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Introduction
An artist is a demanding personality. Their creative
impulse is to change existence and invent new realities for others to perceive.
Some things presented to us by artists are ugly because they offend our
sensibilities, while others are beautiful because they cater to our
preferences, but in each case the artist at least tries to present to us
something new. The special talent of creative people is to rearrange common
elements with which we are already familiar into new combinations or to take
existing elements and turn them into new forms. And in some cases, the artist
is also a technician or inventor who creates new material and substances with
which to create.
In this article, I thought we should look at an extremely
specialized form of creativity in the field of human relationships by discussing
artificial human companions. To bring us up to a point of understanding I
wanted to share with you some of the ideas of Anton LaVey (shown above),
particularly his thoughts about the merits of artificiality and on the
construction of artificial human companions. I felt that this would be an
interesting way of looking at the potential future of human relationships. The creative
possibilities of constructing an artificial human companion are already
available to us thanks to technology and changing sentiments regarding
appropriate and traditional forms of human relationships.
But more importantly, as LaVey says, what underlies the
greater acceptance of artificial human companions is the quest of every
individual to consciously experience pleasure according to their own discovery
and devising. Most of the time people like to think of artificial humans as sex
aids (blow-up dolls), domestic helpers (robots), or as the source of human
extinction (Terminator and Battlestar Galactica). Here we are going to look at
this subject primarily from a creative angle as it relates to actual
construction and product features.
The Merits of Artificiality
Let’s begin with the concept of “artificiality” that Anton
LaVey presents in his book – “The Devil’s Notebook”:
“Artificiality is a natural and
often superior development of intelligent life. Artificiality is more than
completely honest; it forestalls disappointment at a thing not being what they
appear to be. If you know something is phony from the outset, your imagination
can make it as real as needs be. But it does require imagination. Believe it or
not, everybody has imagination to some degree. Granted, it doesn't take much
imagination to be fooled, either by yourself or someone else. But imagination
is taken into the realm of creativity when you infuse the unreal with a reality
which will be satisfying.”
This statement has less to do with
the reality of the artificial and more to do with the power of imagination to
makes things real in our own universe (mind). The only difference between being
fooled and being imaginative is knowing that something is or is not fake from
the start. He also mentions how it is that people end up in “dreary
relationships because they are constantly trying to fool themselves into
believing their mate is either more capable or intelligent than he or she
really is.” In the sphere of human interactions we normally do not reward
others when they lie to us, but we often create rewarding experiences for
ourselves when we exaggerate the reality and importance of certain activities
such as sports, dancing, and flirting. Whether we are in control of our
imagination or if someone else is influencing our imagination, the power to
make things appear real to us is solely in our minds.
Personal Motivations for Ideal
Companions
We project our emotions of love and happiness onto objects
and people. We are fed by these projections. The emotions of love and happiness
(or any other emotion) are not in the objects, they come from within – they are
self-generated, reflected back to us, and that’s what we feel. Yet how many
women seek relationships with men who have little or nothing to
offer other than physical presence? And how many men do the same? According to
La Vey, “There are few persons who can give me as much pleasure as those acts I
perform myself. I would rather create pleasure according to my own whim than be
subjected to the whims of others. Invariably, I wind up entertaining others. Or
educating them. There is no push/pull. It is only pull, and they do all the
pulling.”
The answers to some of the questions
raised in this article actually form the basis of the motivation that drives an
individual from one relationship to another searching for that perfect partner.
Unfortunately, this can only lead to disappointment, because our great
expectations, unfulfilled fantasies, and our search for the ideal mate are
difficult roles for human companions to live up to.
La Vey continues his line of
thinking by saying, “I find greater companionship in inert figures, animals and
speechless artifacts, for I can enjoy their presence and there is no psychic
drain. In fact, by their very stimulation in accordance with my tailored
ideals, they provide me with not only entertainment, but food for thought.”
Here he identifies 3 very important
factors in the life of an artist and other creative people which are avoiding psychic
drain, stimulation in accordance with one’s tailored ideals, and food for
thought (exchange of ideas). For the most part, creative people tend to seek out
objects such as books and art exhibits that can provide food for thought and
interesting people who help create opportunities, experiences, and stimulation
in accordance with their personal ideals, but with a minimum of psychic drain.
All of these factors when combined into a single entity sharply raise the value
of the man, women, or object that can possess them. But how few of them there
are.
