I'm almost regretting including item 1, because the percentage of HN commenters who embody that attitude appears to be much lower than in comment sections on other parts of the web. Anecdotally, I can tell you that a significant minority of modern humans who comment on news articles are just furious about actual or projected technological advances that allow people to prevent e.g. obesity or pregnancy without relying on strenuous mental and/or physical discipline. That's why I mentioned it.
"Anecdotally, I can tell you that a significant minority of modern humans who comment on news articles are just furious about actual or projected technological advances that allow people to prevent e.g. obesity or pregnancy without relying on strenuous mental and/or physical discipline."
Yep. And yet you never see these people volunteering to make their livings as agricultural stoop labor peasants or (if female) volunteering to have 15 or 20 pregnancies over the course of their lives.
Someone wanting e.g. avoiding pregnancy to rely on "physical discipline" doesn't mean they are in favor of anybody having 15 or 20 pregnancies -- just that they are in favor of people having the discipline.
I agree with that judgment. I think we have seen that some in the cultural reaction to Soylent, which is mentioned in the article. Even setting aside questions about nutrition, cost, and cultural weirdness, some people are simply opposed to it as a matter of principle, and feel extremely strongly about it.
Makes sense (not agreeing). The whole culture of modern society is all about not agreeing with such arguments.
That is, finding any idea of value in some authenticity that shouldn't be replicated technologically, silly.