Understanding Power, Corruption, Politics, AI, Religion, Tribalism & Free Speech | Sam Harris

WARNING: I will never ask for your contact info in the comments section, that is someone impersonating me! Impact Theory:

I really am not able to follow Sams arguments 1:46.30 - how can you change all parameters and hypothetically make a safe and effective vaccination against a more deadly virus that kills kids and not expect the reaction or acceptance to it to be different as well. This way you can make anyone who has ever been hesitant about any medical intervention look completely unreasonable. I do not want my broken arm to be amputated. This does not mean that an amputation cannot be reaonable under completely different circumstances. So in what way does this hypothetical make any relevant point?

"Two weeks to flatten the curve" was: 1) a blatant lie or 2) ignorance about the virus early on?

I am trying to avoid making any new buys at this point in other not to get sucked into a bear market trap.It's tough making money in stocks when institutional investors are the driving force behind the selling.. although I read an article of people that grossed profits up to $150k during this crash, what are the best stocks to buy now or put on a watchlist?

"Finally, I would remind you to notice where the claim of consensus is invoked. Consensus is invoked only in situations where the science is not solid enough. Nobody says the consensus of scientists agrees that E=mc2. Nobody says the consensus is that the sun is 93 million miles away. It would never occur to anyone to speak that way." ~ Michael Crichton

@22:41 "at the beginning we had ever reason to hope the vaccine blocked transmission and therefore if you didn't get it you were harming your neighbor..." Except hope and belief are not a basis for coersion. You can't coerce people and shame them because you HOPE something is true.

Lying or deceiving, even "for your own good" errodes trust.

0:00: 😕 The inability to agree on facts and the erosion of trust in institutions have contributed to the rise of evil and the breakdown of the sense-making apparatus in society. 14:39: 📚 The speaker discusses the erosion of credibility in experts and the challenges of determining what is true in an information-saturated environment. 29:55: 🗣 The discussion revolves around the challenges of free speech and the role of social media platforms in moderating content. 44:35: 🎙 Sam Harris discusses the responsibility of platforms to de-platform individuals like RFK Jr who spread false information, particularly about vaccines causing autism. 59:40: 🧪 The conversation discusses the importance of scientific consensus and the need for experts in fields such as medicine and climate science. 1:14:55: 🗣 The discussion revolves around the challenges of having productive conversations in an information landscape where biases and misinterpretations can distort the truth. 1:30:02: 📢 Sam Harris discusses the challenges of engaging with people on social media platforms and the behavior of certain individuals, including Elon Musk and Alex Jones. 1:52:21: 🗣 The conversation around controversial topics should be allowed to run long enough and be uncoerced so that better ideas can surface and misinformation can be sidelined. 2:00:46: 🗣 Sam Harris discusses the importance of expertise, institutions, and regulations in making informed decisions and ensuring the reliability of information. 2:16:16: 🤔 Sam Harris discusses the potential impact of talking about the laptop and Trump's behavior on the election. 2:31:45: 🗣 The speaker discusses the potential impact of AI-generated fake information on our society, including the need for responsible behavior from influential individuals like Elon Musk and Joe Rogan. 2:48:15: 📚 The speaker discusses the lack of a unifying philosophy in society and the need for a moral anchor like Marcus Aurelius or religious texts to guide individuals towards ethical engagement and compassion. 3:05:41: 🤔 Sam Harris discusses the limitations of traditional religious texts and the potential risks of AI alignment. 3:22:26: 🗣 The conversation discusses the potential impact of advanced technology and misinformation on society. Rec

I'm an engineer. I can't imagine designing without the full facts or making up facts to fit my design. If I did, I wouldn't last very long in my job. Unfortunately, in the world of politics, facts are an afterthought.

Transparent terms of service are a whole lot different than what we saw in 2020-2022, which was direct political censoship

TL;DW - “We need a Ministry Of Truth we can trust” - Sam Harris.

"If we were living in an alternate timeline where my stances on covid were correct, then I'd be correct." - Sam '4xJabbed' Harris

Tom, thank you for not interrupting too often, and being a good listener. Great improvements from previous years! 🙏🏻

and this gives us insights into history and how populations can end up supporting great evils

we need safe elections 1. valid ID to vote 2 . paper ballots to vote 3. outlaw BALLOT HARVESTING

Interviewer guy “I independently invented the scientific method” also this guy, was 100% taught the scientific method several times by the end of high school.

I love freedom of speech, I love the freedom to live free or die, and I will never fall in the camp where you make the decision for me.

This man is smart on a variety of topics but politics is NOT one of them. He has a fundamental misunderstanding of American politics and politics in general. What you have going on is the result of a two party system. If you lean right, the far left looks unimaginable, and if you lean left, the far right looks equally unimaginable. So what happens is, when one leader on the left or right is attacked, the other side comes to their rescue. Sure they make up things that aren’t true, but very few people actually believe that Biden or Trump are saints. They just know that if their President or Presidential candidate goes down, then the other side wins (and that is an unimaginable future). This guy needs to stay in his lane. Leave the politics to the American people and go back to debating whether we have free will with professors.

1:54:05 "I don't have to do something top down" But Tom is describing manipulating people by an authority figure in their belief system. That is something you will see in every classic dystopian novel. Manipulating is top down. He is criticizing Sam for saying we need authoritarian methods in some situations, denying that but giving an authoritarian method as a counter answer. It is the same thing except the people would think they are making the choice in that situation. But being manipulated is not giving you a choice.

Great conversation! Thank you for letting Sam talk uninterrupted. You're a fantastic host!