After the food chain collapses, will several governments start implementing MAID-like programs more easily?

[UnbelievableJelly]

We are severely overpopulated and climate change is already threatening global food production. Until now, religious authorities and capitalist overlords have been pushing natalism and overpopulation as a virtue because they know their well-being is based on an abundance of poor desperate peasants. I wonder when there is not enough food left and people will get a bit too desperate (e.g. ready to overthrow our overlords by violence, just like what happened to the medical insurance company CEO a few days ago), too many peasants will become a liability and many governments will suddenly start being much more liberal towards assisted dying.

 

[Forever Sleep]

I've wondered this myself. Like- I can't see it coming about for compassionate reasons but, if there are massive shifts in the economy and life for the majority of the population. I'm also thinking climate change but I imagine AI could potentially massively disrupt the economy and people's ability to earn money. Will they implement it to avoid uprisings and violence born out of desperation? I wonder how far off we are these events. It feels unlikely to me we'll do enough to circumvent them. Unless we start populating space I suppose and discover new technologies.

 

[ijustwishtodie]

Definitely not. What horrifies me is that even if humans were to be going through the worst pain imaginable or even if humans were to cannibalise each other or something, I bet that the right to die peacefully still wouldn't be allowed for us as a choice to make. Don't underestimate how strongly people cling to pro life belief even in the worst situations imaginable

 

[Kali_Yuga13]

Starving people are too weak to fight an armed state security apparatus. People would more likely raid their neighbors and weak hoarders first. In past famines a small amount of people resort to cannibalism but most just starve. In terms of the western word, in WW2 Britain had war time food rationing and their outside food imports were being sunk by uboats. What we are seeing now is austerity by way of inflation. Those that control the levers of the supply chain have the ability to accelerate shortages and weaponize food which is why local farms matter.

 

[HenryHenriksen_6E]

At this point I'm starting to be supportive of the idea of an AI government. Which MIGHT be a terrible idea, but hear me out. Humans always get caught up in their emotions and ideologies, which can make things painstakingly ineffective, and make progress really hard. Though if we managed to create an AI which follows proven methods, doesn't do things for its own gain, and learns and adapts if something goes wrong, we might have something that can help the sorry state of the world. Even though the concept is, of course, still very flawed, I still believe a more advanced AI in the future could do a better job at being a politician than an actual politician.
On the other hand, we've all seen the movies where robots take over. Thing is, no one really knows what's gonna happen.

 

[ijustwishtodie]

At this point I'm starting to be supportive of the idea of an AI government. Which MIGHT be a terrible idea, but hear me out. Humans always get caught up in their emotions and ideologies, which can make things painstakingly ineffective, and make progress really hard. Though if we managed to create an AI which follows proven methods, doesn't do things for its own gain, and learns and adapts if something goes wrong, we might have something that can help the sorry state of the world. Even though the concept is, of course, still very flawed, I still believe a more advanced AI in the future could do a better job at being a politician than an actual politician.
On the other hand, we've all seen the movies where robots take over. Thing is, no one really knows what's gonna happen.

How are you able to ensure that the AI that we make is truly impartial and isn't reliant on emotions? As for the AI that we see right now, it's coded by humans and it's designed to think like a human (which is why it doesn't respond to sensitive topics like suicide) and contains the same bias about religions that humans have. I feel like any AI that we make will somewhat be modelled to be made with respect to how a human would think like. It'd be nice if there was a fully impartial and logical AI though

 

[HenryHenriksen_6E]

How are you able to ensure that the AI that we make is truly impartial and isn't reliant on emotions? As for the AI that we see right now, it's coded by humans and it's designed to think like a human (which is why it doesn't respond to sensitive topics like suicide) and contains the same bias about religions that humans have. I feel like any AI that we make will somewhat be modelled to be made with respect to how a human would think like. It'd be nice if there was a fully impartial and logical AI though

That is what the problem is: How do we even make an AI like that? My idea would be to give it a ton of factual, unbiased information about the world, as well as have it observe everything for some time, and let it puzzle together some theories on how to run the world, before we let it go ham. Though there need to be safeguards, because I think any sane AI would see humanity of the root cause of the problems, and, you know, terminator ending.

 

[avalonisburning]

You will see life-extending technology turn the release of death into a subscription service before you ever see anything like that in the face of growing material inequality.

 

[F@#$]

What does this have to do with suicide?

 

[Gustav Hartmann]

A solution of this problem is outlined in the movie "Soylent Green".

 

[ringo99]

The food chain wouldn't have to collapse. Look at the UK right now. They've finally passed an assisted dying bill because the NHS is on the verge of collapse. Sometimes economic reasons are more than enough to slip in MAID laws

 

[UnbelievableJelly]

What does this have to do with suicide?

Less regulated MAID-laws could be a blessing for people who want to kill themselves in a painless way. It would effectively be suicide by medical proxy.

The food chain wouldn't have to collapse. Look at the UK right now. They've finally passed an assisted dying bill because the NHS is on the verge of collapse. Sometimes economic reasons are more than enough to slip in MAID laws

You make a good point, hadnt thought of it

 

[F@#$]

Less regulated MAID-laws could be a blessing for people who want to kill themselves in a painless way. It would effectively be suicide by medical proxy.

You make a good point, hadnt thought of it

Oh,I see.