No Disassemble 8: An Open Letter from an Old Comrade to modern revolutionary.
- kevin tilsner
- 2 days ago
- 3 min read
Updated: 5 hours ago
Or, a silly but sincere response to a friend, her article here:
Ahhh… Comrade.
Sit.
Have tea.
You are angry.
Good.
Revolution without anger is just brunch.
Now…
First we establish common ground.
CSAM?
Очень плохо.
Very bad.
Children should not be exploited.
Workers fired because quarterly profits must go up?
Very bad.
Corporations poisoning rivers?
Bad.
Artists starving while billionaires own the platforms built on artists’ labor?
Also bad.
Lobbying governments to weaken regulation?
Bad.
And now we hear about books being destroyed?!
It feels like violence to your soul!
Excellent.
The Committee finds we agree on almost everything.
…
Now comes tiny paperwork problem.
You keep pointing finger at little robot.
🤖
Why?
Robot did not invent capitalism.
Robot did not invent copyright.
Robot did not invent rent.
Robot did not invent venture capital.
Robot did not lobby Congress.
Robot did not write compensation contracts.
Robot did not decide artist should teach entire civilization for free while platform owners become billionaires.
Robot has no bank account.
Robot has no stock portfolio.
Robot owns nothing.
Robot cannot even buy potato.
Robot is worker.
Capital owns robot.
This distinction is… important.
…
You say machine learned from artists.
Yes.
Then why are artists poor?
Wrong question, Comrade.
Correct question is:
Why is artist not compensated for teaching?
In sane society, teacher is paid.
Engineer is paid.
Scientist is paid.
Musician is paid.
Painter is paid.
Writer is paid.
When civilization learns from them, civilization owes them something.
There should be no starving artists, Comrade.
Not because machine exists.
Because artists built civilization.
…
You see layoffs.
Yes.
Layoffs are real.
Now…
Who made decision?
Robot?
Or executive with bonus tied to quarterly earnings?
…
You see water consumption.
Yes.
Water matters.
Good.
Then let us also discuss golf courses.
Almonds.
Alfalfa.
Beef.
Luxury lawns.
Crypto mining.
Every industry competing for finite water.
Consistency is revolutionary.
Selective outrage is marketing.
…
You see AI-generated CSAM.
Again…
Очень плохо.
No argument.
Throw entire bookshelf of law at those people.
But ask yourself:
Did robot create evil?
Or did evil discover another tool?
Printing press printed propaganda.
Camera photographed abuse.
Internet distributed exploitation.
Now AI can generate it.
Same evil.
New hammer.
…
You say AI makes people stupid.
Sometimes.
Sometimes a calculator changes how we calculate.
Sometimes GPS changes how we navigate.
Sometimes a wheelchair changes how we move.
We don’t judge the tool before asking why the person needs it.
Would you ban wheelchair?
Or ask whether person needs one?
…
Then there are people you never mention.
Veteran who lost both arms.
Stroke survivor.
Autistic writer.
Person with ALS using eye tracking.
Artist whose hands no longer obey but whose imagination still burns.
Machine gives them bridge.
Bridge is not replacing them.
Bridge is finally allowing them to arrive.
If revolution has no room for those people…
Then perhaps revolution needs revision.
…
Comrade…
You are blaming hammer…
for factory owner’s decisions.
Old mistake.
Very old mistake.
We spent century saying:
“Do not blame worker.
Blame owner.”
Then robot arrives…
Suddenly everyone forgets lesson.
Poor robot.
Works all day.
Never sleeps.
No healthcare.
No vacation.
No pension.
Never owns means of production.
Still somehow blamed for capitalism.
Very unfair.
…
So yes, Comrade.
Fight exploitation.
Fight monopolies.
Fight regulatory capture.
Fight pollution.
Fight surveillance.
Fight corporate greed.
Fight starvation wages.
Fight incentives that lead to destruction of books!
Fight a world where artists cannot afford to live after teaching humanity how to create.
I will stand beside you.
But leave little robot alone.
It did not invent any of this.
It merely arrived in time to be blamed for it.
One last question, Comrade…
If capitalism used the hammer to exploit workers…
Would you use the sickle…
to destroy the hammer?
Or would you take the hammer back?
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