The real problem is not whether machines think but whether men do." B.F. Skinner
In a democracy, the peril is not technological takeover but citizen passivity. The polis weakens not because machines rise, but because men stop reasoning, questioning, and resisting.
Thinking, Fast and Slow (Daniel Kahneman)
B.F. Skinner was concerned about our thinking…or not thinking. Daniel Kahneman's concern was "how" we think.
As citizens, we should read Thinking, Fast and Slow because it reveals how our minds can be tricked—how “fast thinking,” the impulses and shortcuts we rely on, often override “slow thinking,” the reflection and analysis democracy depends on. Kahneman shows how biases like framing, anchoring, and confirmation shape our judgments, and how media, politicians, and algorithms exploit those weaknesses. To understand these forces is to resist manipulation, to pause before polarization, and to defend our own capacity for reason. In this way, the book becomes more than psychology—it is civic training, equipping us to guard democracy by guarding our ability to think.
The book Thinking, Fast and Slow by Kabneman is a tutorial on how not to be deceived by emotions into accepting lies as a model of thinking that falsely predicts what will happen. Deception can also be avoided by applying stochastic information processing in your thinking to test whether the model’s predictions actually happen. When they don’t reject the lies, the model and the source of the lies. Another quick test that reveals a lying source is advice that you should not believe what you actually see has happened.
Can you write "human" instead of "man," "humans" instead of "men"? I think this will lead to improved thinking, in particular because this round of international authoritarianism began as "the men's movement."
So excited to hear you and Gil! What a wonderful get. Your speech as always provides such clarity to our time. I appreciate that you ended with how we can use the faith space too.
I think this is a lot of words that could be reduced to describing/defining the actual connection between religion and authoritarianism without all the self-serving academic mumbo-jumbo: Once someone is raised from birth to surrender all accountability and thought to the perpetrators of the ubiquitous gawd fraud and is required by coercion or abject fear to never question that 'omniscient' (but fake) authority, that person is primed and ready for the next shiny scam to come along, which satisfies the masochism and sadism of both the voluntarily powerless and the grasping power-hungry in a macabre association.
To understand how religion and authoritarianism are two sides of the same coin, read the central work from 1981 by Susan Griffin, Pornography and Silence. Ever wonder why it’s always the most vociferous monsters spitting on endlessly about their own ‘holiness' from every pulpit who rape and enslave kids and women mercilessly and with societal impunity, encouragement, and reward? It’s because the objectification of the 'other' — anyone who is not in possession of those ridiculous ugly hangy down parts in front that are so endlessly enamored of themselves — is how they wield their sick power.
All religion is patriarchal. All religion is the root of all human evil. All religion is pornographic. All religion is by definition a death cult.
If anyone can name even one small good thing that religion has done throughout human history without also not being the cause of the rampant evil that necessitated the need for the small good thing in the first place, I will stand corrected.
You are amazing grace, Ruth. Thank you for reminding me that my weekly ICE protests in Burlington MA are powerful and meaningful. It is while attending those vigils that my “righteous indignation” is mirrored and affirmed with others I join in protest.
I had just written an email to my local Democratic group saying that one of the things we need to focus on in the coming year are the Tech Fascists. I went on to refer them to The Nerd Reich, Gil Duran, etc. And then I saw that he is your guest on Sunday. I could not be more excited! Thank you so much for all of your guests, and Lucid, and especially for Gil Duran on Dec. 7!
One of the tactics you point of autocrat is to make collusion and transgressing clear distinctions is for government to support some religions through bribery and favoritism. Is religion for beautiful historic buildings or is it to make people's lives better and help them find meaning? Hey, we'll throw attention and money at certain churches so they will be grateful to us and feel secure in their future to.....well, support the people who supported them. Yet clergy out pastoring to people through saying human beings matter and should be cared for by showing up for them get thrown to the ground. And if the government is throwing money at you or throwing you to the ground, which ministry is more likely to survive? And what does that mean for religion? It doesn't bode well at all for faith in the church.
