Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.23 AVERAGE
4.23 AVERAGE
challenging
informative
medium-paced
Movements and revolutions have long been the study of historians, philosophers, activists, politicians, and anthropologists. Understanding how these events take place and why they succeed or fail is essential to achieving your own goals in society. In the book Anti-Tech Revolution Why and How, Theodore Kaczynski analyzes the dynamics of revolutions and comes up with four postulates that allow readers to understand how social movements catch on or die out. He then uses these postulates to construct rules for executing an effective revolution.
In the first postulate, Mr. Kaczynski asserts that a movement’s goal must be concrete, without room for interpretation. “You have to have a clear and concrete goal. As an experienced activist put it: Vague, over-generalized objectives are seldom met. The trick is to conceive of some specific development which will inevitably propel your community in the direction you want it to go.” (Page 89, 2016). This postulate is essential because revolutions with unclear goals are inevitably warped until it is impossible to tell what the original goal was. This weakens the revolution as it has to fight on multiple fronts and cannot focus on its one ultimate goal. We later see this reflected in his first rule: “In order to change a society in a specified way, a movement should select a single, clear, simple, and concrete objective the achievement of which will produce the desired change.” (Page 91). This rule forces the movement to consider what exactly they are fighting for and helps narrow their goal down to something that is easily actionable as opposed to a goal like “freedom” that has many interpretations.
The next postulate is that simply arguing for ideas is insufficient to bring about change. “The mere advocacy of ideas—cannot bring about important, long-lasting changes in the behavior of human beings, unless in a very small minority.” (Page 91). This makes sense as most people are unwilling to change their perspective on a given topic as a result of preaching. The few people who are convinced by simply hearing the facts are unlikely to change their lives in any significant way, as people generally take the path of least resistance or don’t perceive threats that are not imminent. Kaczynski uses this postulate to show: “Rule (iii) [which] states that once an objective has been selected, some small minority must undertake organization for practical action (as opposed to mere preaching or advocacy of ideas) in the service of the objective.” (Page 112). This is important since while only a tiny portion of people can be convinced with facts and debate alone, that small group can bring about enormous changes through organized actions. The way to grow a revolution from a niche group into a sweeping movement is by creating a message through actions that speak louder than words.
Postulate three is that a group with the goal of changing society is bound to attract people who have similar but ultimately different end goals. “Any radical movement tends to attract many people who may be sincere, but whose goals are only loosely related to the goals of the movement.” (Page 91). This postulate reveals an important reason why (Rule i) is necessary. When people see groups that loosely align with their own values, they want to join that group because these people see radical groups as reflections of their own beliefs and will interpret the goals of the movement as such. An influx of these kinds of people leads to the revolution's goals changing over time. We can see the solution to this problem in the next rule: “Rule (iv) In order to keep itself faithful to its objective, a radical movement should devise means of excluding from its ranks all unsuitable persons who may seek to join it.” (Page 92). This rule seems unintuitive before the postulates are considered. While it is an easy assumption that more people would lead to a more powerful revolution, that viewpoint does not consider the fact that a revolutionary movement must stay pure and focused in order to remain effective. The quality of members is far more important than the quantity of members. By introducing many viewpoints and dissenting ideas, as well as poor quality characters lacking in discipline, intelligence, energy, and courage, etc., the movement is only weakened.
The final postulate is that, eventually, every radical movement gets corrupted without fail. “Every radical movement that acquires great power becomes corrupt, at the latest, when its original leaders (meaning those who joined the movement while it was still relatively weak) are all dead or politically inactive.” (Page 91). This postulate is the most important. It is because of this postulate that the third postulate is important. This is because the more people in a revolutionary organization, the more quickly it will become corrupt, no longer following its original goal and only working for the benefit of its top members. It is also a supporting reason for (Rule i) as with a clear goal, it is much more difficult to corrupt a movement. Postulate four also directly supports the creation of Rules ii and v. These rules state that “if a movement aims to transform a society, then the objective selected by the movement must be of such a nature that, once the objective has been achieved, its consequences will be irreversible.” (Page 92). Furthermore, “Once a revolutionary movement has become powerful enough to achieve its objective, it must achieve its objective as soon as possible.” (Page 93). These rules are essential because if a goal is impossible to reverse, it cannot be corrupted once achieved. It is also extremely important that the goal is completed as soon as possible to prevent the inevitable corruption of the goal as time goes on.
