Of course not. Why?

I'm talking about any statement about reality. All by itself. With no knowledge about the person who said it.

I think that the guy who saw it and the guy who heard it tenth-hand get equal weight, because we have no way of telling the difference.

So maybe we should have a way to tell the difference.

Thanks.

I imagine language with some new tags.

Tags like "original source" and "number of iterations from original source"

("Iterations" probably isn't the right term. If Bob saw it, then Bob told Sally, then Sally told Frank. Frank has "3rd iteration" knowledge. But what's the better term?)

I mean if I tell you about the taste of a peanut butter sandwich, how do you tell whether I actually ate a peanut butter sandwich? Or I just read about a peanut butter sandwich??

That's a damn good point. It could be chat bots talking to chat bots all the way down and we'd never know the difference.

This is a quality of the kind of knowledge we deal in here. Compared to first-hand experience, it is a lesser quality of knowledge. A trashy knowledge if you will.

I used to be very into Java and Kotlin looks nice. What's your favorite IDE?

Is this some kind of metaphor?

Because being a jerk is more fun than sex?

That we are.

But it's just talk. Just. Talk.

Meanwhile in the real world other CEOs create investment products, home furnishings and consumer entertainments. While Musk creates spaceships. Yes, those other guys look damn petty in comparison. And by petty I mean small. Do I need to underline my point again?

this is a really dumb question.

Youtube, reddit, facebook. Careful algorithms to maximize my exposure to advertising membranes, to absorb nutrients out of my bank account.

And you asked so nicely. How can I refuse?

Reddit is the best thing to ever happen to big governments. It's wonderful for mind-control and surveillance. They are subsidized by the intelligence apparatus of USA, China, Great Britain and lots of other countries.

Yes, he's doing it. And all those other guys aren't (in fact they look rather petty in comparison). So yes, I give him credit. Bigass credit.

I think they do it because getting you to go to the thing is the point, not watch the thing. Once you've gone to the thing they just want you to go to the next thing. Watching the thing is just wasted time for them.

It probably has to do with maximizing your exposure to advertising.

I think it's the power of social media. People living in echo chambers. Their turning into perfect crystal. Full of all the right ideas. Full of certainty about what's right and wrong, real and unreal. Perfect and logical yet constrained to a tiny box. Brittle. Vulnerable to cracking at the smallest shock.

I have had similar thoughts.

Consider, a really nice ideology. Full of politeness, good behavior, acceptance, tolerance, liberality and positive ideas.

But the ideology is transmitted via powerful propaganda, threats, conformity and totalitarian stuff.

So it isn't actually so nice.

Like he's doing more to run it than you are suggesting.