It’s heartening to see faith leaders take a stand against authoritarian abuses—but I’m uneasy with the uncritical praise for Rev. Michael Woolf without acknowledging the deeper contradictions at play. Dr. Woolf may be personally affirming and courageous in his activism, but he is ordained in a Baptist tradition that has historically treated gay people like second-class citizens—both spiritually and civically.
The American Baptist Churches USA, while less reactionary than the Southern Baptist Convention, still maintains a structure that allows discrimination against LGBTQ people to flourish under the guise of local church autonomy. Some of its regions have actively expelled affirming congregations. Even when a progressive pastor like Woolf protests ICE raids or speaks of a “spiritual emergency,” it’s hard to ignore that the denomination he represents has never decisively broken from its exclusionary theology.
If we’re talking about “moral collapse” and the complicity of institutions, then we have to be honest about the legacy of harm within mainstream Protestant churches—not just celebrate their occasional moments of resistance. Otherwise, we risk mistaking selective dissent for systemic reform.
The most important paragraph today regarding the Department of Defense ( War)
“We hear about how authoritarians “hollow out” institutions by removing anyone not loyal to the leader and the party, but they also hollow out people to the point where they will participate in acts of violence, corruption and sabotage against their compatriots.”
One thing to note about many of the bishops, archbishops, metropolitans and the patriarch appointed by Putin is that during the Soviet era, many of them served as informants to the KGB on internal church matters. Putin believes he can rely on these members of the hierarchy as dependable allies.
Loved your essay, Dr. Ben-Ghiat. When you defined authoritarianism, I saw the current regime mirrored exactly in every word. So we have a full blown authoritarian regime now in charge of our country. How the hell did people vote for this? You are helping us to understand how to stop this madness, but I’m not seeing much of a dent in his power because the hyper-partisan corrupt majority in the SupCt is helping him at every step. I’m all for stopping this nightmare any way we can.
The real problem is not whether machines think but whether men do." B.F. Skinner
In a democracy, the peril is not technological takeover but citizen passivity. The polis weakens not because machines rise, but because men stop reasoning, questioning, and resisting.
Thinking, Fast and Slow (Daniel Kahneman)
B.F. Skinner was concerned about our thinking…or not thinking. Daniel Kahneman's concern was "how" we think.
As citizens, we should read Thinking, Fast and Slow because it reveals how our minds can be tricked—how “fast thinking,” the impulses and shortcuts we rely on, often override “slow thinking,” the reflection and analysis democracy depends on. Kahneman shows how biases like framing, anchoring, and confirmation shape our judgments, and how media, politicians, and algorithms exploit those weaknesses. To understand these forces is to resist manipulation, to pause before polarization, and to defend our own capacity for reason. In this way, the book becomes more than psychology—it is civic training, equipping us to guard democracy by guarding our ability to think.
David
The book Thinking, Fast and Slow by Kabneman is a tutorial on how not to be deceived by emotions into accepting lies as a model of thinking that falsely predicts what will happen. Deception can also be avoided by applying stochastic information processing in your thinking to test whether the model’s predictions actually happen. When they don’t reject the lies, the model and the source of the lies. Another quick test that reveals a lying source is advice that you should not believe what you actually see has happened.
Can you write "human" instead of "man," "humans" instead of "men"? I think this will lead to improved thinking, in particular because this round of international authoritarianism began as "the men's movement."
So excited to hear you and Gil! What a wonderful get. Your speech as always provides such clarity to our time. I appreciate that you ended with how we can use the faith space too.
Super! Can not wait to hear Gil D speak. Thank you Ruth,
I think this is a lot of words that could be reduced to describing/defining the actual connection between religion and authoritarianism without all the self-serving academic mumbo-jumbo: Once someone is raised from birth to surrender all accountability and thought to the perpetrators of the ubiquitous gawd fraud and is required by coercion or abject fear to never question that 'omniscient' (but fake) authority, that person is primed and ready for the next shiny scam to come along, which satisfies the masochism and sadism of both the voluntarily powerless and the grasping power-hungry in a macabre association.
