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Magnifica Humanitas

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Magnifica Humanitas

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Meet the new Leo, same as the old Leo: On Monday, Pope Leo XIV dropped his first encyclical, “Magnificas Humanitas,” about how humanity can marshal the tools of AI to serve good and Godly ends and about how we humans can safeguard against its worst effects. Real ones know that Pope Leo’s choice of name is most likely a reference to Pope Leo XIII, who navigated the church through the choppy waters of the end of the 19th century, during the industrial revolution (and composed one of my favorite prayers following a vision of Satan, in which Leo foresaw that the next 75 to 100 years would be especially trying times for the church due to the devil’s interference). It’s likely that our current pope sees his role similarly.

“Technology has the power to heal, connect, educate and protect our common home; but it can also divide, exclude and generate new forms of injustice,” writes Pope Leo XIV in the new encyclical. “In the abstract, technology in and of itself is not a solution to humanity’s problems, just as it is not inherently evil. In practice, however, technology is never neutral, because it takes on the characteristics of those who devise, finance, regulate and use it. Therefore, the primary choice is not between a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ to technology, but rather between constructing Babel or rebuilding Jerusalem; between a power that claims to dominate the heavens and a people who work together in the presence of God to rebuild the walls of fraternal coexistence.”

Like with many encyclicals, there will be plenty for libertarians to dislike (i.e., “more than ever, in the age of AI and robotics, it is no longer possible to rely solely on the ‘invisible hand’ of the market”). Though he concedes that “technology should not be considered, in itself, as a force antagonistic to humanity,” Leo XIV notes that “the pursuit of greater profits cannot justify choices that systematically sacrifice jobs.” (Libertarians might be divided on his contention that “the economic order must remain subordinate to human dignity and the common good” based on their religious beliefs.) He correctly anticipates that “a society that guarantees employment to only a small fraction of the population, despite having a high level of technical development, risks exposing many to forced inactivity, a lack of responsibility and the absence of daily tasks and stimuli, resulting in human and cultural impoverishment,” but it’s not clear how this (“the Church’s Social Doctrine insists that access to work for all must be a high priority for public policies and economic processes”) actually plays out in practice. That said, he’s not really trying to craft policy: He’s trying to provide moral frameworks that can help policymakers clarify what it is they’re trying to do.

In some areas, libertarians will chafe, but my squishy libertarian mind has no problem with where he takes things: “The subtler forms of addiction linked to the ‘digital attention economy’ should not be underestimated, since platforms and services are often designed to capture users’ time and attention, exploiting their vulnerabilities and weakening their inner freedom. When business models thrive on human weakness, the person is treated as a means rather than as an end; those who design or finance such systems bear a moral responsibility that cannot be ignored. There is an urgent need to promote technologies that strengthen interior freedom by fostering education in digital sobriety and the protection of minors, thus countering models that exploit vulnerability.”

Then he aptly warns against social credit and intense surveillance: “A further risk, less visible but no less serious, is that of social control made possible by the massive collection of data and use of algorithmic systems. When every action—movements, purchases, relationships and preferences—leaves a trace, a new form of power emerges, namely the power to profile, predict and influence behavior, often without individuals being fully aware of it.” (My guy David Brin is a good read on this.) Also: “Control is exercised not only through explicit prohibitions, but also through the architecture of visibility: what is amplified or rendered invisible, what is rewarded or penalized, ultimately shapes opinions and choices, fostering conformity and self-censorship.”

Later, Pope Leo quotes Lord of the Rings author (and Catholic) J.R.R. Tolkien: “It is not our part to master all the tides of the world, but to do what is in us for the succour of those years wherein we are set, uprooting the evil in the fields that we know, so that those who live after may have clean earth to till.”

“The civilization of love will not arise from a single or spectacular gesture, but from the sum total of small and steadfast acts of fidelity that serve as a bulwark against dehumanization,” adds Leo. Feel free to read the whole thing if the spirit moves you, or access the Claude summary here if you’re short on time (and/or patience for us Catholics).

Renewed tensions with Iran: U.S. Central Command reports that the American military conducted so-called self-defense strikes in southern Iran yesterday, due to threats from our adversary amid the fragile ceasefire.

“A senior U.S. military official said Iranian surface-to-air missiles threatened some of the dozens of American warplanes and nearly two dozen Navy warships—including two aircraft carriers and their escort vessels—that are in or around the Gulf of Oman and Arabian Sea enforcing a blockade against vessels trying to enter or leave Iranian ports,” reports The New York Times. “The official added that the U.S. strikes hit near Bandar Abbas, a major port and Iranian navy base.” It’s possible this recent round of strikes—which Iran vows will not go unaddressed—will prevent the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.

Scenes from New York: This is now a Knicks cheering section. Great game last night!

I love all this footage from the watch party at Radio City. Beautiful.

QUICK HITS

  • “A federal judge on Friday dismissed the Justice Department’s human-smuggling case against Kilmar Abrego García, ruling that the Trump administration improperly brought it to punish him for successfully challenging his illegal deportation last year,” reports The Washington Post. “U.S. District Judge Waverly D. Crenshaw Jr. in Tennessee wrote that ‘evidence before this Court sadly reflects an abuse of prosecuting power.’ The decision delivered an extraordinary defeat for the administration, which marshaled the resources of multiple federal agencies to publicly malign Abrego after court rulings concluded that officials had unlawfully deported him to his native El Salvador, in violation of a 2019 immigration court order.”
  • Kind of insane:
  • “At a time when the Iran war is upending energy flows and roiling economies across the world, Saudi Arabia is scoring billions in added oil revenue and building on ambitions to become a trading hub,” reports Bloomberg. “Even as the war has slowed economic growth and driven a jump in defense and logistics spending, surging oil prices combined with contingency planning have bolstered revenue. Simultaneously, the kingdom’s Red Sea coast has emerged as a vital corridor to bypass the Strait of Hormuz, which has been all but closed to commerce since the war began. ‘Saudi Arabia has shown it is the indispensable Red Sea backstop,’ said Hesham Alghannam, a Riyadh-based scholar at the Malcolm H Kerr Carnegie Middle East Center.”
  • He’s not wrong:
  • Little kid parenting that’s kind of cute:



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