Theodore Kaczynski’s analysis of revolutionary movements is an invaluable tool for understanding how to run a successful movement. It is also useful for more deeply understanding current day and historical conflicts and gives new insight into their inner workings. Like many parts of Anti-Tech Revolution, its insights are extremely valuable when viewing society as a whole, not just for the goal of an anti-technological revolution (which Kaczynski argues as being the only practical and logical course of action humanity can take at this stage in history). I would recommend reading this book regardless of your political views, although you will get more out of it by viewing it from an environmentalist perspective.
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
slow-paced
Ted Kaczynski's most recent masterpiece, Anti Tech Revolution: Why and How, represents the culmination of decades of meticulous research he conducted during his time spent in prison. Drawing from an extensive array of disciplines--including but not limited to: history, psychology, and mathematics--Kaczynski skillfully weaves these seemingly unrelated topics into a coherent and compelling guide for revolutionary action.
In the first chapter, Kaczynski delves into and expands upon the section on the principles of history which he wrote in "Industrial Society and Its Future," and explains why the development of society can never be subject to rational human control. More precisely, he asserts that while short-term predictions of society may be feasible, long-term predictions or predictions made without an abundance of past experience are fraught with difficulty, and failure is the norm. The lessons that we should learn from history that Kaczynski emphasizes here are straightforward and important in the grand scheme of things, but are often neglected in practice. The evidence lies in the failures of past rulers and the subsequent decline of civilizations, highlighting humanity's tendency to repeat past mistakes. Kaczynski supports his main argument not only through numerous historical examples but also by drawing upon his extensive knowledge in diverse scientific fields, such as chaos theory, computer science, quantum mechanics, and mathematical logic. Consequently, he demonstrates not only the inherent irrationality of human nature but also the existence of natural laws that render rational control and prediction of societal direction impossible.
The final two chapters hold utmost significance as Kaczynski imparts invaluable insights on avoiding common pitfalls while transforming a society and lays out strategic guidelines for revolutionary action. As a general rule of thumb, destruction is much easier than construction, and this forms the nucleus of hope for escaping the technological determinism currently dictating the trajectory of our society. Kaczynski makes plainly clear that, unfortunately, the only logical course of action humanity can pursue at this stage in history—to alter the disastrous trajectory of technological society—is to destroy the entire industrial system. To this end, it’s imperative for any serious anti-tech movement to make itself resilient and robust by carefully studying existing revolutionary action in history, and Kaczynski does here to a great extent.
By analyzing the errors made by historical figures and past revolutionary movements, Kaczynski comes up with simple rules to follow such as how a movement should have one single, concrete goal that it strives towards, and covers more difficult rules such as how to exclude unsuitable members from a movement. Kaczynski emphasizes that an anti-tech movement cannot be laid out in advance, and that a movement will need to wait for opportunities that will enable revolutionaries to instigate a collapse of the technological system. Since human events emerge through intricate and complex interactions among cultural, social, political and economical forces, it is unfeasible to plan out a movement in advance. Thus, revolutionaries must be creative and be able to adapt on the fly to unforeseen events and unfavorable circumstances. Kaczynski shows us that a revolutionary movement comprised of a small minority of rational, intelligent individuals holds the potential to overthrow the technological system.
Overall, Anti Tech Revolution: Why and How is a recommended read for anyone who wants to gain a better understanding of grand revolutionary strategy and alter the direction where technological society is hastily leading us today. Note: It is best supplemented after one has read “Industrial Society and Its Future.”
hopeful
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
Anti-Tech Revolution: Why and How is the logical next step after reading Technological Slavery, but can also easily stand on its own.
