Matthew Holtmeier - Electronic Labyrinth: THX 1138 4EB (2016)

Abstract

Short piece for the National Film Registry discussing the historical, cultural, and aesthetic significance of Electronic Labyrinth: THX 1138 4EB. This essay identifies Electronic Labyrinth as an important precursor to the development of Industrial Light and Magic, a visual effects company that has shaped the past 40 years of American film.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Frater 616: Satanism, and the Illuminati (Henry Makow, 2021)

Abstract

“Petor Narsagonan” or “Frater 616” was an Australian Adept in the world of Satanism, which is synonymous with the Illuminati. Included here are Henry Makow’s article on Frater 616’s revelations of the Satanic world as well as Frater 616’s two-part manuscript.

Not since Svali’s confessions of some years back has so much been said about the Illuminati’s hidden activities.

“Petor Narsagonan” aka “Frater 616″ died March 25, 2004. Recently, his executor, an “Aloysius Fozdyke” (their satanic names) sent the 15 pp. document by email to Arthur Cristian, webmaster of “loveforlife.com.au”

“I have felt it necessary to edit very little of this work,” “Fozdyke” wrote to Cristian, “although legal considerations have ensured that some names and details were excised. It was His intention to have this published in the popular media.”

 

(speculative)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DARPA - Artificial Intelligence Exploration (AIE) Opportunity: Civil Sanctuary (2021)

Introduction

Social media platforms have the potential to be a great democratizing force, allowing individuals to participate in the free and productive sharing of ideas at a scale never before encountered in human history. During emergency situations and times of turmoil, these platforms can provide a crucial forum for discussing time-sensitive, potentially life-saving information. During DoD Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Response (HA/DR) operations, relief efforts would benefit from a stable and constructive information environment that naturally facilitates informative dialogue. However, rather than aiding users in finding peaceable common ground, online social environments worldwide often fall prey to disinformation, bullying, and malicious rhetoric, which may be perpetuated through broader social dynamics linked to toxic and uncritical group conformity. New technologies are required to preserve and promote the positive factors of engagement in online discourse while minimizing the risk of negative social and psychological impacts emerging from violations of platform community guidelines.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cass R. Sunstein & Adrian Vermeule - Conspiracy Theories (2008)

Abstract

Many millions of people hold conspiracy theories; they believe that powerful people have worked together in order to withhold the truth about some important practice or some terrible event. A recent example is the belief, widespread in some parts of the world, that the attacks of 9/11 were carried out not by Al Qaeda, but by Israel or the United States. Those who subscribe to conspiracy theories may create serious risks, including risks of violence, and the existence of such theories raises significant challenges for policy and law. The first challenge is to understand the mechanisms by which conspiracy theories prosper; the second challenge is to understand how such theories might be undermined. Such theories typically spread as a result of identifiable cognitive blunders, operating in conjunction with informational and reputational influences. A distinctive feature of conspiracy theories is their self-sealing quality. Conspiracy theorists are not likely to be persuaded by an attempt to dispel their theories; they may even characterize that very attempt as further proof of the conspiracy. Because those who hold conspiracy theories typically suffer from a “crippled epistemology,” in accordance with which it is rational to hold such theories, the best response consists in cognitive infiltration of extremist groups. Various policy dilemmas, such as the question whether it is better for government to rebut conspiracy theories or to ignore them, are explored in this light.