Social Sentiment shifts away from
Traditional Forms of Intimacy and Relationships and Approaches the Artificial
Here are a few old and new products and services that are
helping to facilitate and change the way people engage in flirtation, courtship,
and sex. Each of them possesses the quality of the artificial discussed earlier
and exemplifies how the essential element common to all of them is the
individual’s need for very specific forms of pleasure and the power of their
imagination – coupled with these types of products and services – to make them
real.
Examples of Products:
Boyfriend and girlfriend pillows
Blow-up dolls
Sex toys
Adult movies on demand – for immediate download, purchase,
or rental
The Mystery Method – seduction techniques to make the
pick-up process much more smooth, quicker, and more direct. Developed by
authors such as Mystery (star of the VH-1 show “The Pick-Up Artist”, available
in DVD), Neil Strauss (author of “The Game”), and the team at Love Systems.
Panty vending machines – a Japanese favorite
Examples of Services:
Rent a friend / girlfriend
Craigslist and Backpage – classifieds for hook-ups, but
also featuring the “girlfriend experience” (or GFE, a service provided by a
professional or amateur prostitute designed to simulate the boyfriend /
girlfriend connection.)
What’sYourPrice.com – bid for a date
Ashley Madison – dating service for married people
Mail-order brides
Match.com – on-line dating service for singles
Table for Six – low-pressure dating service for single
professionals
E-Harmony – dating service for conservatives and Christians
Speed dating – dating approach to
capitalize on volume, not quality.
What these products and services have done is shorten the
process of finding sex partners in terms of time, money, and effort. Moreover,
the purpose and focus of each product or service is to assist the customer to
fulfill their needs in a much more efficient manner. These products and
services have the potential to remove all of the guess work, trial and error,
as well as the danger associated with seeking various forms of human
companionship.
So, for example, if you use a service like Ashley Madison,
a dating service for married people, you know why you’re there, what you’re
looking for, and make arrangements to meet with someone who’s willing to
fulfill your expectations. Compare this experience with sitting at a bar or
lounge trying to lure men or women to nearby motel rooms. Or if you’re looking
for a person who’s seriously seeking monogamy, casual sex, or marriage, you can
quickly use one of these services or others like them to find what you seek in
human companionship.
But what if you could remove the middle man, not use these
products and services, but instead build a companion from scratch using a new
service that allowed you to create the exact personality software of your
perfect partner? In addition, you could also design the physical appearance and
material in which the software was housed. So whether you wanted an artificial
human companion made to look like a real human being or something a bit more
unusual that would be totally up to you. So if such as service existed, would
you use it?
Anton La Vey offers these words to
help you make your decision:
“Why do I prefer androids to many
"real" humans? They never talk back, unless you want them to, yet you
can insult them to your heart's content. Androids offer splendid companionship
when cast in the physical semblance of human beings.”
“Androids can be created, programmed
and utilized exactly according to the master's whims. They require no
energy-consuming interaction in order to salve a non-existent ego. Yet even the
semblance of an ego can be built into an android via actions and words -- but
always according to the Maker's requirements. They can be shelved when they
grow tiresome, brought back out when needed, modified in appearance, and
destroyed without moral conscience. They are ideal companions.”
In the News: Traditional Forms of
Marriage Moving Towards the Artificial in the Middle East
Here is a pair of news stories dated
about 8 months apart showing another way in which social sentiment toward
traditional forms of intimacy and marriage can shift dramatically towards the
artificial when circumstances change. Because of the civil war occurring in
Syria, refugees are fleeing to countries like Libya and Jordan to escape the
violence. But instead of violence what they are facing instead are exploitive
opportunities by Libyan and Jordanian men who are looking for young girls to
marry on a short-term basis.
Marriage, in and of itself, is already
an artificial institution born out of millennia of necessity and economic survival.
Apparently, the situation in Libya and Jordan is so bad, the outlook so poor,
and the aid so miniscule that many families are actually accepting these offers
as a way of supporting the remaining family members with the money they receive
for their daughters in exchange for marriage. What this tells us is that no
culture, no matter how restrictive or regulated, is exempt from change.
In the first story, you’ll read about
rich Libyan men approaching young Syrian girls to marry them for money. Because
many of the families from Syria are penniless they are selling off their
daughters to solve the financial distress for the remaining family members. In the
second story you’ll read about the situation for these refugees one year later,
but in Jordan.
To read about how Libyans are exploiting Syrian
women with marriage offers, click here.
To read about Syrian refugees 'sold for
marriage in Jordan, click here.
Propaganda in Movies and T.V. in Favor
of Artificial Human Companions
Along with his many other observations
La Vey has noticed that “movies and television have been priming the pump for
years for [this] development as inevitable as the automobile or airplane.”