The first chapter is the final nail in the coffin for the belief that people can rationally control the development of human societies. Human societies are complex systems. Complex is not to be confused with complicated. A city with many one-way streets is complicated, but if the direction of travel changes depending on which streets have many cars on them, then the system is complex. All the individual parts have an effect on each other. The current behavior of a complex system does not allow for reliable conclusions about the future behavior of said system. An intervention in a complex system always has unpredictable consequences. Complex systems are, for example, the earth's climate, the financial market and of course human societies. Technologically advanced societies that are globally interconnected are even more complex. The financial market is a complex system whose behavior cannot be predicted. Even if different models and analysis techniques exist, the financial market is always characterized by uncertainties. This is even more true for a human society. Even if it were possible to compute a society by an unimaginably large number of simultaneous equations, and even if this computation could be performed by enough computing power, there is still the problem of data collection. In order to compute valid data for a somewhat extended period of time, the data would have to be extremely precise. The slightest inaccuracy in the input data can have devastating consequences for the calculation. For example, weather forecasts can still be made quite accurately for the next day, but because the data collected is not accurate enough, the forecasts become increasingly inaccurate the further into the future one looks.
Could a society be steered through many short term interventions to arrive at a long-term goal? This would lead to other problems: Who decides those long-term goals? Multiple people with different interests leads to an outcome that no one had in mind. Concentrating power in the hands of a single individual or handful of leaders does not solve the “conflict among many individual wills.” Hitler and Stalin did not have the free reign that many think they had, for example: Both had to deal with top level generals who could be dangerous to themselves. Stalin's enemies were killed in the “Terror,” leaving the Soviet Union militarily crippled. Hitler left the German military intact, but became the target of multiple assassination attempts. Dictators are restricted in their actions by technical factors and laws of economics, too.
Within large-scale societies, self-propagating systems compete with each other for power. These are, for example, companies, political parties and movements, or networks of corrupt officials. Like biological systems that evolve by natural selection, self-propagating systems will exploit every niche for themselves and thus represent uncontrollable forces.
The entire first chapter should be carefully studied by anyone who believes that the technology problem will somehow be solved by an elaborate plan or a fancy ideology.
Kaczynski proceeds in the second Chapter to explain how the aforementioned self-propagating systems compete with each other over short-term survival and will eventually turn the earth into a planet where nothing alive can exist, except the simplest algae and bacteria. The third chapter presents five rules for radical movements and elaborates in detail why these should be followed.
The fourth and last chapter presents strategic guidelines for an anti-tech movement. These are not detailed step-by-step instructions, but rather overarching principles that can be applied under many different conditions. The author presents distilled wisdom and experience from a wide range of movements and organizations to spare the future revolutionaries a lot of unnecessary trial and error.
This book is the much needed guide for anyone who wants to seriously take on the technology problem and everything that results from it.
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
In his latest thorough exposition of anti-tech ideology, Theodore Kaczynski carries out a masterful description of the current situation we face with technology arguing in the first two chapters of this book why a revolution against the technological system is needed. Kaczynski illustrates how the technological system is far too complex and irrational in order for a meaningful reform to be made reconciling freedom with technology. He notes that even just one part of the technological system (such as setting the prices of commodities in the United States) would take over 60 trillion simultaneous calculations, requiring a sort of machine that in and of itself would increase the complexity of the system, rendering this calculation essentially pointless. This is the sort of paradox that Kaczynski raises, challenging the reader to seriously think about the nature of all societies, not just technological ones. This argument helps to convey the idea of the complete impossibility of rationally ordering the system around, as those who oppose the technological system but instead want to reform it so foolishly ignore. This first chapter is one of two that justifies Kaczynski’s idea of revolution (of the anti-tech kind of course!).
The second chapter is where Kaczynski’s analysis of the technological system broadens in scope. It is “theoretical” to Kaczynski, but the sort of theory he proposes is a clear and logical application of the laws of natural selection that have been applied to nature. To Kaczynski, the techno-industrial system is a self-propagating system that has essentially emerged through a process of natural selection, following short-term benefit over long-term negative consequences (e.g., swallowing up a large amount of natural resources, entirely ignoring the ramifications that such an action would cause in the long run). Because of the way the system has emerged at this point, anything else that tries to go down a separate path will be crushed. This is because any less technologically advanced self-propagating systems will simply be swallowed up by the more technologically advanced ones as the objective factor that is turning the course of societies is acquiring more and more power through technology, gobbling up all in their path in order to outcompete and become the most “fit” relative to all other systems. This process to Kaczynski essentially spells doom for the global techno-industrial system in the long-run as the system’s actions are now seriously threatening the ecological stability of the Earth, therefore threatening the system itself and everything else in it. This conclusion is another reason for why Kaczynski thinks an anti-tech revolution (a very rapid one at that) must be carried out as soon as possible: the world might die if no action is taken.
