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The Nerd Reich – Silicon Valley Fascism and the War on Democracy

simonandschuster.com

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Re: The Nerd Reich – Silicon Valley Fascism and the War on Democracy

#101

Post by lapcat »

ManlyBread wrote: post #86
lapcat wrote: post #25

Is there a HN convention for links to books? This book appears to be available only for preorder now, not yet published. Nobody here has read it, nobody here can read it, and even if they could, this submission will disappear off the front pages before commenters have a chance to order and read the book. Thus the comments section here is going to be useless (or at least more useless than usual).

I don't know what happened to this website but stuff like this keeps hitting the front page more and more often despite having close to zero value. It feels like SEO spam to me.

"Please don't post insinuations about astroturfing, shilling, brigading, foreign agents, and the like. It degrades discussion and is usually mistaken. If you're worried about abuse, email hn@ycombinator.com and we'll look at the data." https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html

The person who submitted the link already explained the submission: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46068363

Re: The Nerd Reich – Silicon Valley Fascism and the War on Democracy

#102

Post by pjc50 »

edu wrote: post #30
konart wrote: post #8

>democracy is being dismantled not by coups or tanks, but by code, capital, and the illusion of innovation Not sure "code" belongs here. Even less sure about "illusion". Take those away and what is left is "dismantled... by capital". Nothing new, really.

Code absolutely belongs there. Like any technology (be it printing presses, weapons, or algorithms) code is neutral by design, but not by impact. It can bolster democracies or undermine them. The real agency lies with those who wield it. And it's rarely the coders. It's the leaders, the platforms, the systems that choose how code is deployed.

Does open source code count as "capital"? It also has a real and significant effect.

Re: The Nerd Reich – Silicon Valley Fascism and the War on Democracy

#103

Post by nephihaha »

konart wrote: post #8

>democracy is being dismantled not by coups or tanks, but by code, capital, and the illusion of innovation Not sure "code" belongs here. Even less sure about "illusion". Take those away and what is left is "dismantled... by capital". Nothing new, really.

It is being dismantled by those who claim that the public can't have a say but that we should go to "official sources" (government appointed) or "trusted sources" (their pals) to avoid misinformation. This isn't capitalist driven (the standard Marxist line) because this system limits profits and maximalises government control.

Re: The Nerd Reich – Silicon Valley Fascism and the War on Democracy

#104

Post by YurgenJurgensen »

LAC-Tech wrote: post #60
podgorniy wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Fascism is a form of ultranationalism based on a myth of national rebirth (“we must purge decadence and be born again”), which seeks to create a new, regimented society through authoritarian power and mass mobilization, often embracing violence. == Facism is a very appealing form of organizing society, so no surprise that people would like to have it. The same way many europeans though that facism is an answer to man…

I think a good comparison would be the word "puritan". At one point puritanism was an existing social movement that mattered, and lead to a lot of upheaval. But the context in which it existed is gone. So if someone calls someone a puritan now, they don't mean they're trying to rid the Church of England of catholic influences. The reformation is over. It's now a fuzzier kind of "cultural" insult. I think people are f…

“Puritan” retains meaning beyond its historical context, since it was originally a descriptive term that became a term for a specific movement. “Fascist” does not, because it doesn’t have a (useful) descriptive meaning, it was only ever a symbol for a specific ideology.

Re: The Nerd Reich – Silicon Valley Fascism and the War on Democracy

#105

Post by pjc50 »

misja111 wrote: post #94

[flagged]

> I see no support per se for a dictatorial leader, or for strong regimentation of society

Everyone who donated to the Trump inauguration knew what they were buying into, and it has definitely delivered troops-on-the-streets fascism.

Re: The Nerd Reich – Silicon Valley Fascism and the War on Democracy

#106

Post by konart »

croes wrote: post #51
konart wrote: post #8

>democracy is being dismantled not by coups or tanks, but by code, capital, and the illusion of innovation Not sure "code" belongs here. Even less sure about "illusion". Take those away and what is left is "dismantled... by capital". Nothing new, really.

And how did they get those capital, for instance the CEO of Meta? And isn’t social media that prefers rage over information a danger to democracy?

>And how did they get those capital, for instance the CEO of Meta?

This is the right question.

I'll quote myself here:

1. How come people are able to accumulate so much capital?

2. How come people are able to use the capital to influence life of other people in all ways possible to their liking?

Yes code and capital are both "tools". But you can't just right some code and install cameras at every corner. You need some political influence to do so. And capital buys you this influence.

And to get this capital you should have laws that allow you to do so (tax rates, evasion etc).

Same goes for political influence.

Re: The Nerd Reich – Silicon Valley Fascism and the War on Democracy

#107

Post by pjc50 »

noduerme wrote: post #20

I know it's fashionable to say that democracy itself leads to these outcomes that destroy democracy. I think Arendt was right about self-colonization and overproduction of elites being the main thing that leads to totalitarianism. There wouldn't even be such a thing as a silicon valley billionaire if the United States wasn't the most wildly successful political entity for the past 2000 years. Power corrupts, but that…

There's some complaints about this book not being out, but Arendt's book has been out since 1963 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eichmann_in_Jerusalem#Banality... and is highly regarded reading on this subject.

Re: The Nerd Reich – Silicon Valley Fascism and the War on Democracy

#108

Post by Loughla »

podgorniy wrote: post #42
LAC-Tech wrote: post #24

[flagged]

Fascism is a form of ultranationalism based on a myth of national rebirth (“we must purge decadence and be born again”), which seeks to create a new, regimented society through authoritarian power and mass mobilization, often embracing violence. == Facism is a very appealing form of organizing society, so no surprise that people would like to have it. The same way many europeans though that facism is an answer to man…

How is fascism even slightly appealing?

Violence and chaos for anyone with "wrong" ideas, or friends, or genealogy. One man dictating your life choices and options. State control of quite literally everything you do, with the threat of violence and death as their tool.

Fuck. That.

Re: The Nerd Reich – Silicon Valley Fascism and the War on Democracy

#109

Post by wolvesechoes »

nephihaha wrote: post #90

This is far more similar to Communism than Fascism. Their mentality is that they are a scientific vanguard (like Marxism) and that the ends justify the means. They also share the binary thinking of Marxists. They part company with Fascism because most of them are internationalist.

Go read some books first.

Re: The Nerd Reich – Silicon Valley Fascism and the War on Democracy

#110

Post by dataflow »

mc32 wrote: post #73
konart wrote: post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's my point. Any tech can (and is) used for this. There's really no point in putting word "code" there. It adds very little additional context. Only in my opinion mostly serves the other goal - to sell.

You can argue the same for the capital that goes in. It’s used for what it’s used. By itself it’s neutral.

I don't think you can make this argument. Capital is neither neutral, nor a technology. Currency would at least satisfy one of those two. But capital is a broader concept that is pretty much by definition a form of power, and power's natural tendency is to lead to corruption.
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