It’s not as bad as it sounds. Both arguments are also arguments against democracy, but I don’t think they’re knockdown arguments against democracy (although the general point that democracy can be gamed by brainwashing enough people is good to keep in mind, and I think is a point that Moldbug, for example, is quite preoccupied with). For example, killing people doesn’t appear to be a viable strategy for gaining control of the United States at the moment. Although the killing-people strategy in the FAI case might look more like “the US decides to nuke Russia immediately before the singularity occurs.”
It’s not as bad as it sounds. Both arguments are also arguments against democracy, but I don’t think they’re knockdown arguments against democracy (although the general point that democracy can be gamed by brainwashing enough people is good to keep in mind, and I think is a point that Moldbug, for example, is quite preoccupied with). For example, killing people doesn’t appear to be a viable strategy for gaining control of the United States at the moment. Although the killing-people strategy in the FAI case might look more like “the US decides to nuke Russia immediately before the singularity occurs.”
Perhaps not, but it might help maintain control of the USG insofar as popularity increases the chances of reelection and killing (certain) people increases popularity.