forum. If you’ve got guests or angles (pro or con) to suggest, please send them my way.
One person I’d like to interview is US Congressman Tony Lieu. His piece in The New York Times, “I’m a Congressman who codes. A.I. freaks me out.“, is worth reading. Here are a few snippets, including the first two paragraphs (gems!), which gave me an uncomfortable chuckle:
“Imagine a world where autonomous weapons roam the streets, decisions about your life are made by AI systems that perpetuate societal biases and hackers use AI to launch devastating cyberattacks. This dystopian future may sound like science fiction, but the truth is that without proper regulations for the development and deployment of Artificial Intelligence (AI), it could become a reality. The rapid advancements in AI technology have made it clear that the time to act is now to ensure that AI is used in ways that are safe, ethical and beneficial for society. Failure to do so could lead to a future where the risks of AI far outweigh its benefits.
“I didn’t write the above paragraph. It was generated in a few seconds by an A.I. program called ChatGPT, which is available on the internet. I simply logged into the program and entered the following prompt: ‘Write an attention grabbing first paragraph of an Op-Ed on why artificial intelligence should be regulated.’ …
“Left unregulated, facial recognition can result in an intrusive public and private surveillance state, where both the government and private corporations can know exactly where you are and what you are doing. …
“What we need is a dedicated agency to regulate A.I. … We may not need to regulate the A.I. in a smart toaster, but we should regulate it in an autonomous car that can go over 100 miles per hour. …
“The fourth industrial revolution is here. We can harness and regulate A.I. to create a more utopian society or risk having an unchecked, unregulated A.I. push us toward a more dystopian future.”
Thanks, Congressman Lieu. This is a great start to a conversation that needs to continue, both at the grassroots and legislative levels.
Thanks for reading, listening, and taking action. If you appreciate our blog and program, please consider a donation.
Ed Fallon
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LISTEN TO THIS WEEK’S PODCAST:
(01:43) One day, a robot will be president;
(19:43) Climate news: heat waves, population, urban sprawl, and XR abandons “disruption”;
(36:44) Was the US founded as a Christian nation?
(53:34) Dutch cows take to the sea, with Kathy Byrnes.
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Ed Fallon