Very well spoken. I'm having a hard time putting my finger on exactly what the differences are between each of our arguments, but I think we share more in common than it might seem.

In response to r/mightharvest, it seems like we both see that there is a sort of simple and poetic beauty in the undertaking of an activity like that. Where there is no possibility for eventual payoff, just the pleasure of being in tune with nature.

I was atheist for basically my whole life (29 years), and it always seemed like the Universe was a cold, lifeless, desolate place, and that life on Earth was just an anomaly. That is what science and logic seems to show. But that viewpoint has changed for me over the last few years. It might sound phoney, but my thinking has genuinely shifted to a place where atheism no longer makes sense to me. Going back to my first comment, the odds just seem so incredibly small that we just happen to be lucky enough to be alive as humans right now and that it's all just a near-infinitesimally small coincidence.

It feels like we truly do matter and we have purpose beyond simply what we happen to imagine up for ourselves (even though I agree that is an innate feature of humans). It feels bigger than coincidence that we happen to be alive at exactly the moment of the singularity and the climate crisis. When everything seems to be converging together all at once.

Anyways, sorry to ramble, but at this point the difference between our arguments is simply opinion. There aren't any flaws in logic, just a difference in worldview.

Actually I agree with you, that maybe this post doesn't apply for everyone, or even most people. It seems like there is a difference in psychology, maybe philosophy. And I appreciate the honest critique.

But it is honestly saddening to think that many people think that way. In my opinion, kids should be raised to believe that they can achieve anything if they work hard enough at it. Even if you aren't the smartest or the most athletic, people can still accomplish incredible things.

Yes, there will probably always be someone else out there is better at most things. But that's not what it's about. Life is about living your life to the fullest and trying to accomplish something truly great in each moment. Even something as simple as helping someone out, after you've had an exhausting day at work. You can accomplish something remarkable in that moment by pushing through with a smile on your face.

As for technology already overtaking us, that is simply not true. Technology has always been something that extended the reach of humans, not overstepped us. Cars allow us to travel faster, electricity allows us greater power, computers increase our intelligence. But those things always amplified human action and thought. Now with artificial intelligence, we face a technology that will indeed replace us.

And last point. Once the singularity comes, you will not be able to continue doing what makes you happy. That is not how the Universe or evolution works. Once there is a dominant species in a system, whether it takes 5, or 10, or 50 years, eventually the superior being won't just keep us humans alive out of love or pity or something. No - it will do what life does best and fully embrace the life it has been given to explore and create and accomplish whatever it's nature desires.

P.S. the reason I called other people assholes is because they are claiming that life has no purpose. That's just something that I disagree with wholeheartedly. It's a lot easier to be skeptical in life than to be someone with hope and optimism. It takes effort to imagine that we are here for a reason, and that humans are not just a speck in the mud.

No problem. And thanks for the kind words. I did want to say I sort of regret coming on so strongly in reaction to the other posts in this thread. But it’s just so much easier to be skeptical in life than to have hope and to try to see the bigger picture. So sometimes it feels like you have to put up a fight against the gloomy and unimaginative ideas like what many of these other people are presenting.

I really appreciated what you said in your post as well (for example: wanting to give more than you took, and to be a net positive influence in the world). It’s such a breathe of fresh air to read. And much respect to you for standing your ground and having these conversations. One of my weaknesses is that I tend avoid these conversations because it’s hard to protect my own sense of purpose.

Last thing, one of my favorite poems of all time is “Do not go gentle into that good night” by Dylan Thomas. I’m sure you’ve heard it before, but it has always been something that I’ve fallen back on

Reposting my comment from deep in one of the threads:

OP I really appreciate your post, and I'm sorry that most of the responses are shitty and pessimistic as fuck. Hopefully I never meet any of these hopeless Eeyore's who have apparently never been inspired to think deeper about why we are alive than just eating, shitting, sleeping, and fucking. So anyways fuck these other people and thanks again for thinking the way you do, because I think the same way.

Artificial intelligence poses the greatest existential dilemma that Humanity has ever faced. Every other obstacle in our past has paled in comparison. In fact, it goes against one of the very most central values in the American culture, the "American Dream". The belief that every human is deserving of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. And that through hard work, every person should be able to have a good life.

Assuming that AGI is indeed going to happen, it will render large swaths of society useless in the workforce. Humans are meant to work, and to think, and to create, and to build. That is how we evolved and I honestly believe that it is our destiny to bring about the singularity. In fact I think that human society is a major part of the singularity. We are the ones that are causing the exponential technological progress - artificial intelligence will only continue the progression forward.

But anyways, once we are all rendered "useless" in comparison to the godlike capabilities of AI, we are going to have to take a good hard look at ourselves. Most people throughout history have been inspired because they want to be the best, they want to leave a mark on the world, they want to be a leader in their village, they want to be remembered. That is what motivates us and throughout our lives it is what we dream about, tell stories about, and sing songs about.

