The Long Count Podcast

#3 Smart Contracts, Direct Democracy & the Rule of Law

On the relevance of blockchain and smart contracts to the big questions of political philosophy, alternative voting mechanisms on the blockchain and tensions within the space between democracy and technocracy.
GUEST BIO: Joshua Dávila (@theblockchainsocialist.com & youtube.com/@theblockchainsocialist), host of the Blockchain Socialist Podcast, author of 2023’s “Blockchain Radicals: How Capitalism Ruined Crypto and How to Fix It” and co-founder of Breadchain Cooperative.(00:00) Introduction(04:00) Ray Kurzweil's Singularity Prediction for 2029(08:25) AI vs. Crypto: Centralization & Decentralization(10:20) "World Computers" Old and New: Capital vs. Blockchain(17:56) Peer-to-Peer Technology explained by Analogy to Torrenting(26:40) Smart Contracts Explained(34:43) Smart Contracts & AI: LLMs and Beyond(40:28) Algocracy, the Chinese Social Credit System and AGI(41:57) "Code is Law": Technocracy vs Democracy in Automation(46:57) Scaling Challenges: Technical vs. Social(47:33) The Meaning Crisis, Techno-pessimism & Rise of the Far Right(49:01) The Ironic Shortcomings of the Left and Right(50:22) Grounded, Rational Sources for Hope in Technology(52:46) Strengths & Weaknesses of Online Forms of Organization (e.g., DAOs and DAPPs)(56:59) Intergenerational Knowledge Gaps and Hyperspecialization as Symptoms of Late Capitalism(57:44) Elitism, Information Siloing & Niche Interests in the Age of Information(59:26) Alternative Voting Mechanisms on the Blockchain(1:02:50) Example #1: Quadratic Voting(1:06:23) Example #2: Conviction Voting(1:07:45) Example #3: Quadratic and Conviction Voting as Complementary Opposites(1:10:05) Example #4: Liquid Democracy(1:13:35) Breadchain Co-operative as Dual Power in Action(1:24:48) Invitation to Join the Breadchain Community and Crypto Leftists Discord(1:26:03) Reconsidering the Big Picture(1:27:46) Neoliberalism as Threat to the Rule of Law(1:30:18) Escaping the Intergenerational Divide by Uniting in Defense of the Rule of Law(1:32:56) Smart Contracts and the Rule of Law Crisis(1:34:31) Left-Liberal Alliances that Learn from History(1:38:46) Puritanism vs Prioritization in Defining Progressive Goals(1:40:36) Hierarchy & Coercion: the Historic Scaling Advantage of the Right(1:41:01) Moral High Ground Vacated by the Right(1:42:08) The Right has No Conservative Answers(1:43:31) Preserving the Rule of Law from the Threat of Technocracy(1:44:31) Self-Sacrificial Virtues: the Left contra Christianity(1:45:58) Concluding Remarks(1:47:51) Overtime Segment (Excerpt from my essay on the Chinese Social Credit System)The companion podcast to The Long Count YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/@thelongcount). 🌖 New podcasts every Equinox and Solstice! 🌖

#2 God's Existence: Is It the Right Question?

On the relative importance of the "God Question", the nature of good and evil, the relationship between love and rationality, the social consequences of religious belief and whether Godhood or God-making is a useful analogy for AGI.GUEST BIO: Writer, host of the Science of Everything podcast and author of "Unreasonable Faith" (2018) James Fodor (@jamesfodor.com, youtube.com/@JamesFodor &  thescienceofeverything.net).(00:00) Introduction(02:16) God's Existence: Is It the Right Question?(07:28) The Psychology of Religion, Acting "As If" God Exists(15:37) The Historical Value of the God Question(20:45) What is Philosophical Progress?(25:33) The Moral Value of the God Question(29:03) Will Theology Follow Philosophy into the Sciences?(38:52) Wisdom vs Faith as the Basis for Ethics(44:09) The Value of Ignorance, Calculability & Prudence(51:06) The Relationship between Love and Rationality(1:00:58) The Paradox of Nonduality(1:09:50) Ultimate Social Values or Principles(1:16:37) The Value of Faith As Such(1:21:32) The Value of Self-Fulfilling Beliefs(1:26:58) The Antitheism Question(1:30:00) Godhood as an Analogy for AGI(1:34:47) Moving On from the God Question(1:38:10) The Soul Question: an Alternative Focus?(1:47:29) Religion vs Transhumanism(1:54:20) Overtime Segment (Arguments Revisited)The companion podcast to The Long Count YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/@thelongcount). 🌖 New podcasts every Equinox and Solstice! 🌖

#1 Religion in Science-Fictional Times!

On the relations between science, religion and philosophy in our increasingly "science-fictional" times.
GUEST BIOS:Scholar of religion and philosophy Dr. Sotiris Mitralexis (@University College London) and social science researcher Ferdia O'Brien (@brightagebeyond.com & youtube.com/@AfterTheOligarchy).(00:00) Introduction(00:51) A Science-Fictional Way of Thinking!(03:10) Religious Language and Democratic Dialogue(08:04) The Psychologizing of Religion in Modernity(17:21) Pragmatism vs Scientism, from Theocracy to Technocracy(23:13) East vs West: the defining distinction?(28:13) What is "Secularity"? Does it rival Religiosity?(36:57) Can Stephen Jay Gould's "NOMA" help integrate Science and Religion?(50:07) Differentiating Science from Scientism (Dawkins vs Noble)(55:18) Realism vs Pragmatism in formulating conceptual distinctions (e.g., Science, Religion, & Occultism)(1:00:00) What is "Scientism" and why should we care?(1:06:27) Is there an emergent "Scientific Method", as distinct from religious methods of inquiry concerning perennial questions?(1:18:00) Academic Debates vs. Social Problems post-1945(1:20:25) East vs West: The Great Convergence or The Great Deviation?(1:36:51) A Pragmatic Compromise? Democratic vs Non-democratic ways of organizing society(1:39:04) Concluding Remarks & Book Recommendations(1:42:58) Overtime Segment (Harari & Scientism Revisited, Video Essay Preview, YouTubers Union)The companion podcast to The Long Count YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/@thelongcount). 🌖 New podcasts every Equinox and Solstice! 🌖