Welcome to The Human Adventure
You and I are losing our freedom.
We’re in a world of plenty, with information and entertainment swirling around us and at our fingertips. We’re virtually closer to more human beings that at any other time in history. We’re more economically privileged and materially supplied than ever. So why are we not happy? And why does the world around us seem so chaotic and atomized?
Despite all our modern day advantages, we’re not happy campers. We’re in the midst of a mental health crisis. We’re forgetting how to interact with other human beings. We’re fighting over stuff that matters less than we think. We’re losing the desire to live deeply, and we’re not doing much thinking.
This is what losing our freedom feels like.
For those of us who want to stop our loss of freedom at the hands of an unlimited technical development, we must help ourselves and then help others. French sociologist and theologian Jacques Ellul taught that the first step is becoming aware of the technical objective that has become “the distinctive characteristic of our time.” We must understand how we’re being conditioned by the relentless quest for efficiency and optimization in every facet of our lives. We need to learn to spot the hallmarks of technique and how they influence our behavior and choices. Once we’re aware, we can begin to make different choices.
This substack explores why we’re losing our freedom, as well as our creativity and our relationships, and how we can rediscover and defend those human endeavors in the Age of AI.
What To Expect
I plan to post here three to four times a month. Free subscribers can expect to see one post a month, while paid subscribers receive the following:
Access to all new posts (3-4 per month)
Access to the full archive of posts
Ability to join the conversation in the comments section
In addition, founding members can join me and other founding members for at least two video chats a year to discuss the human adventure.
Posts will come in a variety of formats:
Prose posts
Original poems
Audio podcasts that feature readings, commentaries, and occasional interviews
About the Author
Andrew McDiarmid is a senior fellow at the Discovery Institute, where he serves as Director of Podcasting. He is also a contributing writer to Mind Matters. He produces ID The Future, a podcast from the Center for Science & Culture that explores the evidence for intelligent design and the debate over evolution. He writes and speaks regularly on the impact of technology on human living. Discovery Institute co-founder and bestselling author George Gilder has called McDiarmid "a scintillating venturer beyond the surfaces of technology to their hidden depths and meanings." His work has appeared in numerous publications, including the New York Post, Chicago Tribune, San Francisco Chronicle, Houston Chronicle, The Daily Wire, Real Clear Politics, Newsmax, The American Spectator, The Federalist, Technoskeptic Magazine, and elsewhere. In addition to his roles at Discovery Institute, he promotes his homeland as host of the Scottish culture and music podcast Simply Scottish (Apple, Spotify, Google). Andrew holds an MA in Teaching from Seattle Pacific University and a BA in English/Creative Writing from the University of Washington. Learn more about his work at andrewmcdiarmid.com.
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