Bard’s pitch-perfect replication of the nauseating tripe that feeds the “not-religious-but-spiritual” folks.
How would ChatGPT answer this question?
AI Wrestling!..
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Here’s ChatGP’s response to that question:
“Without ego, if we express ourselves, we would be expressing our genuine thoughts, emotions, and perspectives without the filter of self-centeredness or the need for validation. Our expressions would be rooted in authenticity, empathy, and a genuine desire to communicate and connect with others. Without the ego’s influence, our expressions would be less influenced by self-interest, defensiveness, or the need to prove ourselves. We would be more open to understanding different viewpoints, engaging in meaningful dialogue, and fostering a sense of unity and shared humanity. Overall, expressions without ego would be characterized by humility, compassion, and a greater capacity for genuine connection.”
I had tripe a few times and it was, in fact, kind of nauseating, mainly the texture and thought of it.
On a more practical note, I asked AI the following question: “What are the main mind debilitating factors of the profit motive under capitalism?”
The slightly amazing, hedged answer was actually quite informative:
Critics of capitalism argue that the profit motive, while driving economic growth and innovation, can also have detrimental effects on individuals and society. Here are some main concerns regarding the potential mind-debilitating factors of the profit motive under capitalism:
- Exploitation of labor: In a capitalist system, profit is often maximized by minimizing costs, including labor costs. This can lead to exploitative working conditions, low wages, and long working hours, which can have negative impacts on the physical and mental well-being of workers.
- Wealth inequality: Capitalism can result in significant wealth disparities, where a small portion of the population accumulates substantial wealth while many others struggle to meet their basic needs. Such inequality can lead to social divisions, feelings of alienation, and a sense of powerlessness among those who are economically disadvantaged.
- Commodification of human needs: Under capitalism, the pursuit of profit can lead to the commodification of essential goods and services, such as healthcare, education, and housing. This can create barriers to access, where those who cannot afford to pay for these vital necessities face significant disadvantages and reduced opportunities.
- Short-term focus and disregard for long-term consequences: The profit motive often incentivizes businesses to prioritize short-term gains over long-term sustainability. This can lead to decisions that prioritize immediate profits at the expense of environmental degradation, public health, and social well-being, potentially resulting in long-term consequences for society as a whole.
- Consumerism and materialism: Capitalism encourages consumption as a means to drive economic growth. This can lead to a culture of materialism, where individuals define their worth and happiness based on material possessions. Such a focus on consumerism can lead to a never-ending pursuit of more, potentially resulting in psychological distress, environmental damage, and unsustainable patterns of consumption.
- Financialization and speculative behavior: The profit motive can drive excessive financial speculation and the prioritization of short-term financial gains over productive economic activities. This can contribute to economic volatility, financial crises, and the diversion of resources away from more productive investments.
It is important to note that capitalism is a diverse and complex system, and not all of these concerns are inherent to capitalism itself. Different forms of capitalism and various regulatory measures can mitigate some of these issues. Moreover, proponents of capitalism argue that it also has the potential to generate wealth, innovation, and individual freedom. The discussion around the impact of the profit motive and capitalism is a nuanced and ongoing debate.
What do you make of this reply? While driving economic growth and innovation …
Is profit driven economic growth not more of a problem than what we can handle at this point of our social & cultural evolution?
Should innovation & research be motivated by profit or is this not again, part of the problem?
It may or it may not be, but the ‘problem’ that we are looking at here in this forum is a bit more upstream; the divisiveness, destructiveness , violence, etc, caused by the continuation of the psychological ‘me and mine’ process and the possibility of bringing it to an end in ourselves for the sake of our species as well as for our neighbors.
Fair enough, but you do not exist as, and are not an island onto yourself - we are highly interconnected … our environment has a huge impact on all of us.
It would be a very good exercise not to overlook the enormous social and cultural aspects we are faced with. Not to include that in our discussions here, is hoping for a 3D view of reality with our eyes closed … 
Just ran into E. M. Cioran, a delightfully wry nihilist. To wit:
“I am enraptured by Hindu philosophy, whose essential endeavor is to
surmount the self; and everything I do, everything I think is only myself
and the self’s humiliations.”
Hilarious, right, the notion of the self, all earnest and spiritual-feeling, taking huge and profound delight studying no-self teachings, thinking it’s on its way to the mountaintop!
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As if he isn’t more smug than those he ridicules.
Why does ‘energy’ take the myriad material forms here that it does, of which I am but one example ? The only scientific theory I know of is this one of ‘dissipation’, which is very recent. As I understand it , the life forms here according to it are the result of the dissipation of solar energy, self-replication being just one efficient way of this being done. That’s the limit of my knowledge!
It doesn’t address the why of any of this happening in the first place or why the life-forms seem so intent on staying ‘alive’ and living out their full term? Anyone ‘mused’ about this?
Very interesting question. 
Rather than just speculate (though it was tempting!) I asked Bard and they responded:
There are a few promising theories on why energy coalesces into patterns and processes rather than just behaving randomly like white noise. These theories include:
The theory of self-organization: This theory states that energy can spontaneously organize itself into patterns and processes. This is due to the fact that energy has a tendency to minimize its free energy. Free energy is a measure of how disordered a system is. When energy minimizes its free energy, it tends to form patterns and processes that are more ordered.
The theory of dissipative structures: This theory states that energy can form patterns and processes when it interacts with its environment. This is because the interaction with the environment can create feedback loops that reinforce the patterns and processes.
The theory of complexity: This theory states that the universe is inherently complex and that this complexity gives rise to patterns and processes. Complexity is a measure of the number of possible states that a system can be in. The more complex a system is, the more likely it is to form patterns and processes.
The theory of emergence: This theory states that patterns and processes can emerge from the interaction of simpler parts. This is because the interaction of the simpler parts can create new properties that are not present in the individual parts.
What really interests me is whether there’s any kind of ‘intentionality’ driving the universe/energy towards the manifesting as patterns and processes. Is the universe an intelligent organism?
Thanks for answering Rick. I think that if we can get free of this ‘me / mine’ silliness and realize that we’re, for some reason, part of the ‘big picture’ we may be able to speak about that from ‘experience’.
That said, what’s happening here on Earth may be similar to the functioning parts of any organism? Same as our organs / cells don’t have a clue as to what the ‘me and mine’ are up to. Just plugging away, living and dying. But we have consciousness of what we’re doing, thinking, feeling…it’s the consciousness that is special and perhaps that is what can answer your question?
I like this one
Some seem to think that the fact that there are so called pockets of “intelligence” within the whole, is significant.
Darkness is the absence of light. Is silence an absence, or a presence?
Isn’t that like asking someone blind from birth what sight is?
I would say that silence is the absence of psychological thought, but that’s as theoretical as I blind person saying what sight is.
Say the person was able to catch little bits of light. Are we able to catch bits of silence?
Sure I have a box of them in the fridge right now. I use them instead of ear plugs!
Of course. You can’t have noise without “bits of silence”.
But the conditioned brain needs more than “bits” to awaken to the noise that is its affliction.