Kaczynski’s other arguments in the book are what a revolutionary movement should be in order to be successful, expounding upon loose ideas put out in “Industrial Society and Its Future” into understandable principles anchored by relevant concrete examples throughout history. These arguments give a new light of legitimacy to Kaczynski’s idea of anti-tech revolution as many readers (who have also likely read the manifesto) get to know more precisely what Kaczynski’s thought of revolution is. This fact alone is why anyone interested in anti-tech works should read this book: it is the most relevant (and up to date) work related to the technological crisis we are enmeshed in.
This is certainly Kaczynski’s most challenging book, but I do not think that should dissuade people from reading it. It is his true magnum opus, and it is why Kaczynski instructs the reader to not simply treat the book like one they would read casually but one that should be studied (as if it were an engineering textbook). In addition, it is a book that helps to give real practical information to the reader, something that Kaczynski desperately wanted to do in order to kickstart an active and effective anti-tech revolutionary movement.
The second chapter is where Kaczynski’s analysis of the technological system broadens in scope. It is “theoretical” to Kaczynski, but the sort of theory he proposes is a clear and logical application of the laws of natural selection that have been applied to nature. To Kaczynski, the techno-industrial system is a self-propagating system that has essentially emerged through a process of natural selection, following short-term benefit over long-term negative consequences (e.g., swallowing up a large amount of natural resources, entirely ignoring the ramifications that such an action would cause in the long run). Because of the way the system has emerged at this point, anything else that tries to go down a separate path will be crushed. This is because any less technologically advanced self-propagating systems will simply be swallowed up by the more technologically advanced ones as the objective factor that is turning the course of societies is acquiring more and more power through technology, gobbling up all in their path in order to outcompete and become the most “fit” relative to all other systems. This process to Kaczynski essentially spells doom for the global techno-industrial system in the long-run as the system’s actions are now seriously threatening the ecological stability of the Earth, therefore threatening the system itself and everything else in it. This conclusion is another reason for why Kaczynski thinks an anti-tech revolution (a very rapid one at that) must be carried out as soon as possible: the world might die if no action is taken.
Kaczynski’s other arguments in the book are what a revolutionary movement should be in order to be successful, expounding upon loose ideas put out in “Industrial Society and Its Future” into understandable principles anchored by relevant concrete examples throughout history. These arguments give a new light of legitimacy to Kaczynski’s idea of anti-tech revolution as many readers (who have also likely read the manifesto) get to know more precisely what Kaczynski’s thought of revolution is. This fact alone is why anyone interested in anti-tech works should read this book: it is the most relevant (and up to date) work related to the technological crisis we are enmeshed in.
This is certainly Kaczynski’s most challenging book, but I do not think that should dissuade people from reading it. It is his true magnum opus, and it is why Kaczynski instructs the reader to not simply treat the book like one they would read casually but one that should be studied (as if it were an engineering textbook). In addition, it is a book that helps to give real practical information to the reader, something that Kaczynski desperately wanted to do in order to kickstart an active and effective anti-tech revolutionary movement.
informative
reflective
medium-paced
Arguably Kaczynski’s most important and philosophically advanced work, Anti-Tech Revolution: Why and How concisely illustrates how the destructive qualities inherent to the technological system will inevitably reach a point of catastrophic collapse, and the means by which those opposed to the technological system can practically and effectively mount a resistance against it.
In the first part of the book, dedicated to the “Why,” Kaczynski dispels the myth that technology can be employed strictly for the benefit of humanity. This pessimistic view of technology stems from Kaczynski’s analysis of society, which states that society, especially technologically advanced society, cannot be rationally controlled and directed by humans. Owing to the complex and chaotic nature of human societies, Kaczynski argues, society is not subject to rational control by humans, as this would require absolute knowledge of a given society, which is impossible to attain. Therefore, society cannot control the development and application of technology. Since the development and application of technology cannot be controlled by society, there is a risk of increasingly dangerous and destructive technologies being created and employed for negative uses, which society will not be able to restrict or control—to say nothing of the supposedly positive technologies which left uncontrolled in the long term can mount up to severely negative outcomes.
