How technology changes our sense of right and wrong | Juan Enriquez

譯者: Lilian Chiu 審譯者: Helen Chang

In an era of extreme polarization,

在嚴重兩級化的時代，

it's really dangerous to talk about right and wrong.

談「對錯」是很危險的事。

You can be targeted, judged for something you said 10 years ago, 10 months ago,

你可能會成為目標，被評斷，

只因為你在十年前、十個月前、

10 hours ago, 10 seconds ago.

十小時前、十秒鐘前說了某些話。

And that means that those who think you're wrong

那就表示，認為你錯了的人，

may burn you at the stake

會嚴厲懲罰你，

or those who are on your side

或者站在你這一邊的人

that think you're not sufficiently orthodox

若認為你不夠正統， 可能會試圖排擠你。

may try and cancel you.

As you're thinking about right and wrong, I want you to consider three ideas.

當你在想著對錯時， 我希望你能考量三個想法。

What if right and wrong is something that changes over time.

如果對錯會隨著時間改變呢？

What if right and wrong is something that can change because of technology.

如果對錯會隨著科技改變呢？

What if technology is moving exponentially?

如果科技是以指數的速度在發展呢？

So as you're thinking about this concept,

所以，當你正在思考這個概念時，

remember human sacrifice used to be normal and natural.

別忘了，活人獻祭也曾 被視為是合乎常情的事。

It was a way of appeasing the gods.

那是一種讓神息怒的方式。

Otherwise the rain wouldn't come,

要不然，雨就不會降下來， 太陽就不會照耀。

the sun wouldn't shine.

Public executions.

公開行刑。

They were common, normal, legal.

也曾是常見、正常、合法的。

You used to take your kids to watch beheadings in the streets of Paris.

以前人會帶孩子 到巴黎街上去看斬首。

One of the greatest wrongs, slavery,

最大的錯誤之一，奴隸制度，

indentured servitude,

用契約約束的奴役，

that was something that was practiced for millennia.

卻行之有數千年。

It was practiced across the Incas, the Mayas, the Chinese,

包括印加人、馬雅人、中國人、

北美洲和南美洲的 印地安人都有這麼做。

the Indians in North and South America.

And as you're thinking about this,

當你在思考這些時，

one question is why did something so wrong last for so long?

想想一個問題，為什麼 錯得這麼離譜的事

會持續這麼久？

And a second question is: why did it go away?

還有一個問題：它為什麼會消失？

And why did it go away in a few short decades in legal terms?

為什麼在短短幾十年間， 它就不再合法了？

Certainly there was a work

這背後一定有一些 了不起的廢奴主義者做出貢獻，

by extraordinary abolitionists who risked their lives,

but there may be something else happening alongside these brave abolitionists.

但除了這些勇敢的廢奴主義者 之外，可能還有其他因素。

Consider energy and the industrial revolution.

想想看能源及工業革命。

A single barrel of oil contains the energy equivalent

單一桶石油所含的能源就等同於

of the work of five to 10 people.

5~10 個人的工作力。

Add that to machines,

再加上機器，

and suddenly you've got millions of people's equivalent labor

突然間，你就可以自行支配

等同於數百萬人的勞動力。

at your disposal.

You can quit oppressing people and have a doubling in lifespan

可以不用再壓迫人，

且在壽命持續數千年都沒有之後，

after a flattened lifespan for millennia.

可以延長為兩倍了。

The world economy, which had been flat for millennia,

世界經濟也持平了數千年，

all of a sudden explodes.

突然間就爆衝起來。

And you get enormous amounts of wealth and food and other things

你還能得到大量的財富、

食物，及其他東西，

produced by far fewer hands.

而且是用更少的人力所生產。

Technology changes the way we interact with each other in fundamental ways.

科技從根本上改變了 我們與彼此互動的方式。

New technologies like the machine gun

像機關槍這類新科技

completely changed the nature of warfare in World War I.

在第一次世界大戰中 完全改變了戰爭的本質。

It drove people into trenches.

讓人必須要躲到戰壕裡。

You were in the British trench, or you were in the German trench.

你若不是在英國的戰壕裡， 就是在德國的戰壕裡。

Anything in between was no man's land.

兩者之間只有無人地帶。

You entered no man's land.

你若是進入無人地帶， 就會中槍，就會被殺。

You were shot. You were killed.

You tried to leave the trench in the other direction.

你若是嘗試朝另一個方向離開戰壕，

Then your own side would shoot you

你自己這一邊的人會射殺你， 因為你是逃兵。

because you were a deserter.

In a weird way, today's machine guns are narrowcast social media.

就一種很奇怪的意義來說， 現今的機關槍就是窄播社群媒體。

We're shooting at each other.

我們在朝彼此開槍。 認為誰錯了，就朝誰開槍，

We're shooting at those we think are wrong

with posts, with tweets, with photographs, with accusations, with comments.

我們的子彈包括貼文、 推文、照片、指控、評論。

And what it's done is it's created these two trenches

造成的結果就是產生了兩條戰壕，

where you have to be either in this trench or that trench.

你若不是在這條戰壕內， 就是在那條戰壕內。

And there's almost no middle ground to meet each other,

兩者之間幾乎沒有 妥協區域可以讓大家相會

to try and find some sort of a discussion between right and wrong.

並試圖找到對錯之間的討論。

As you drive around the United States, you see signs on lawns.

當你在美國開車時，

會看到草皮上立著標語。

Some say, "Black Lives Matter."

有些寫著「黑命貴」。

Others say, "We support the police."

也有些寫著「我們支持警察」。

You very rarely see both signs on the same lawn.

