The Metaverse: A Brave New World or The Matrix
For Beginners
29 Oct
It's that time of the year...it is Halloween.
And for many seeking to find some stimulation
arising from the emotion of "fear," we have a great candidate to
distract us from COVID and politics: Facebook is going full "metaverse,"
rebranding itself as Meta.
Meta? And a Metaverse? That sounds like something
Neo was told to unplug and avoid, right? What is the metaverse that Facebook's
Mark Zuckerberg is embracing?
Some define the "metaverse" as
"a virtual-reality space in which users can interact with a
computer-generated environment and other users." But can something as
broad and expansive as "metaverse" be easily defined at this point of
our experience with it? And in this vague definition, are there things to fear
as much as something that goes bump in the night?
You betcha.
Facebook is betting its future on this virtual
and augmented reality where users can live a virtual life through avatars. Why
would one of the biggest corporations (yes, Facebook is a business, operating
for profit) rebrand itself when it has a virtual (sorry for the pun) monopoly
on the social media platforms?
Facebook has been roundly
criticized--especially of late--for failing to heed its own research that its
platforms (including Instagram) can cause exceptional harm to people...and even
democracy. So is rebranding an attempt to change a term like "cancer"
to "cell abnormalities"? It's more than a name--and this has been in
the planning stages for some time. Meta is the next step--like moving from
painkillers to heroin.
And...lest we forget... it's always about
money.
As noted, Facebook is a corporation. And
corporations have one motive--to be profitable. Mark Zuckerberg is one of the wealthiest
people on the planet. Before you think a terrible haircut and a black t-shirt
gives him the agency to pass himself off as an everyday sort of person, let's
remember his track record and how Facebook and Instagram have impacted our
world.
Lies have become virtual truths. Hate has been
fueled by virtual circles built on falsehoods. It's what people do...when they
join cults. They lose all independent reason and logic. Ethics, morals, and
empathy are the first victims of online mob slaughter. Elections have become
something more reminiscent of Medieval jousting events. Shouting over others is
the enhanced skill--listening has essentially...and virtually...died.
So you ask why be frightened about a world
where people live in space created by Facebook using avatars? Because this
world of virtual reality will likely become a reality for billions.
And that is scary.
Zuckerberg can be described in many ways, but
he is accomplished at creating products that serve as magnets for billions.
Meta will ultimately have billions of users.
And that frightens me.
This supposedly brave new world where people
interact using a virtual "safe" space only fuels the continued path
away from any humane world of interacting face-to-face with empathy, compassion,
and justice. If you think what you're experiencing in this world of heads-down,
phone-focused, non-human interaction is frightening, just wait till you walk
into a room and see people--your children...grandchildren...even your
spouse...people you love--completely immersed (one of the critical terms
Zuckerberg is using to describe "Meta") in the Meta world. And if you
want to interact with them--put on your headset, headphones and buckle
up.
This meta-universe...beyond
universe...frightens me. Our culture has continued a rapid slide into a dark
place where reality is not welcomed. A space to immerse yourself in virtual
reality is precisely what social media addicts need...it's heroin for the
virtual soul.
Feed the beast? Meta serves up a hot platter
of virtual drugs.
And who does Meta target? Younger
people. Facebook's users are aging and evidently not as profitable if you
do the Facebook money math. Meta gives them a way to hook kids--just like
cigarettes did decades ago--at a young age.
Yes...the pandemic is scary. But Meta as
envisioned by Zuckerberg?
Meta is frightening.