Another important conclusion that is drawn in the first part of the book is that the collapse of the technological system is inevitable, due to the very nature of “self-propagating systems.” A Self-propagating system, according to Kaczynski, is:
“…a system that tends to promote its own survival and propagation.” (Anti-Tech Revolution: Why and How, (2015) p. 42)
To put it simply, Kaczynski holds that self-propagating systems, or “self-prop” systems as he often calls them, tend to promote themselves with short-term survival in mind, with no regard for long-term consequences. Technologically advanced human societies (and their component organizations), which are self-prop systems, and which are also extremely tightly-coupled and interdependent, will act as self-prop systems naturally do, and compete for power with short-term survival in mind, at the expense of long-term considerations. And this activity, because of the highly destructive technologies which these systems possess, will lead to a breaking point in which the technological system and the biosystems on which it depends can no longer sustain themselves, and will likely bring about conditions which do not support the natural complex systems of Earth.
In the second part of the book, dedicated to the “How,” Kaczynski illustrates a clear and concise process by which those opposed to the technological system can rebel against it, to prevent the aforementioned scenario from occurring. Capturing all of the details Kaczynski lays out in this chapter would be far too complex for a mere summary, but a summary of key points will be done. In the chapter titled “How to Transform a Society: Errors to Avoid,” Kaczynski forms certain general postulates and rules about the nature of society and the revolutions which seek to radically change it. Some examples include:
“Postulate 1: You can’t change a society by pursuing ideas that are vague or abstract. You have to have a clear and concrete goal…” (Anti-Tech Revolution: Why and How, (2016) first edition, p. 89).
“Postulate 4: Every radical movement that acquires great power becomes corrupt…” (Furst edition, p. 90).
“Rule (ii): If a movement aims to transform a society, then the objective selected by the movement must be of such a nature that, once the objective has been achieved, its consequences will be irreversible…” (First edition, p. 91).
“Rule (iii): Once an objective has been selected, it is necessary to persuade some small minority to commit itself to the achievement of the objective by means more potent than mere preaching or advocacy of ideas…” (First edition, p. 91).
In the final chapter, titled “Strategic Guidelines for an Anti-Tech Movement,” Kaczynski establishes many guidelines, which include the ideas that a revolutionary organization must have unity of action, the importance of studying earlier social and political movements, that those dedicated to a movement must be willing to accept great hardships and personal risks, among many other ideas of great importance.
Anti-Tech Revolution: Why and How, certainly one of Kaczynski’s most profound works, augments Kaczynski’s philosophical views and adds much quality to anti-tech philosophy. The reader is left with a thorough and complex analysis of society which they would be hard-pressed to find in mainstream circles. The book is a work of great importance that all of those interested in theories of society, anti-tech/pro-wilderness thought, or the ideas of Ted Kaczynski ought to pursue.
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Anti-Tech Revolution: Why and How (ATR) is considered by many to be Kaczynski’s magnum opus. Written entirely during his incarceration, this piece is arguably the most important of all his works. Where “Industrial Society and Its Future” (ISAIF) was written to sway a world that worships technology, ATR was written with the hopes that the reader had already been freed from the siren-like myth of progress. As a consequence, Kaczynski is able to bypass lots of the basics and delve straight into the core message he had in mind. He tackles the hard-hitting truths, such as; why a society cannot be subject to rational human control (and why the path of a society cannot be predicted), the inevitability of collapse, the transformation of a society, and the path a revolutionary movement should take. Kaczynski also explores past revolutions, showing what made them work, what made them fail, and what we can learn from them. Whether you decide it’s his magnum opus or not, you can’t deny the depth and accuracy of this book, especially with the added difficulties of where he was writing from.
Kaczynski opens with a brief evaluation on why it’s impossible to predict the path a society will take, and by extension, impossible to rationally control. He shows that each of many near infinite variables could be completely changed by even the slightest actions, which could have immense consequences and so on. This bears a striking resemblance to chaos theory and therefore has come under similar scrutiny to that of the opening segment of ISAIF (specifically the critique of leftist behaviour) for being largely irrelevant to the overall theme of the rest of the book. This claim is largely put forth by people who have not understood the book. The opening segment ties together later chapters, such as chapter four touching on the fallacy of pre-planning a revolutionary movement.
