Against the Machine (on the unmaking of humanity)
Against the Machine is by writer Paul Kingsnorth, now as interested in his newfound Christian faith as the natural world, this is kind of a blasting of both philosophies together, an almost terrifying account of where we could end up, if people don’t retain their personal boundaries.
Of course (like electricity), the Internet can be used for good. But we’re talking here about ‘big Internet’ – youngsters who can’t be apart from their smartphones for more than a few minutes, bots controlling what we see and how we learn, what we buy and how we vote.
Internet billionaires controlling what we watch and know, big media, AI-gone-wrong, techno-capitalism, and a refusal to see the link between our survival and both spirituality. And a respect that Nature is more important.
There is no real ‘connection’ online, like there is with two men mumbling conversations in an old-fashioned pub over a pint of beer.
Don’t hand over your mind, money or beliefs to techno billionaires who want to track your every move, so they can sell something to you, or tell you how to live, eat, vote or pray. And don’t be a passive spectator of other people’s lives, while not remembering to live your own.
The Internet and its consequences have been a disaster for the human race. This is an extreme statement, but I’m in an extreme mood. Paul Kingsnorth
This is the most powerful and important book I have read in years. It is simply brilliant. This book should be required reading not only for politicians, technocrats, teachers and all who help shared our world. But for every still-living soul in this terrifying age of the Machine. Iain McGilchrist
Kingsnorth has done something extraordinary. He has captured the spiritual crisis of our time in language so compelling, I could not put the book down. Mary Harrington
Who wrote this book?
Paul Kingsnorth is an English writer (nominated for the Booker Prize) who lives in the west of Ireland, where he writes on how faith and nature collide.
He has been described in various terms (his favourite is ‘environmental activist turned apocalyptic mystic’). But two things he has been called (to inspire you to read the book!) are ‘furiously gifted’ (The Washington Post) and ‘England’s greatest living writer (Aris Roussinos). High praise indeed!
Find Paul’s writings on Substack.
