Hack Music Theory

Mourning the Death of Music.

Why are people in such a hurry to kill art?

In my last two essays I’ve shared about how AI has stolen 90% of my income, as well as my reason to get out of bed in the mornings. I’ve been publicly speaking out against AI for over a year, though, and what I’ve consistently seen in people’s reactions is that they can be divided into two categories: Those who are sad to see human creativity being replaced by AI, and those who think AI is just a tool.

I’ve already written an essay on how AI is definitely not a tool, based on the Oxford Dictionary’s definition of “tool”. If people want to call AI a tool, then they need to change the definition of “tool”. And I’m pretty sure that’s going to happen, because if there’s one thing we’ve learned over the last few years, it’s that the oligarchs love changing definitions! But, until they change the definition of “tool”, AI is absolutely 100% not a tool.

Far more fascinating than the AI-is-just-a-tool groupthink, though, is the fact that our fellow humans are so aggressive towards those of us who are totally disorientated after the sudden loss of our careers, and for many of us, the loss of our purpose in life too.

Despite the fact that I’ve been teaching music for over 30 years, I’m constantly being told to stop complaining and get with the times. But AI’s takeover happened so suddenly that I’m still mourning the death of music, and of teaching.

Subscribe to get the latest posts in your inbox.

Why are the masses in such a hurry to tear down our past and rush headlong into a transhuman future? I don’t get it. Maybe it’s because I deleted all my social media accounts 11 years ago, so I don’t see all the viral posts that must be brainwashing the herd into believing that replacing humans with robots is a good idea. I don’t know?! Most of the time I feel like I’m living in a sci-fi dystopia, and I’m longing to return to a time when people actually looked up. Do you still look up?

To return to my question, though: What’s the hurry? Why are people in such a rush to replace humans with robots? Please let me know your thoughts in the comments. I’m genuinely interested in trying to understand what’s behind this aggressive push. If their 30-year career was stolen by AI, wouldn’t they want some time to mourn that loss? Or would they be happy for everyone to tell them to stop complaining and get with the times?

As with all technology, though, once it’s adopted, it’s here to stay. These are permanent changes, which can’t be undone. I find a great deal of inspiration from the Amish way of dealing with technology. They’re often misunderstood as being anti-technology. They’re not. They consider each new technology and whether it would improve the relationships between members of their community, as well as their relationships with God. If it would, they adopt it. Otherwise, they reject it.

Subscribe to get the latest posts in your inbox.

I also find inspiration from Wendell Berry (RIP) and his legendary essay: Why I Am Not Going to Buy a Computer. He was happy to start using a computer if it would’ve improved his life and his writing. But as he explains in this eye-opening essay, too much is lost when humans adopt this technology. And it’s totally fine to disagree with him, that’s not the point. The point is that we should all pause and consider each new technology, and whether adopting it would improve our life.

However, this only works if we’re actually honest with ourselves. Otherwise it’s a pointless exercise. And if we’re honest, it’s usually not as clearcut as we’d like to think. Let’s take telephones as an example. I don’t mean smartphones, I mean those old-school gadgets with the cable that needed to be plugged into the wall. The Old Order Amish decided to reject them, which might seem extreme to us. But the telephone was the beginning of our isolation, our loneliness. It was the beginning of the lie about being more connected.

If we’re honest with ourselves, we can see that telephones never connected people, they did the exact opposite. Before the telephone, if you wanted to talk to someone, you had to go to their house and speak face-to-face. That’s connection! Picking up the phone and calling them is not connection. You’re literally disconnected from them, otherwise you wouldn’t need the phone. Think about it. We live in an upside-down reality. The Ministry of Connection is actually The Ministry of Disconnection.

Subscribe to get the latest posts in your inbox.

And yes, I know the long list of benefits. I’m a two-time immigrant, so I’m well aware that being connected to people on the other side of an ocean is not possible without phones. But at the end of the day, do the pros outweigh the cons?

Once again, the point is not to agree with me, Wendell Berry, or the Amish, the point is that we all pause and reflect before adopting new technology. So when it comes to AI, of course there are tons of benefits. But are those benefits worth the cost of what you lose by bringing AI into your life? Only you can decide that.