The author concludes in ATR that modern technological society will inevitably collapse (and take with it most of the biosphere) if left to continue growing indefinitely although he doesn’t make guesses about when, he assures that it’s certain for a system infinitely growing, dependent on certain conditions and finite resources, struggling for power and dominion in the modern world-system. He coins the term “self-propagating system” to describe the aforementioned structure that promotes its own growth, out of short-term considerations at the expense of long-term health, as a fundamental attribute of all dynamic systems and organizations. In the case of industrial society, infinite technological growth becomes its downfall due to rapid, unpredictable and uncontrollable shifts in the conditions of the environment in which the process of competition among self-propagating systems (themselves dependent on the environment) takes place.
Chapter three, introduces four “postulates” that logically lead to several rules that determine a revolutionary movement’s success (or failure). These postulates invoke themes and messages from ISAIF and Kaczynski’s first book, Technological Slavery (TS), such as tendencies of leftists (postulate three) and the essay titled “The Systems Neatest Trick” (postulate one, in a more abstract sense).
In chapter four he goes over strategic guidelines of a revolutionary movement, stating that the path of revolution cannot be planned in advance, but is more effectively planned in accordance to the systems ebb and flow, reaching back to themes expressed in the first chapter. Here he expresses perhaps the two greatest takeaways of the book: firstly, a revolutionary movement should remain optimistic; secondly, meaningful progress in a revolution will be achieved by a minuscule but devout core of pragmatic and intelligent individuals united by a single, concrete goal.
The author takes many examples of past revolutionary movements and shows how they achieved their goals, the tactics they used, and how the revolutionary movements themselves functioned. Learning from movements such as the “Arab Spring,” the IRA, the Bolshevik uprising and even as niche a phenomenon as the rise of Mexican gang dominance.
Anti-Tech Revolution perfectly exemplifies the brilliance and pragmatism of Kaczynski, and whilst not the most well-known, its utility is undeniable. I could not recommend it more to those who found TS and ISAIF compelling. Though it’s quite different from his two prior published books, it’s incredibly insightful and well researched.
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
Anti-Tech Revolution: Why and How, maintains the designation of being Dr. Theodore J. Kaczynski’s final piece to the puzzle in terms of his literary works. With his previous works, Dr. Kaczynski presented his findings on the subject of technological advance, its grasp on our society, and also highlighted the negative consequences we are currently facing, and will soon face to a larger degree. Although this composition holds true to Kaczynski’s aforementioned principles, it bears a heavier burden: that being the proposal of action. In this respect it’s a tremendous success for it provides an exquisite ideation of revolutionary organization. Not unlike the author's other works, such as “Industrial Society and Its Future,” or “Technological Slavery,” the compilation of this finality is the product of decades of serious thinking and meticulous research. Kaczynski lends hand to the feat of countless revolutionary efforts throughout human history, and pulls from them the exemplification of their process’ as well as an exhumation of their faults, aiding in the orchestration of a definitive revolutionary principle. While the book itself can be held to such a regard as that of an easily digestible textbook, the individual machinations of Kaczynski's conclusions are not meant to be interpreted as concrete in value, but held with esteem as a functioning factor of consideration. Much of Kaczynski’s ideology is a fine tuned process, and such is the character of his revolutionary guidance, aiding in the determination of technologically imposed obstruction more so than the process of organizational development in itself.
This tends to be the focus of Anti-Tech Revolution; instead of giving distinct methods for every action of an organization's function, Kaczynski gives example of how to go about the most important features, and provides examples of obstacles to be assessed and treated with refrain. This is an interesting application often neglected by many of those who write in these same spaces intellectually. When most often the focus is on harsh and uniform guidelines to be followed, Kaczynski intends the function of such practice to be organized yet mindful of the subject's unpredictable nature. Kaczynski and his work do not exclude chaos theory, instead a great precedent is placed upon this facet and allowed to take on a life of its own as a formality of organizational function. Instead, Kaczynski discovers within this theory fundamental features characterizing organizational structure and success leading to the development of a strong and successful anti-tech revolutionary movement.
