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Comment by jqm | Hacker News Reader

LOL@bureaucracy as hostile AI.

Spot on comment. But... are you sure "Intelligence" is a fitting description? "Artificial" for sure.

I like the part about producing outcomes that can't readily be ascribed to individual moral choices. It seems this describes human culture in general. So here we all are. Semi-autonomous little components of the larger algorithm called "civilization" which we cannot truly hope to transcend.

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> I like the part about producing outcomes that can't readily be ascribed to individual moral choices. It seems this describes human culture in general. So here we all are. Semi-autonomous little components of the larger algorithm called "civilization" which we cannot truly hope to transcend.

Wow! That's a nice paragraph that highlights very accurately why many of us feel 'alienated' in our society.

In other cultures and times one might not even consider this description and instead describe us as useful organs in a greater body, or valuable organisms in a greater ecosystem. Which 'feels' very different.

Intelligence is appropriate as it really just means the ability to acquire knowledge and apply it. Theres no implied meaning re: effectiveness or quality.

I think you've nailed it with the second part of your comment.

Stupid as they are, I'd still argue bureaucracies have some level of intelligence. They're still capable of storing and processing information, adapting, and making decisions, albeit slowly and painfully.

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