America250

 
 

The Declaration of Independence by John Trumbull

 

"From a small spark kindled in America, a flame has arisen, not to be extinguished."
Rights of Man, by Thomas Paine

The arc of human freedom reaches back to the enslaved Hebrews in Egypt who yearned for liberty. Cyrus the Great and Greek philosophers gave us democracy. Jesus taught us to love our neighbor. The Magna Carta in England, followed by the Renaissance in Florence, cleared the path to signing the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia.

In the 250 years since, America has strived to be the shining city on a hill. Compare that with the five thousand years it took to bring about the Agricultural Revolution, and the more than two centuries required for the Industrial Revolution. Now, we stand amid the AI Revolution. How long will it take, and what shape will its blessings and perils assume? The Declaration of Independence was a revolt against a tyrannical king. Today, we need a modern declaration to challenge the status quo.

In 2020, we launched the Highland Institute for the Advancement of Humanity to imagine—and help build—a brave new world of AI, quantum computing, cryptocurrencies, personalized medicine, and whatever else lies on the horizon. Five years in, we’re finally making solid progress on multiple fronts. For example, next week we’re hosting a nine-part series, Technology & Statecraft, to explore topics such as:

  • Innovation vs. Stability

  • Enhancement vs. Dependence

  • Industry vs. Decadence

  • Adaptation vs. Domestication

  • Spontaneous Order vs. Centralized Control

  • Social Technology and Civilizational Collapse

  • The New Atlantis 

  • The Future of Western Civilization: Progress or Return?

At Highland Institute, we strive to help Boulder become the Athens of the West—or a new Philadelphia—by identifying today’s Jeffersons, Hamiltons, Madisons, and Franklins. If not now, when? If not here, where?

— Sina.

Sina SimantobComment