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Peter Thiel's Apocalyptic Worldview Is a Dangerous Fantasy

jacobin.com

41–50 of 281 posts

Re: Peter Thiel's Apocalyptic Worldview Is a Dangerous Fantasy

#41
His ramblings aren't that relevant. The problem is that the money is used to get influence; we could see this with Musk too.

Something has to change. The superrich act as parasites and broken all inter-generational promises. The USA really messed up here - they should have put down control systems to prevent this parasitic situation.

Re: Peter Thiel's Apocalyptic Worldview Is a Dangerous Fantasy

#42
post #13

Maybe slightly off topic to the article, but I don't really care what Peter Thiel has to say. I do think we need to collectively think about how to not give these people a microphone. It's one thing to have concentrated wealth. It's a very different thing to have concentrated wealth and people's attention. I think that's a much more interesting discussion :).

I agree on the first part - I could not care any less about those insane superrich. But they use their money to influence people - this part is dangerous and must be stopped.

Re: Peter Thiel's Apocalyptic Worldview Is a Dangerous Fantasy

#43
post #4

I mean, they have a point. But considering they run a whole journal on literal communism, it’s hard to take them seriously. The message falls flat when it comes from a different flavor of dangerous fantasy.

The core belief in communism is "collective ownership for the common good" which feels like a far cry from "the literal antichrist is coming." I could follow an argument that Jacobin is naive, but it seems silly to make the direct comparison to someone who thinks we're approaching some predictable end of days and say they're the same.

100M+ dead ideology

Re: Peter Thiel's Apocalyptic Worldview Is a Dangerous Fantasy

#44
post #4

I mean, they have a point. But considering they run a whole journal on literal communism, it’s hard to take them seriously. The message falls flat when it comes from a different flavor of dangerous fantasy.

Interesting that this is being downvoted considering "Thiel is a right-wing loon" and "Jacobin are a bunch of left-wing loons" are not mutually exclusive statements. They're both wrong, just in different ways, and observing this is not "bothsidesism."

it's not interesting at all - the comment is very stupid (jacobin is not "whole journal on literal communism") as well as such lazy both-sidesism everyone is dumber for having read it.

there's lots of stupid brigading on HN, but sometimes dumb comments get the downvotes they deserve.

Re: Peter Thiel's Apocalyptic Worldview Is a Dangerous Fantasy

#45

And here I thought he was just trying to wrap his techno libertoonian worldview in the Book of Revelations in the hopes that the religious right would get behind it. Did I miss something?

Odd for a gay man to court those who support Leviticus stoning of gays. Self hating? Or just savvy?

The superrich in general don't care about being hypocritical, so I wouldn't pay too much attention to his personal preferences. Just look at the Epstein situation. The superrich frequented there.

Re: Peter Thiel's Apocalyptic Worldview Is a Dangerous Fantasy

#46
post #26

Thiel's ramblings seem so unhinged, delusions of grandeur. I am so thankful that I'm not rich enough to be surrounded by people who agree with every single half baked thought that I put out.

At a certain threshold of wealth, you stop having anyone around you that will tell you anything other than platitudes about how great and wonderful you are. If he ever had any self-awareness or humility -- and that is questionable -- it's been Dunning Krugered and yes-manned into absolute shreds.

He's a weak, frail manchild masquerading as a cartoonish supervillain. Fuck him.

Re: Peter Thiel's Apocalyptic Worldview Is a Dangerous Fantasy

#47
post #12
post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Nice "both sides" argument, very subtle.

When one side of crazies goes after a different side of crazies, “both sides are crazy” is an appropriate way to look at it.

I guess if you want to completely abandon nuance... but at that point everyone is some variety of crazy. Half the US believes in ghosts.

Re: Peter Thiel's Apocalyptic Worldview Is a Dangerous Fantasy

#48
post #4

I mean, they have a point. But considering they run a whole journal on literal communism, it’s hard to take them seriously. The message falls flat when it comes from a different flavor of dangerous fantasy.

Jacobin is not a whole journal on literal communism. It’s a magazine with a professed socialist view point but it’s more aligned with left-of-center American politics. Think Sanders or Mamdani rather than Stalin or Mao.

> Jacobin is not a whole journal on literal communism. It’s a magazine with a professed socialist view point but it’s more aligned with left-of-center American politics. Think Sanders or Mamdani rather than Stalin or Mao.

> Sanders or Mamdani

Sanders and Mamdani are about as far left of center as one can get at the moment, such that they almost meld into Stalin or Mao.

The mental gymnastics you’re doing to blunt that fact is absolutely incredible.

Re: Peter Thiel's Apocalyptic Worldview Is a Dangerous Fantasy

#49
post #26

Thiel's ramblings seem so unhinged, delusions of grandeur. I am so thankful that I'm not rich enough to be surrounded by people who agree with every single half baked thought that I put out.

There's a timecube level of unhinged to his antichrist ramblings - spurious connections steadfastly believed. If he wasn't a billionaire there would be men in white coats chasing him.

Re: Peter Thiel's Apocalyptic Worldview Is a Dangerous Fantasy

#50

The problem that this article has is essentially this: > Thiel by contrast is profiting from the use of AI weapons targeting systems used in the Ukraine war and the genocide in Gaza. Thiel is IMO not doing this for profit. He is deeply ideological, which should be more worrisome.

He 100% uses this for profit. Why does he not give away his money?

It is profit. The craziness is just the cover for it.

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