[extropy-chat] Making technocracy popular and viable

[Adrian Tymes]

--- Spike <spike66 at comcast.net> wrote:
> Oh I love this.  Oooooh I love it.  I want to see
> society ruled by technology, not by the whims of
> lawmakers.  He who masters the best technology wins.

The old term "technocracy" mostly applies to this
form of government - although there have been few
examples of it historically.  (Some say that modern
China is an example; this is debatable near the
coast, where the Internet is destabilizing official
control, but very true in the mostly agricultural
inland regions, where the government's ability and
willingness to reshape the land far exceeds what those
who would oppose it have been capable of.)

But consider Joe Luddite Sixpack, who has been raised
to believe that technology is hard and complicated and
something he shouldn't mess with - possibly reinforced
by clumsy, pitiful attempts to mess with things anyway
based on disastrously wrong misconceptions of how
things work in general.  Between alcohol binges and
prayer sessions, he can figure out that rule by
technology means he'll wind up in the slave class, a
fate he does not want.  (Yes, there are female
examples of this, possibly more than the male.  But
this stereotype serves as a blunt model distilled down
to near-pure relevance - and besides, many of those
who fit this stereotype might admit to it.)

Education, obviously, is at least a large part of the
solution to this, if not the entire solution.  But
what form of education?  And are there other
components?

Some have said that technocracy is inherently opposed
to democracy, in that the former does not make the
latter's assumption that all important issues are
within the mental reach of all voters.  Perhaps one
could incorporate an element of choice to balance this
out, though: anyone who chooses not to learn a new
technology sees their power decrease as the technology
spreads - if the technology is useful.  (If it
isn't...well, it's always a gamble whether to learn a
new technology in its early stages or not, before its
utility or lack thereof has made it through the hype.)
Eventually, they would be reduced enough in power as
to be forced to adapt for their own good, at least to
technologies that have been proven (to everyone elses'
satisfaction) to be good.  (E.g.: sorry, Mr.
Messiah-Wannabe, this medicine has been proven 100%
effective in curing your kids' condition, so we're not
going to let you continue to abuse your children by
denying it to them, no matter what your religion
says.  Even if the medicine is "morning after" pills,
and you're mad at your daughter for getting pregnant
when she was raped.)