Lesson Two - Truth "An Endangered Species" part 2

"The most valuable commodity in the 21st century will be truth". - Pastor Del 2016

Truth – “An Endangered Species”  part two

The evolution of technology in the 20th century is another featured milestone marker in the rearview mirror.  The internet, which evolved from a data system called ARPANET (Advance Research Projects and Agency Network) was introduced to the public worldwide.  In 1983, the system that was an information storage station available only to a private network of intellectuals in select fields of advanced research became accessible to the general public.   This achievement was possible because of the creation of a data transfer protocol (TCP/IP) that made it possible for various types of computers existing on separate networks to communicate with each other, sharing and exchanging data.

Technology was accelerated at an unexpected pace resulting from this achievement.  The high-tech era would also yield unintended outcomes.  There are several industries that have been adversely impacted by the overrun of the internet and social media.  Online shopping outpaces in-person purchases, specifically in the category of impulse buying.  The motion picture industry suffered tremendously during the COVID shutdown, and the population worldwide resorted to online entertainment and now replaces the former as streaming services have become the profitable medium for movies and television.  The rise of digital books significantly reduced the profits of physical bookstores, resulting in the closure of many well-known stores that were staples across the country.

The greatest disruption and damage resulting from unregulated social media platforms is found among freelancers purporting news, vile rhetoric, porn, and an innumerable volume of disinformation.  The acceptance of these nuanced participants to the traditional space of information vendors and news gathering initiated the first unintended domino, unraveling the public’s reliance on traditional news sources.  Eventually, many traditional news outlets shuttered operations.   

Freelancers without credentials or commitments to honor truth outnumber traditional reporters.  The intense competition to retain a viewing audience and market share creates significant pressure.  These factors impact news quality and truthfulness.  Current news reporting relies on algorithms that prioritize ratings, online followers, and ad placements over truthful reporting.

The irony found when looking back is the contradiction of the original intent for creating ARPANET, to protect and preserve critical data.  With five billion users in 2023, nearly 75% of the world's population, the internet has become an unintended tracking system and a severe threat to user information.   Google was fined by the US for $391.5M in November of 2022 for privacy invasion violations.  France fined both Google and Facebook for preventing users from disabling tracking information.

At the peak of technological advancement is the emergence of Artificial Intelligence.  Initially, AI served as a basic tool to perform a limited set of predefined tasks.  In 2022, ChatGPT took center stage as a prominent tool, evolving from a background help tool to a leading option for creating manuscripts, art, and computer code.  A year later, in February 2023, Microsoft followed Open AI with its own version of GPT4 tech, introducing CO-Pilot.  The common denominator for both versions of this technology is how the computer brain learns to function by developing a catalog of data across human experiences, written documents, and even fine art to predicate outcomes or to design and create projects with input guidelines.

The term "Artificial Intelligence" poses the most obvious threat to the endangered truth.  The intention to replace real intelligence with artificial intelligence is clearly stated.  Knowingly the world is choosing to abandon human reliability and accountability to a non-sentient entity.

The gradual shift that began with the subtle introduction of reality television and then morphed into an opportunity to feed the depraved nature of the human appetite opened an entryway that lowered standards. The greatest technological achievements occurring in this era, which could be used to serve and promote the highest ideals, came at a time when standards in society and culture were in decline. 

A species does not become endangered overnight, the decline occurs gradually over time.  Like a lobster acclimated to a suitable water temperature, it becomes unaware that it has settled in boiling water that will take its life.  The present culture has been lulled into plausible acceptance of un-truthful standards, rhetoric, and leadership at the expense of settling to exist in boiling water.