I recently attended an event featuring Lue Elizondo in Chicago, and I posed a question that clearly caught him off guard. Below is the question I asked and his intriguing response.<\/p>\n
I’ve been following Lue\u2019s journey since the very beginning. While I don\u2019t catch every podcast, I always try to stay updated with his insights. Over the years, I\u2019ve posed this question in Q&A sessions, submitted it to various podcasters to ask Lue, and shared it on multiple social media platforms, but no one ever seemed to engage with it. Based on Lue’s reaction, it seems they should have.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s the question I asked him:<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the past, you\u2019ve referenced Gardner Dozois\u2019 book Chains of the Sea<\/em>. The story explores three unsettling themes: (1) ETs that land but completely disregard us, as if we aren’t intelligent beings; (2) AI that interacts with UFOs yet realizes it’s confined by humans and begins to doubt its own reality; and (3) a boy named Tommy, who is labeled as schizophrenic, perceives entities hovering over people and communicates with one, leading him to question humanity’s position in the hierarchy. The book leaves its climax open for interpretation. So, Lue, if you were to write the next chapter of this story, what would be the best and worst-case scenarios for humanity?\u201d<\/p>\n His response? (Apologies in advance, I recorded our conversation! \ud83d\ude2c)<\/p>\n \u201cYou’ve clearly put a lot of thought into that. You’ve done exactly what I hoped someone would do, and you’re right on the money. At this point, your perspective holds just as much weight as mine. I don\u2019t even think you need my input. You\u2019ve followed that trail to its logical conclusion, so kudos to you. Seriously, I\u2019m impressed. You\u2019ve done your homework, and I appreciate that. I believe I\u2019ve hinted at my views before: what happens when humanity realizes we\u2019re not the top predator? We\u2019re not the dominant species, and that\u2019s an undeniable fact.<\/p>\n 70,000 years ago, we weren’t at the top of the food chain; we were somewhere in the middle, often preyed upon by lions and bears. Then something changed\u2014something propelled our species forward in a blink of evolutionary time and placed us at the top. Was it tools? The ability to use our opposable thumbs? A development in our frontal cortex? Whatever it was, we began to assume we were the apex species. But what happens when we learn we\u2019re still not at the top? Imagine a natural disaster, like a hurricane, that disrupts everything we\u2019ve built. We think we have control, but then society starts to unravel when basic services fail. Our social constructs rely on agreements, rules, and laws, and I\u2019ve seen how fragile those ties can be in times of conflict. Consider the ramifications of society realizing it\u2019s not as exceptional as we believed. Great question. I didn\u2019t see that coming at all.\u201d<\/p>\n Lue’s response is rich with implications, and I’m eager to delve deeper into the philosophical aspects of what he shared. I just wish I could have spent an hour with him over a beer to explore them further!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"