To understand how religion and authoritarianism are two sides of the same coin, read the central work from 1981 by Susan Griffin, Pornography and Silence. Ever wonder why it’s always the most vociferous monsters spitting on endlessly about their own ‘holiness' from every pulpit who rape and enslave kids and women mercilessly and with societal impunity, encouragement, and reward? It’s because the objectification of the 'other' — anyone who is not in possession of those ridiculous ugly hangy down parts in front that are so endlessly enamored of themselves — is how they wield their sick power.
All religion is patriarchal. All religion is the root of all human evil. All religion is pornographic. All religion is by definition a death cult.
If anyone can name even one small good thing that religion has done throughout human history without also not being the cause of the rampant evil that necessitated the need for the small good thing in the first place, I will stand corrected.
Nope. Not one small good thing.
You are amazing grace, Ruth. Thank you for reminding me that my weekly ICE protests in Burlington MA are powerful and meaningful. It is while attending those vigils that my “righteous indignation” is mirrored and affirmed with others I join in protest.
I had just written an email to my local Democratic group saying that one of the things we need to focus on in the coming year are the Tech Fascists. I went on to refer them to The Nerd Reich, Gil Duran, etc. And then I saw that he is your guest on Sunday. I could not be more excited! Thank you so much for all of your guests, and Lucid, and especially for Gil Duran on Dec. 7!
Thank you, Ruth.
Wow that was a creepy video about the new city near Sonoma.
One of the tactics you point of autocrat is to make collusion and transgressing clear distinctions is for government to support some religions through bribery and favoritism. Is religion for beautiful historic buildings or is it to make people's lives better and help them find meaning? Hey, we'll throw attention and money at certain churches so they will be grateful to us and feel secure in their future to.....well, support the people who supported them. Yet clergy out pastoring to people through saying human beings matter and should be cared for by showing up for them get thrown to the ground. And if the government is throwing money at you or throwing you to the ground, which ministry is more likely to survive? And what does that mean for religion? It doesn't bode well at all for faith in the church.
It’s heartening to see faith leaders take a stand against authoritarian abuses—but I’m uneasy with the uncritical praise for Rev. Michael Woolf without acknowledging the deeper contradictions at play. Dr. Woolf may be personally affirming and courageous in his activism, but he is ordained in a Baptist tradition that has historically treated gay people like second-class citizens—both spiritually and civically.
The American Baptist Churches USA, while less reactionary than the Southern Baptist Convention, still maintains a structure that allows discrimination against LGBTQ people to flourish under the guise of local church autonomy. Some of its regions have actively expelled affirming congregations. Even when a progressive pastor like Woolf protests ICE raids or speaks of a “spiritual emergency,” it’s hard to ignore that the denomination he represents has never decisively broken from its exclusionary theology.
If we’re talking about “moral collapse” and the complicity of institutions, then we have to be honest about the legacy of harm within mainstream Protestant churches—not just celebrate their occasional moments of resistance. Otherwise, we risk mistaking selective dissent for systemic reform.
In reading this I saw a Vought-Hegseth axis. "Put them in trauma" is just a step away from "Kill them all" on the Fascism spectrum.
The most important paragraph today regarding the Department of Defense ( War)
“We hear about how authoritarians “hollow out” institutions by removing anyone not loyal to the leader and the party, but they also hollow out people to the point where they will participate in acts of violence, corruption and sabotage against their compatriots.”
We learn so much from you Ruth!
One thing to note about many of the bishops, archbishops, metropolitans and the patriarch appointed by Putin is that during the Soviet era, many of them served as informants to the KGB on internal church matters. Putin believes he can rely on these members of the hierarchy as dependable allies.
Loved your essay, Dr. Ben-Ghiat. When you defined authoritarianism, I saw the current regime mirrored exactly in every word. So we have a full blown authoritarian regime now in charge of our country. How the hell did people vote for this? You are helping us to understand how to stop this madness, but I’m not seeing much of a dent in his power because the hyper-partisan corrupt majority in the SupCt is helping him at every step. I’m all for stopping this nightmare any way we can.