For at least a century with the advent of futurism in
literature and the Science-Fiction genre, we’ve seen books, movies, music, and
television programs like The Twilight Zone, Star Wars, Buck Rogers, A.I.
(Artificial Intelligence), Battlestar Galactica (2006), Gamer, I,
Robot, and Surrogates illustrate how society would be if humans and robots
co-existed. While each rendition of this same basic theme offers us a new
twist, for the most part each work tries to present the benefits and conflicts
that would arise in such a society. While it’s outside the scope of this
article to discuss all of the finer points of such works, it is well within the
scope of this blog’s theme to at least give you a musical example.
Most of us probably remember this song when it was most
popular over 10 years ago, but it’s well worth viewing now in this context to
see how it’s had an influence in shifting support in favor of artificial human
companions.
If you have any problems viewing this video, click here.
Even the car company KIA shows an attractive set of artificial human female companions in one of their new commercials featuring the “Hotbots."
The Technological Features of an
Artificial Human Companion
Imagine a partner that literally comes alive when you look
at them, who responds solely to your voice, who demands very little of your
attention and time, who’s attentive from the very moment you walk in the door,
who’s always set to your preferred temperature, who’s programmed to respond
only to your voice, who mirrors your personality, who’s free of unpleasant
odors, who’s incapable of contracting disease or developing illness, who also
never ages unless you want them to appear old, who solely responds to your
touch, who’s always full of lively and interesting conversation and information
pertinent to your life, and so much more. Can you even begin to imagine a
companion who looks the way you want them to, says things in a manner you want
them said, does what you want them to do whenever you request it, but doesn’t
think, talk back, argue, complain, or resist. Is it a perfect partner or an
artificial human companion?
Here are a little more than a dozen technologies that can
help you understand how close we are to being able to construct a very
sophisticated artificial human. Just try to imagine how these technologies
could be integrated to form an entity that suits your needs for companionship.
Security Protocols
Eye (retina) recognition software – security protocol
Fingerprint recognition software – security protocol,
responds only to your touch
Facial recognition software – security protocol
Voice activation and recognition software – security
protocol
Anti-hacking software – to protect against malware and
high-tech criminals
Product Features and Highlights
Prosthetics – breasts, implants, moldings, masks.
Energy efficiency – standby mode
Motion sensors – attentive from the moment you walk in the
door
Temperature controlled – cool and warm settings
Dynamic human interaction programming – to profile the
user’s personality and to adapt its
settings to that personality, to form the
appearance of a “real connection”
Stain-resistance
Rechargeable batteries – solar, electric, or hybrid
Program encoding
Heat sensors, smoke detectors, and carbon monoxide
detectors – responds to environmental
threats
Hypoallergenic – sanitation
Hydraulics – mating function
Antibacterial surface – sanitation, mating function
Downloading of memories and owner preferences to new bodies
– shells
Built-in cellular phone service – advanced activation
feature, communication system
4G wireless connection to the web to access the vast
reservoir of human knowledge,
information, and trivia – provides lively and
informative conversation specific to your interests and lifestyle choices
These are surely not a complete list of technologies that
can be used for the design and manufacture of ideal artificial human
companions, but they are an essential list of product features that every
artificial companion should be included with, since they are essential to the
user. What other technologies can you think of that you would like your ideal
companion to be created with or made available as a product feature?
A.I. Robot, a Demonstration
Here’s one example of a robot
that’s sophisticated enough to demonstrate how some of these technologies have
been used to construct prototypes of ideal artificial human companions. You’ll
probably be surprised at how familiar the personality of this robot is to you
since it can easily be misconstrued as a relative, friend, professor, lover, or
neighbor. Social programming and computer programming for social interaction are
not so different from one another. In fact, they are so hard to separate it’s
not easy to tell them apart and this robot shows just how difficult it is to identify
the differences.
Before you watch the video I
just want to bring your attention to a very quick observation. At
about 2 minutes into the video a woman talks about how the robots will
disappoint us if we are looking for “human connection.” She also asks, “Do we
want to make them in such a way that we will love them? Because they will be
pretending to love us.”
This
is a very interesting comment coming from a woman mainly because I think women
tend to be the victims of deception, exploitation, and infidelity more often
than men. How often in a woman’s life will she discover that she’s been lied
to? Or how many times will it occur that a man will feign a genuine “human
connection?” I also think it’s quite common for men and women to sometimes
“pretend to love” one another especially when the relationship is strained from
conflict or when the love begins to fade. So how different is a human
relationship from a relationship with an artificial human companion,
really?
