Related:
https://docs.palantir.com/metropolisdev ... rview.html <--- copy & paste ---!
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Fan wrote:
Yeah. I mean this is out of reach of my brain right now. I can assimilate the idea of recording everything and analyzing it to a degree, but inputting all that info into a virtual world simulation of us, creating personalities that can be tested and screwed with virtually, in order to best manipulate us... wow. It is the end-game though right? This is what they want, a reliable model to test new crazy things on.
I believe so, ymmv.
It's just too much data for any other purpose. I think the fact that these people are interested in everything from consumer habits and purchasing histories to extensive mapping of social networks and circles of influence is telling. There may be an aspect of 'anti-terrorism' involved, but despite what many want to believe, injury by terrorist is statistically extremely rare. The American reaction/policy since 9/11 makes zero sense if taken at face value. It is essentially this: in order to save the American/Western way from terrorists who wish to destroy it, we must destroy it ourselves.
There is something more at work here - there is a conspiracy. The thing to remember is that we (in the west) are an economic people first, and foremost. The fact that we claim politically to be 'free and democratic' is absolutely meaningless. The idea that we may be founded upon 'Judeo Christian' values is irrelevant today. Pointing to these facts is like pointing out that a certain automobile is vastly superior because it is painted brown, while systematically ignoring all questions about it's drive train & chassis - the prime motivators. Economically, we are not free, we are not democratic, and we do not adhere to the principles described in the Gospel. Our most celebrated business formation, the corporation, is indeed an honest reflection of the repetitive, self-similar or fractal pattern of our economic structure. In it's most successful instances, it is secretive, essentially autocratic, unaccountable, and driven solely by delivering profit to a few no matter what the external costs.
To really understand Prism, Palantir, the NSA, all of the weird wars, and even terrorism itself, we are going to have to take a close look at the business structures and the dominate business model that acts as the prime motivator for the top tier corporate/national/military organizations. Here are they key points to consider, imho:
- We define economic success at all levels in terms of year over year growth, and there are limited ways to grow after a certain point. After you have attained your natural market share, are charging the maximum price possible, & paying the least amount possible for materials and labor things get tricky.
- For purposes of valuation, etc., businesses like to have predictable revenues --- this cannot be stressed enough. I'll repeat it --- predictable. Predictability (of consumer activity) is worth a lot of money at the top.
- The ultimate consumer pool would be a group with -- 1. a tightly managed menu of options 2. a highly predictable and easily manipulable pattern of activity. 3. an inability or unwillingness to extricate themselves from this closed system.
Look back across the span of your life and you will, no doubt see a pattern that falls along the lines of the above points. The top tier economic movers have to do it. They have to increase (at the finest granularity possible) their ability to predict the actions of entire populations. This has to be done in order to more & more precisely market to the population (read: conduct psy-ops) and simultaneously restrict their spectrum of activities. It's even more concerning when you consider the near certainty of the existence of a type of anti-privacy, anti-Liberty 'planned obsolescence' program in play in order space out the top tier economic 'growth'.
Everything else - the swat teams knocking down doors, people being jailed for FB posts, in-your-face GM foods, Obama's fascist health plans/delays, the drones, the terrorists, the NSA, big government, the shaming of those who fail to be 'productive citizens', the threat of the removal of access to medicines, etc., all cascades from the same economic locus.
Related:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homo_economicus