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#asknostr I'm looking for a book which offers an argument for why the internet is "good" in the sense that it advances human flourishing. I want an argument that doesn't rely on:

- Cooked utilitarian metrics (consumption, access to services, literacy rates)

- Unreflective appeals to individual freedom, self-expression and authenticity

A teleological argument (what are humans for and how does the internet advance that purpose) or an ontological argument (what is good about humans and how does the internet amplify that) would be ideal.

Globe99 7mo ago 💬 1

I mean... are literacy rates "cooked"? I think one can find a number of utilitarian metrics with solid footing that would advance the case for the human benefits of the internet.

I mean, given the fact that emergency services now utilize internet-based telephony... You could start there. How many lives have been saved that otherwise wouldn't have because telecom networks allow rapid response to emergencies?

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Discussion

hodlbod 7mo ago

Utilitarian measurements are useful if 1. they are properly anchored to transcendent goods and 2. not viewed in isolation from context. They're something, just not the whole package.