[extropy-chat] Are ancestor simulations immoral? (An attempted survey)

[Robert Bradbury]

Oh, it gets *far*, *far* worse than the proposals thus far made...  :-;

First, since its a simulation, its perfectly reasonable to do whatever one
feels like.  One may be running simulations whose explicit purpose is to
explore morality.  In which case one needs to create situations where some
people may experience pain, suffer, die, etc.  Either we are in the bottom
level "reality" or everyone in the upper levels of reality have thrown away
the "morality" paradigm.  (This is the "If there is an all powerful God, why
do people have to suffer and die?" question dressed differently.)

Furthermore, once we have the ability to run simulations ourselves (remember
*worlds* of billions of RBs, LCs, JHs, etc. -- i.e. 10^10 copies worth of
each isn't even stretching things) there doesn't seem to be much one can do
to prevent it.

If I happen to spot an unused solar system nearby and say I am going to
colonize it and turn it into a massive simulation engine to run billions and
billions of RBs (some of whom are bound to suffer horribly and die) then
some holier than I people are going to be bound and determined to prevent me
from doing that.  The only way that seems possible is to either (a) imprison
me on the Earth (or even in a very high security prison) or (b) take the
nanobots to my mind and force the removal of such "immoral" thoughts (i.e.
state or equivalent "mind control").

The only way I can see to prevent this is heavily enforced state restriction
on access to the various technologies and capabilities we regularly discuss
on the list.  (I.e. probably no lifespan extension, no access to "personal"
nanorobots (to build my rocket ship), no ability to "program"
bio/nano-matter (to manufacture the materials for my rocket ship), standing
shoot-to-vaporize orders on anything unauthorized leaving the solar system
(I'm not even sure if you could prevent low level nanorobot "leakage" from
the solar system).   Etc.

To me it looks like the only way to "enforce" moralities of the form "thou
shalt not make others (real or virtual) suffer" is to force the person who
would think such thoughts (and presumably act upon them) to suffer instead.

Robert
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