Review

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6. Annihilation of the world

“...techniques which have already opened the doors to the annihilation of the world...”

What is chiefly intended here is not nuclear holocaust or carbon induced destruction of our biosphere, although neither fate is to be excluded. The emphasis is on the ‘nothingness’ that remains in the wake of the dehumanised momentum of a technique driven global machinery. In the absence of human ideals there is neither utopia nor dystopia. There are simply the unfolding politico-financial configurations suited to the efficient control and exploitation of every known resource. The Hollywood post-apocalyptic scenario is a distraction. Things will look the same: war will continue, innovation will continue, entertainment will continue and mass surveillance will continue. There will continue to be wealth and there will continue to be poverty, but our relationship to the entire process is that of a ready resource rather than as sovereign individuals. Put simply, the annihilation of the world is the annihilation of freedom.