Idiocracy: A disturbingly prophetic look at the future • Hacker News Board

Re: Idiocracy: A disturbingly prophetic look at the future

#71

Post by chrisseaton » Thu, Dec 30, 2021, 4:57 PM UTC

jrs235 wrote: post #15

magikaram wrote: post #10

"The underlying message of course is that humans ought to take such things as science, research and knowledge seriously, lest we create our own Idiocracy." Rather, I felt the underlying message of the film is that the film is a critique of the consumerism and corporatism of the US. The 'idiocracy' with how the government runs, the downward trend of education in the US, and the pessimistic views of our future.

I felt the underlying message was "Intelligent people, stop focusing on career and start having more kids (we really are in a race to the bottom)!"

If we think we need intelligent people in order to have intelligent children that seems like an argument for nepotism and hereditary positions, which isn't very progressive.

Re: Idiocracy: A disturbingly prophetic look at the future

#72

Post by pessimizer » Thu, Dec 30, 2021, 4:57 PM UTC

aww_dang wrote: post #3

I'm not convinced that the author's favored political positions are above satire. >A blunt-smoking doctor at the hospital (Justin Long) is shocked that Joe doesn’t have a barcode on his arm, like everybody else, and asks, “Why come you no have a tattoo?” Yet, the author seems to be a fan of the bio-security state rationalized by the covid emergency. >...climate deniers... Is this not also a bastardization of language…

The "denier" language is a dishonest way to associate whatever the topic is with Holocaust denial. It certainly isn't exclusive to climate talk, though.

Re: Idiocracy: A disturbingly prophetic look at the future

#73

Post by titzer » Thu, Dec 30, 2021, 4:59 PM UTC

vorpalhex wrote: post #67

titzer wrote: post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There are plenty of reasons to question whether the Flynn effect (rise in IQ test scores) actually reflects increases in general intelligence rather than testing skills. Just now, reviewing the Wikipedia article on the subject, I don't see how the Flynn effect is incompatible with the mass psychosis induced by political polarization. People can excel at their jobs and yet rant absurd conspiracies as soon as they get…

Here's a meta-analysis of 281 studies that found very strong support for the Flynn Effect: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4152423/

I am not disputing the numbers. Read my comment again.

Re: Idiocracy: A disturbingly prophetic look at the future

#74

Post by huijzer » Thu, Dec 30, 2021, 4:59 PM UTC

> 'Observing that “evolution does not necessarily reward intelligence”, the narrator explains that “with no natural predators to thin the herd, it began to simply reward those who reproduced the most – and left the intelligent to become an endangered species”.'

As a counterexample, there are the people in the top 1 000 or so of the Forbes ranking. All pretty clever and not really endangered at all.

The article reads more like trying to get attention by scaring people instead of being insighful

Re: Idiocracy: A disturbingly prophetic look at the future

#75

Post by pessimizer » Thu, Dec 30, 2021, 4:59 PM UTC

caffeine wrote: post #20

aww_dang wrote: post #3

I'm not convinced that the author's favored political positions are above satire. >A blunt-smoking doctor at the hospital (Justin Long) is shocked that Joe doesn’t have a barcode on his arm, like everybody else, and asks, “Why come you no have a tattoo?” Yet, the author seems to be a fan of the bio-security state rationalized by the covid emergency. >...climate deniers... Is this not also a bastardization of language…

This movie is ripe for a remake where the world is stupid-Left instead of stupid-Right. Starbucks offers gender reassignment surgeries and Costco employees say “Welcome to Costco, I apologise”, and the world-ending crisis is that nobody can actually reproduce any more.

Just like Heathers was ripe for a remake where the misfit kids bully the white jocks. It's not.

