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  • SXSW2013 Presentation - Unabomber Debate Slides

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    Jeffrey Young
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    Ted Kaczynski, also known as the Unabomber, continues to write anti-technology essays from prison, and his fans believe he makes some good points about the unforseen consequences of technology in modern society. One of those fans is philosopher David Skrbina, the Unabomber's longtime pen pal, who recently helped publish a book of the Kaczynski's writings. Mr. Skrbina says the violent tech skeptic should be taken seriously for his ideas. In this session, we'll explore whether that's true. Mr. Skrbina will outline the Unabomber's latest thinking, and another philosopher of technology, Peter Ludlow, will offer a counterpoint, in a debate moderated by a journalist who recently wrote a popular article on the topic.

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    SXSW2013 Presentation - Unabomber debate slides

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    Ted Kaczynski, also known as the Unabomber, continues to write anti-technology essays from prison, and his fans believe he makes some good points about the unforseen consequences of technology in modern society. One of those fans is philosopher David Skrbina, the Unabomber's longtime pen pal, who recently helped publish a book of the Kaczynski's writings. Mr. Skrbina says the violent tech skeptic should be taken seriously for his ideas. In this session, we'll explore whether that's true. Mr. Skrbina will outline the Unabomber's latest thinking, and another philosopher of technology, Peter Ludlow, will offer a counterpoint, in a debate moderated by a journalist who recently wrote a popular article on the topic.

    Copyright:

    Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
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    9K views42 pages

    SXSW2013 Presentation - Unabomber Debate Slides

    Uploaded by

    Jeffrey Young
    Ted Kaczynski, also known as the Unabomber, continues to write anti-technology essays from prison, and his fans believe he makes some good points about the unforseen consequences of technology in modern society. One of those fans is philosopher David Skrbina, the Unabomber's longtime pen pal, who recently helped publish a book of the Kaczynski's writings. Mr. Skrbina says the violent tech skeptic should be taken seriously for his ideas. In this session, we'll explore whether that's true. Mr. Skrbina will outline the Unabomber's latest thinking, and another philosopher of technology, Peter Ludlow, will offer a counterpoint, in a debate moderated by a journalist who recently wrote a popular article on the topic.

    Copyright:

    Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Flag for inappropriate content
    of 42

    What

    Can We Learn from the Unabomber?


    SXSW 2013

    Moderator: Je Young Chronicle of Higher Educa?on @jryoung

    The Unabomber

    The Unabomber
    Mail-bombing campaign from 1978 to 1995. Killed 3 people and injured 23.

    The Unabomber
    35,000-word manifesto published in Sept. 1995. Argued that technology is destroying freedom and well-being.

    -- supermax prison in Florence, Colorado

    The Unabombers Pen-Pal


    Chronicle of Higher Ed ar?cle

    U. Michigans Anarchist Archive

    Wired Magazine co-founder Kevin Kelly calls Ted Kaczynskis manifesto: "one of the most astute analyses" of technological systems he has ever read, though he disagrees with the conclusion.

    Why Arent There More Voices Cri?cal of Technology in Society?

    Teaching the Unabomber: On syllabus of Skrbinas course: Philosophy of Technology

    Unse^ling Ques?ons
    Is it even morally or ethically right to be studying the works of a societal criminalin this case a social terrorist?"

    Unse^ling Ques?ons
    Is it even morally or ethically right to be studying the works of a societal criminalin this case a social terrorist? Should we even be here having this discussion?

    Is technology making our lives richer or poorer?

    Peter Ludlow
    A muckraker of virtual worlds

    Ludlow a.k.a. Urizenus Sklar

    Calling For Be^er Virtual Governance


    He compares the establishment of virtual worlds to the American Revolu?on and the founding of the United States. Cyberspace needs great thinkers to formulate its governance structures, he says, just as Thomas Jeerson devised the Declara?on of Independence.

    WHAT WE CAN LEARN FROM THE UNABOMBER TECHNOLOGICAL S KEPTICISM David


    Skrbina University of Michigan
    (Dearborn)

    Technological Skep?cism
    Technologyis the controlling power of our age, aec?ng and shaping virtually all aspects of human existence in this century.
    Webster Hood, 1972

    Technological Skep?cism
    Technologyis the controlling power of our age, aec?ng and shaping virtually all aspects of human existence in this century. It may be that civiliza?on will never recover from the bad climate which enveloped the introduc?on of machinery.

    Webster Hood, 1972

    Technological Skep?cism
    Technologyis the controlling power of our age, aec?ng and shaping virtually all aspects of human existence in this century.

    Webster Hood, 1972

    It may be that civiliza?on will never recover from the bad climate which enveloped the introduc?on of machinery. The world is now faced with a self-evolving system , which it cannot stop.

    A. N. Whitehead, 1925

    Technological Skep?cism
    SOME FUNDAMENTAL QUESTIONS:

    Technological Skep?cism
    SOME FUNDAMENTAL QUESTIONS: What is technology?

    Technological Skep?cism
    SOME FUNDAMENTAL QUESTIONS: What is technology? What is its purpose?

    Technological Skep?cism
    SOME FUNDAMENTAL QUESTIONS: What is technology? What is its purpose? Does it increase, or decrease, overall human well-being?

    Technological Skep?cism
    SOME FUNDAMENTAL QUESTIONS: What is technology? What is its purpose? Does it increase, or decrease, overall human well-being? Where is it heading?

    Technological Skep?cism
    SOME FUNDAMENTAL QUESTIONS: What is technology? What is its purpose? Does it increase, or decrease, overall human well-being? Where is it heading? Do we control it?

    Technological Skep?cism
    SOME FUNDAMENTAL QUESTIONS: What is technology? What is its purpose? Does it increase, or decrease, overall human well- being? Where is it heading? Do we control it? Might it threaten our very existence? *****************

    What can we learn from the Unabomber?


    Peter Ludlow, Northwestern U.

    What can we learn from the Unabomber?

    Nothing.

    But

    But

    This doesnt mean our technological system is benign.

    and

    and

    This doesnt mean radical measures arent called for.

    It means

    It means

    The Unabomber is not the go to guy for answers.

    The Plan

    The Plan
    1) Why the Unabomber Manifesto is Weak

    The Plan
    1) Why the Unabomber Manifesto is Weak 2) Why the Unabomber Manifesto is Wrong

    The Plan
    1) Why the Unabomber Manifesto is Weak 2) Why the Unabomber Manifesto is Wrong 3) What is a Be^er Cri?que?

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