It is important to see this work as a stepping stone for what is to come in terms of revolutionary action; which Kaczynski provides as a loose framework, easily adaptable to the needs of the movement, and in motion against the obstacles of the techno-industrial system. While it can be taken as an individual circumstance of technological criticism in its own right, Anti-Tech Revolution is only a small part of the greater whole of Kaczysnski’s intellectual conclusion, and though it may bare resemblance to other works in its field, it holds a greater accountability than most on the grounds of overall efficient measure and methodical backing. As stated, the writer of this work is a doctor of mathematics, thus any conclusion made holds foundation upon calculative ground, and does not fret in the face of scrutiny. Even in circumstance of incalculable prediction, Kaczynski compiles the chaotic aspects of our society and its functions into a precise forewarning as a means of factoring out the unpredictable gracefully.
For those aware of the technological imposition to which we remain abjectly subject, it is a misjudgment to pass by this work. The book holds place as an informational powerhouse to those who understand its purpose, and those predisposed to Kaczynski’s prior works can maintain a sense of guidance amongst its provided methods. In general, this book is determined to be a guiding structure detailing the composition of a revolution against the technological system, and much of its method is focused on the organizational factor in perspective of complex interdependencies. This lies both in terms of the revolutionary movement, and the system itself, often highlighting weaknesses and strengths to be considered as evolutionary influences. The technological issue is addressed as an organism of unpredictable nature, perpetually advancing for its own growth and advantage. Throughout this composition, Kaczynski gives justifiable methods which are to be used for the total dissolution of the technological system, and many of the highlighted subjects are oriented towards doing this from the inside out. Kaczynski shows that by understanding the chaotic function of organization, a structurally integrated vanguard movement can indeed withstand and push against technical obstructions, aiding in the efficiency of its overall success against the technological system.
Many interesting subjects are distilled into the principles Kaczynski establishes, and it is to the benefit of the reader that this composition is addressed from every angle of the board, allowing for the comprehension of its substance to be expanded by the reader. That is truly the destination of this book's message, to provide a spark which ignites in the reader the understanding of our situation within industrial society, and how this issue must be addressed, along with the methods on how contained within. This book is a fine piece of revolutionary study, and should remain a crucial facet within the libraries of ecocentric individuals who want a proper orientation to the change so direly needed within society today.
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Anti-Tech Revolution: Why and How is a guide written to show people how to begin
thinking strategically about the actions necessary to get our society off its current road to
destruction. It’s an excellent and groundbreaking work.
It’s made up of four chapters: “The Development of a Society Can Never Be Subject to
Rational Human Control,” “Why the Technological System Will Destroy Itself,” “How to
Transform a Society,” and “Strategic Guidelines for an Anti-Tech Movement.” There are
many takeaways in this book, as it is reasonably dense (though never tedious) and, as stated in
the preface, it’s meant to be read with the same level of care that one would use in studying a
textbook.
The author, Theodore John Kaczynski, describes the destructive process we see today as
made inevitable by a combination of two factors: the colossal power of modern technology
and the fundamental nature of “self-propagating systems” which comprise the biosphere and
its components (including human societies and their artifices).
Kaczynski provides a precise analysis of the principles that determine the success or
failure of social revolutions, incorporating highly relevant historical context as well as unique
analogies to elucidate his ideas. Kaczynski asserts the pointlessness of advocating for energy
conservation by explaining the theory of self-propagating systems. He calls attention to the
fact that any amount of energy that’s freed up by conservation is quickly used up by the everexpanding technological world-system, which then only demands more with no regard for the
consequences as it tries to push beyond the limits imposed by insufficiency of resources. He
makes the point that we can’t assume that the extent of the coming damage to our
environment is limited to current known causes of environmental harm, arguing that we need
to consider the future impact on the environment by future—even as yet inconceivable—
technologies.