Re: Idiocracy: A disturbingly prophetic look at the future

#76

Post by erikerikson » Thu, Dec 30, 2021, 5:00 PM UTC

jrs235 wrote: post #15

magikaram wrote: post #10

"The underlying message of course is that humans ought to take such things as science, research and knowledge seriously, lest we create our own Idiocracy." Rather, I felt the underlying message of the film is that the film is a critique of the consumerism and corporatism of the US. The 'idiocracy' with how the government runs, the downward trend of education in the US, and the pessimistic views of our future.

I felt the underlying message was "Intelligent people, stop focusing on career and start having more kids (we really are in a race to the bottom)!"

Maybe: the way we structure professional life is incompatible with a healthy society.

Re: Idiocracy: A disturbingly prophetic look at the future

#77

Post by cbozeman » Thu, Dec 30, 2021, 5:00 PM UTC

sabhiram wrote: post #68

mattkevan wrote: post #52

Idiocracy doesn’t actually go far enough to match current-day reality. In the film, people were smart enough to understand they weren’t all that intelligent. Even the president was willing to defer to someone who knew more than him. The last couple of years have proven that to be rather naive when it comes to our real leadership.

Well, the Rock did just announce that he is interested in politics. Kidding aside, he would likely make a much better leader than the current self indulgent noise.

Ronald Reagan. Donald Trump. Shit... why not Dwayne Johnson?

Re: Idiocracy: A disturbingly prophetic look at the future

#78

Post by chrsig » Thu, Dec 30, 2021, 5:02 PM UTC

I encourage everyone to watch Don't Look Up. In many ways it struck me as the spiritual successor to Idiocracy.

I needed to watch it in chunks, because of how viscerally real it is. It is funny, in that it's ostensibly comedy, and the actors all have great comedic timing...but it's also a very very honest appraisal of where we're at as a society.

Re: Idiocracy: A disturbingly prophetic look at the future

#79

Post by luckylion » Thu, Dec 30, 2021, 5:03 PM UTC

tshaddox wrote: post #24

luckylion wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Everyone knows who you mean when you call one US party "fascists" and the other "communists", but you've lost pretty much all nuance. And all you've won is a bit of impact, for a while, because the tool will blunt with constant use. You'll have to reach for "super fascists" and "mega communists" next time and that will barely move the needle and you'll be far away from the effect you got when you tried that hack the…

But the original commenter literally feigned confusion, as if the term might have referred to people who deny that the Earth has a climate.

No, the original commenter questions whether anyone denies that earth has a climate, which would make "Climate Denier" an accurate and useful term. Of course, it's a rhetorical question to point out that the term is just used for effect, thereby reducing the utility of language.

I believe you can apply Kant's categorical imperative to language as well and you'll quickly arrive at the point that misusing language to score a point will lead to language becoming less useful and you'll do much more harm than you gain.

Re: Idiocracy: A disturbingly prophetic look at the future

#80

Post by neuronic » Thu, Dec 30, 2021, 5:04 PM UTC

At the beginning stands disappointment. The decentralized, anonymous Internet was a chance. The Internet became hostile garbage the second broad access was popular. Creativity, serious discussion, and unseen exchange of minds is what I first connect to the word Internet. Then came the ads and shady business models...

Today, I am deeply disturbed by the malice and sheer idiocy that social media has not only exposed but also amplified (with intent), as engagement is their business model. Broad engagement is and always has been easiest perpetrated by hate and gossip.

There are still great blogs, great individuals and great content. Great communities and creativity. They can simply continue to exist.

But we need to drive Facebook/Meta and all its ad-driven social media metastases (hah) to extinction, it's a cancer on society under the guise of free speech and social advancement. Algorithms take you in and bubble-wrap you in your own little safe space devoid of any exposure to other people and ideas. Connect the world yada-yada. Yea right... connect the world of alt-right Nazis maybe.

Aside from that, I am pretty certain the Wild West days of the Internet will soon be over - maybe another 10-15 years for relative anonymity. Soon the China model will be replicated in the West as the Internet of today can under no circumstances guaruntee a lawful environment.