很難看到一片草皮上 同時有這兩種標語。

And yet if you ask people,

但，如果你去問別人，

most people would probably support Black Lives Matter

大部分人可能會支持黑命貴，

and they would also support their police.

且他們同時也支持他們的警察。

So as you think of these polarized times,

當你在思考這些兩極化的時期，

as you think of right and wrong,

當你在思考對錯，

you have to understand that right and wrong changes

你必須要了解，對錯會改變，

and is now changing in exponential ways.

且現在是以指數的速度在改變。

Take the issue of gay marriage.

以同性婚姻為例。

In 1996, two-thirds of the US population was against gay marriage.

1996 年，所有美國人中 有 3 分之 2 反對同性婚姻。

Today two-thirds is for.

現今，有 3 分之 2 支持。

It's almost 180-degree shift in the opinion.

這幾乎可說是看法 180 度大轉變。

In part, this is because of protests,

有部分的原因是抗議，

because people came out of the closet,

因為同志出櫃，

because of AIDS,

因為愛滋病，

but a great deal of it has to do with social media.

但有很大一部分是因為社群媒體。

A great deal of it has to do with people out in our homes,

有很大一部分是因為我們家裡的人，

in our living rooms, through television, through film, through posts,

我們客廳裡的人，透過電視， 透過電影，透過貼文，

through people being comfortable enough,

透過相處夠自在的人，

our friends, our neighbors, our family,

我們的朋友，我們的鄰居， 我們的家人，說出「我是同志」。

to say, "I'm gay."

And this has shifted opinion

這造成了看法的轉變，

even in some of the most conservative of places.

就連一些最保守的地方也是如此。

Take the Pope.

以教宗為例。

As Cardinal in 2010,

2010 年，身為樞機主教，

he was completely against gay marriage.

他完全反對同性婚姻。

He becomes Pope.

他成了教宗。

And three years after the last sentence

上次發表意見之後 3 年，

he comes out with "Who am I to judge?"

他說出「我有什麼資格評斷？」

And then today, he's in favor of civil unions.

現今，他則是支持民事結合。

As you're thinking about technology changing ethics,

當你在思考科技改變倫理的議題時，

you also have to consider that technology is now moving exponentially.

你也得考量現今科技 是以指數的速度在發展。

As right and wrong changes,

隨著對錯不斷改變，

if you take the position, "I know right.

如果你選擇的立場是 「我知道什麼是對的。

And if you completely disagree with me, if you partially disagree with me,

如果你完全不認同我， 如果你部分不認同我，

如果你跟我爭論，那你就是錯的。」

if you even quibble with me, then you're wrong,"

then there's no discussion,

那麼，就不會有討論， 不會有包容，不會有進展，

no tolerance, no evolution, and certainly no learning.

肯定也不會有學習。

Most of us are not vegetarians yet.

我們大部分人還不是素食者。

Then again, we haven't had

然而，我們還沒有其他更快速、 更佳、更便宜的選擇可以代替肉類。

a whole lot of faster, better, cheaper alternatives to meat.

But now that we're getting synthetic meats,

但現在我們可以取得人造合成肉，

as the price drops from 380,000 dollars in 2013

其價格從 2013 年的 38 萬美金

掉到現在的 9 塊美金，

to 9 dollars today,

a great big chunk of people

許多人將會開始變成

are going to start becoming vegetarian or quasi-vegetarian.

素食者或半素食者。

And then in retrospect, these pictures

將來回頭看，這樣的畫面，

of walking into the fanciest, most expensive restaurants in town

走進鎮上最炫最貴的餐廳，

and walking past racks of bloody steaks

經過的架子上放著血淋淋的牛排，

is going to look very different in 10 years, in 20 years and 30 years.

10 年、20 年、30 年後 這樣的畫面看起來會大不同。

In these polarized times,

在這些兩極化的時期，

I'd like to revive two words you rarely hear today:

我想要重提兩個現今很難聽到的詞：

humility and forgiveness.

謙卑和寬恕。

When you judge the past, your ancestors, your forefathers,

當你評斷過去、 你的祖先、你的先人時，

do so with a little bit more humility,

別忘了帶著一點謙卑，

because perhaps if you'd been educated in that time,

因為，如果你是在 那個時期接受教育，

if you'd lived in that time,

如果你生活在那個時期，

you would've done a lot of things wrong.

你可能會做錯許多事。

Not because they're right.

並非因為它們是對的。

Not because we don't see they're wrong today,

並非因為現今我們 不把它們視為錯的，

but simply because our notions,

只單純是因為我們的見解，

our understanding of right and wrong change across time.

我們對於對錯的了解， 會隨時間而改變。

The second word, forgiveness.

第二個詞，寬恕。

Forgiveness is incredibly important these days.

現今，寬恕極度重要。

You cannot cancel somebody for saying the wrong word,

你不能因為某人說錯話就排擠他，

for having done something 10 years ago,

因為他 10 年前做的事就排擠他，

for having triggered you and not being a hundred percent right.

因為他觸怒你或沒有 100% 正確就排擠他。

To build a community, you have to build it and talk to people

要建立起共同體，你必須要 去跟別人談，向別人學習，

and learn from people

who may have very different points of view from yours.

即便是觀點與你大大相逕庭的人。

You have to allow them a space

你必須要留一個空間給他們，

instead of creating a no man's land.

而不是創造無人地帶。

A middle ground, a ??? and a space of empathy.

一個妥協區域、一個？？？， 以及一個同理的空間。

This is a time to build community.

現在是該建立共同體的時候。

This is not a time to continue ripping nations apart.

現在不是該持續撕裂國家的時候。

Thank you very much.

非常謝謝。