If there are problems with this video, click here.
The Office of Human Likeness – A New
Government Agency
For the wealthy and celebrities, possession of an
artificial human companion could become a status symbol. Remember the early
adopters who helped to popularize the cell phone, the computer, and the Internet.
The artificial human companion might actually replace or be included among such
items as the BMW, Rolex watches, certain brands of designer jeans, and high-end
jewelry – a lifestyle accessory for the rich and famous, but soon to be a
widespread and popular phenomena. While this and all of the forgoing material
in this article have been pluses in favor of artificial human companions, there
is still one more issue we should try to cover very briefly.
Unfortunately, there are some legal ramifications that are
likely to become part of the discussion for and against the design,
manufacture, and sale of artificial human companions similar to those issues
concerning celebrity photos, pirated movies, music, and other forms of
intellectual property. We’ve all at some time heard about a crime ring that
centers on fake Rolex’s, stolen luxury cars, pirated music and DVD’s, and
identity theft. But what about the artificial human companion that looks like
Beyoncé, Brad Pitt, or President Obama? What laws will be necessary to help
protect human likeness from pirated copies of the real thing?
In regard to artificial human companions, their designers,
and manufacturers, there will likely be concerns over the right of every person
to own, copyright, or trademark their uniquely genetic, biological, or
phenol-typical human likeness (image). Like how some public figures have to be
sure to control a Twitter account, Facebook page, URL, and other Internet tools
in order to protect their name and guard against others who may want to
impersonate them on-line, similarly every person on Earth will have to guard
against the use of their human likeness in regard to the design and
construction of artificial human companions.
The process can consist of a series of forms and attached
photographs of you filed with the proper authorities in cases of infringement.
In order to achieve this purpose, I propose a new government agency to be known
as the Office of Human Likeness. This office can be established in the same
department as that of Copyrights, Patents, or Trademarks and its sole function
will be to keep the files of every person who has decided to protect their
human likeness against the deliberate or accidental infringement by designers
and manufacturers of artificial human companions. I mean, the last thing a girl
wants is to imagine what an ex-boyfriend does at night with an artificial human
companion he’s had created in her human likeness.
Filing her human likeness with the Office of Human Likeness
will protect her from such a humiliating experience by providing her with recourses
such as the right to bring a suit to court or the right to collect retroactive
royalty payments for the use of her image without her foreknowledge and
consent.
Some other salient points in relation to the legal issues
involved with artificial human companions and the human images they bare are
things like licensing contracts for replication rights (artificial human
multiplicity) awarded to designers and manufacturers, crimes committed by
artificial human companions, the payment of royalties, lawsuits concerning
infringements over human likenesses, prohibiting the sale, transport, and
manufacture of artificial human companions with unique human identifiers such
as birthmarks and fingerprints.
Conclusion
Now that we’ve covered many of the essential components necessary
to a discussion about artificial human companions, their construction, and any
legal concerns that would arise from their manufacture and sale, I’d like to
made a few final comments.
Earlier I said that the artist is a demanding personality
and that their chief talent is rearranging common elements into new
combinations or in taking existing elements and turning them into new forms. In
the case of constructing artificial human companions, the creative impulse of
the artist changes from inventing new realities for others to perceive into
designing a companion from which they solely benefit from the pleasure they
have manufactured according to their own values and specifications.
Furthermore, the artist can wildly create the artificial
human companion with total abandon and without shame because the sensibility
they will be seeking to please is their own and not another’s sense of beauty
or ugliness. Unlike the art that they are attempting to showcase for the
public, the artificial human companion can be a secret creative act and
invention that will serve their own preferences in the realm of human
relationships.
I hope the ideas of Anton LaVey were insightful and played
a role in educating you as to the underlying concept of artificiality that
serves as the base for an argument in favor of artificial human companions. Moreover,
I thought it would be amusing to try to present the creative possibilities of
constructing an artificial human companion in order to communicate how the
various features and functions are already available to us thanks to
technology.
Lastly, I’ll bet you were somewhat surprised to find out
how the media has played a role in shaping our opinions about artificial human
companions by consistently portraying images of them before us. Sometimes the
images and stereotypes are benign and at other times they are totally
horrifying, but either way the images themselves are desensitizing us to their
existence, thereby making their future mainstream acceptance into our lives much
more possible.
So where do you fall in the discussion on artificial human
companions? What are your arguments for or against artificial human companions
as an alternative to human relationships?
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Related Music:
Automaton
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Marc