Upon concluding that a catastrophic breakdown in the world-system (defined to be all
things that exist on Earth, together with the functional relations among them) brought on by
advancing technology is to be expected sooner or later, Kaczynski argues that the only solution
is to eliminate the technological system altogether so as to preserve as much of humanity and
the biosphere as possible. He utilizes years of diligent research to explain how this can be
achieved through an exacting revolution, and why such a revolution is the only sensible
approach to the problem of the ever-expanding global technological system.
According to Kaczynski, the critical challenge for anyone in the modern world wishing to
transform society is to effectively organize for practical action. It’s established that staying on
target and having one single, concrete goal is essential for the success of an anti-tech movement.
Moreover, he gives comprehensive explanations as to why attacks on centralization, capitalism,
globalization, etc., are not effective ways of resisting technological progress but rather distract
from the need to eliminate the entire technological system. Another chief determinant of success
for a revolutionary movement is having faith in its ability to achieve its objective. Kaczynski
explores the significance of confidence within a movement, noting that no one will exert
themselves if they lack hope in being rewarded with any impressive result. Revolutionaries
must believe that the elimination of the technological system is worth any potential risks or
disasters and must not allow themselves to be deterred with threats made by defenders of the
system.
thinking strategically about the actions necessary to get our society off its current road to
destruction. It’s an excellent and groundbreaking work.
It’s made up of four chapters: “The Development of a Society Can Never Be Subject to
Rational Human Control,” “Why the Technological System Will Destroy Itself,” “How to
Transform a Society,” and “Strategic Guidelines for an Anti-Tech Movement.” There are
many takeaways in this book, as it is reasonably dense (though never tedious) and, as stated in
the preface, it’s meant to be read with the same level of care that one would use in studying a
textbook.
The author, Theodore John Kaczynski, describes the destructive process we see today as
made inevitable by a combination of two factors: the colossal power of modern technology
and the fundamental nature of “self-propagating systems” which comprise the biosphere and
its components (including human societies and their artifices).
Kaczynski provides a precise analysis of the principles that determine the success or
failure of social revolutions, incorporating highly relevant historical context as well as unique
analogies to elucidate his ideas. Kaczynski asserts the pointlessness of advocating for energy
conservation by explaining the theory of self-propagating systems. He calls attention to the
fact that any amount of energy that’s freed up by conservation is quickly used up by the everexpanding technological world-system, which then only demands more with no regard for the
consequences as it tries to push beyond the limits imposed by insufficiency of resources. He
makes the point that we can’t assume that the extent of the coming damage to our
environment is limited to current known causes of environmental harm, arguing that we need
to consider the future impact on the environment by future—even as yet inconceivable—
technologies.
Upon concluding that a catastrophic breakdown in the world-system (defined to be all
things that exist on Earth, together with the functional relations among them) brought on by
advancing technology is to be expected sooner or later, Kaczynski argues that the only solution
is to eliminate the technological system altogether so as to preserve as much of humanity and
the biosphere as possible. He utilizes years of diligent research to explain how this can be
achieved through an exacting revolution, and why such a revolution is the only sensible
approach to the problem of the ever-expanding global technological system.
According to Kaczynski, the critical challenge for anyone in the modern world wishing to
transform society is to effectively organize for practical action. It’s established that staying on
target and having one single, concrete goal is essential for the success of an anti-tech movement.
Moreover, he gives comprehensive explanations as to why attacks on centralization, capitalism,
globalization, etc., are not effective ways of resisting technological progress but rather distract
from the need to eliminate the entire technological system. Another chief determinant of success
for a revolutionary movement is having faith in its ability to achieve its objective. Kaczynski
explores the significance of confidence within a movement, noting that no one will exert
themselves if they lack hope in being rewarded with any impressive result. Revolutionaries
must believe that the elimination of the technological system is worth any potential risks or
disasters and must not allow themselves to be deterred with threats made by defenders of the
system.
I could have sworn I wrote a review of this as I received a copy from the publisher but alas apparently technology erased it...?!
I recall that this was a rambling, disjointed, 'know it all' extended essay that has slivers of clarity and relevant insights but it's so impenetrable and irritating that it's not worth the effort especially when there are many better books that cover the same topic.
I recall that this was a rambling, disjointed, 'know it all' extended essay that has slivers of clarity and relevant insights but it's so impenetrable and irritating that it's not worth the effort especially when there are many better books that cover the same topic.
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced