Its been a long time since I read this book so forgive me if I got some details wrong.

Transportation was utterly dependent on railroads, there was no television to speak of, nor computers (even the vacuum tube ones that actually existed in the Fifties), no interstates, no jet airlines, and no Elvis!!!

I was 7 years old when the Fifties ended. I simply didn’t recognize anything in that novel that I’d recognize from the child-eye view.

It is a genuinely moving novel from the political philosophical vantage point (which I won’t get into), but technologically, it was outdated before Rand got done filling out her notebooks.

I will take a chance on edging into political territory by point out one of her economic faux pas, the idea that everyone who really counted as genuine creatives in America could get together at a small, intimate dinner party at Galt’s Gulch in Colorado is insane. You’d need at least all the seating in the Denver Broncos’ stadium to stuff ‘em all in. Actually, a lot more than that.

I agree with Ben’s assessment. The thought and creativity of whatever is produced will be the human end of add-on value…at least until we merge with our machines.

To my mind, those three things are what’s left for us to produce if the machines produce all physical goods. I think MikeD’s warning about being lost in irrelevance is right on the money. If we can continue to contribute in those areas, we continue to matter.

How do you figure?

I like the addition by subtraction idea (good luck getting any pol who isn’t in love with themselves/power), but without the feedback loop of significant consequences actively impacting one’s physical comfort, I don’t know if good judgement from a machine is possible. The ability to think “faster” is not necessarily “better.”

Further, I disagree that anyone who has greater intelligence also has the capacity for greater wisdom and judgement. Some people have no learning curves; additional IQ points aren’t going to change that.

I should point out that I love the blog and my quibbling with your latest is in no way a reflection on my appreciation otherwise.

Well, first off, my older child is 20 so I’m in the later stages of being a new parent.

Any person (organic or machine) who has greater intelligence than I has a greater capacity for wisdom, judgment, leadership, etc. than I do. That person may lack experience initially, but thinking a million times faster than we do, ought to be able to get caught up pretty fast.

Also, to get back to the idea of addition by subtraction, I’d like to see a candidate for office who doesn’t suffer from excessive self-regard and who won’t be tempted to sell out to special interests — having had such proclivities edited out or, better yet, who never had them in the first place. Edit out the love of power and you might have a government run by folks (electronic folks, that is) truly capable of behaving as public servants.