tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2905155363976375938.post5600093312405795913..comments2024-03-21T22:36:54.451-04:00Comments on HISTORIES OF THINGS TO COME: Hallowe'en Countdown 2015: Ashley Madison's Fembot MirrorsLC Douglasshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04250961297714038453noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2905155363976375938.post-9880498371368432982015-10-17T21:01:52.542-04:002015-10-17T21:01:52.542-04:00Hi Richard, I think there are a few factors. First...Hi Richard, I think there are a few factors. First, there is a knee-jerk assumption that actions don't have consequences online, that seeming anonymity gives people a carte blanche to indulge the worst behaviours. Also there is the fact that online connections, especially on sites like Ashley Madison, are considered to have a lower value than face-to-face relationships. This makes them even more permissible and accessible, because 'it doesn't really mean anything' - whether it is a real woman on Ashley Madison or a (even better) a fembot. In my past few posts, and on many earlier posts here, I've argued that this sense of dislocation from reality in virtual environments is a big lie. In fact, virtual reality paradoxically brings the worst of reality right into our lives in the very real ways. One example is the spread of online pornography, which has caused an explosion in modern sex slavery. The same goes for cheap goods manufactured under near-slavery conditions. Everything is connected means we are less and less isolated, not more and more isolated - even though it feels as though the latter is true and can let us off the hook.LC Douglasshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04250961297714038453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2905155363976375938.post-84167489953442418372015-10-16T16:54:48.720-04:002015-10-16T16:54:48.720-04:00I wonder .... Is the spread of these "chatbot...I wonder .... Is the spread of these "chatbots" a sign that we have become so disconnected, so isolated from real human contact that we seek out friendship and romance anywhere? We are more "connected" thanks to the Internet, but none of these connections have any real value.Richard S.https://www.blogger.com/profile/16210825311047748707noreply@blogger.com