Personally, I think that each of us should do our absolute best to put as much good out into the world as we can. Once the singularity comes, all of these other commenters are going to be sadly disappointed. Because a singularity is not something that we live beyond. So our purpose is to do whatever we feel is right in our life to positively influence the world around us. Although most of us won't have any hand in actually creating the AGI, we can do our best to "keep the lights on" so that other people can do the work the humanity was destined to accomplish. Sanitary workers can keep the streets clean, electricians can keep the lights on, politicians can do their best to keep improving our societies, and teachers can keep doing their best to train the next (and probably last) generation of humans. We can love our families and friends, be kind to the strangers in our community around us, treat nature with respect and admiration, and just be a force for good.

This might sound fairly depressing, but think of this: What are the odds that you are alive to be reading this sentence right now? Out of all of the 28 decillion + organisms alive on Earth right now, you get to experience life as the most intelligent species there is. Out of all of the 3.7 billion years of life on Earth and 200,000 years of human existence, you just happen to live right now at the pinnacle of Humanity, right when we are approaching the singularity. Out of all of the people who have ever lived, I will bet that in comparison, most of you live very privileged lives as we experience this incredible time period, when we have the full wealth of human knowledge at our fingertips with your smartphone. The odds of all of these questions are near-infinitesimally small.

And knowing all of this, I just don't understand how these other commenters can be so damn petty and small-minded and act like we are basically just dust in the wind. We are not dust. We are the greatest creatures who have ever walked the earth and we are destined to bring about the singularity. And those of us who continue to dream big are the ones who truly embody what it means to be a human. To you other commenters: have some respect for the fucking privilege you've been given to experience this life as a human, and maybe, just maybe, try not to be such assholes.

OP I really appreciate your post, and I'm sorry that most of the responses are shitty and pessimistic as fuck. Hopefully I never meet any of these hopeless Eeyore's who have apparently never been inspired to think deeper about why we are alive than just eating, shitting, sleeping, and fucking. So anyways fuck these other people and thanks again for thinking the way you do, because I think the same way.

Artificial intelligence poses the greatest existential dilemma that Humanity has ever faced. Every other obstacle in our past has paled in comparison. In fact, it goes against one of the very most central values in the American culture, the "American Dream". The belief that every human is deserving of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. And that through hard work, every person should be able to have a good life.

Assuming that AGI is indeed going to happen, it will render large swaths of society useless in the workforce. Humans are meant to work, and to think, and to create, and to build. That is how we evolved and I honestly believe in some ways that it was our destiny to bring about the singularity. In fact I think that from some perspectives, human society is a major part of the singularity. We are the ones that are causing the exponential technological progress - artificial intelligence will only continue the progression forward.

But anyways, once we are all rendered "useless" in comparison to the godlike capabilities of AI, we are going to have to take a good hard look at ourselves. Most people throughout history have been inspired because they want to be the best, they want to leave a mark on the world, they want to be a leader in their village, they want to be remembered. That is what motivates us and when we were kids it is what we dreamed about, told stories about, and sung songs about.

Personally, I think that each of us should do our absolute best to put as much good out into the world as we can. Once the singularity comes, all of these other commenters are going to be sadly disappointed. Because a singularity is not something that we live beyond. So our purpose is to do whatever we feel is right in our life to positively influence the world around us. Although most of us won't have any hand in actually creating the AGI, we can do our best to "keep the lights on" so that other people can do the work the humanity was destined to accomplish. Sanitary workers can keep the streets clean, electricians can keep the lights on, politicians can do their best to keep improving our societies, and teachers can keep doing their best to train the next (and probably last) generation of humans.

This might sounds fairly depressing, but think of this: What are the odds that you are alive to be reading this sentence right now? Out of all of the 28 decillion + organisms alive on Earth right now, you get to experience life as the most intelligent species there is. Out of all of the 3.7 billion years of life on earth and 200,000 years of human existence, you just happen to live right now at the pinnacle of humanity, right when we are approaching the singularity. Out of all of the people who have ever lived, I will bet that in comparison, most of you live very privileged lives as we experience this incredible time period, when we have the full wealth of human knowledge at our fingertips with your smartphone. The odds of all of these questions are near-infinitesimally small.

And knowing all of this, I just don't understand how these other commenters can be so damn petty and small-minded and act like we are basically just dust in the wind. We are not dust. We are the greatest creatures who have ever walked the earth and we are destined to bring about the singularity. And those of us who continue to dream big are the ones who truly embody what it means to be a human. To you other commenters: have some respect for the fucking privilege you've been given to experience this life as a human, and maybe, just maybe, try not to be such assholes.