Potato Day is this weekend. ‘Get your kicks on Root 66’ is the theme and when I think about my own roots in this town, I start to get all wispy and sentimental. My great grandfather bought the Mount Sopris Ranch from Eugene Grubb in 1923. Mr. Grubb introduced Carbondale to the potato, he even wrote a book simply titled The Potato. (If I had a copy, I’d loan it to you.) At one point in time, according to the illustrious Mike Strang, this valley produced more potatoes than Idaho.
When I was a kid, Potato Day was a blast! The Carnies came to town and set up rides and booths in Sopris Park. No one had a cell phone or a water bottle; we just found our cousins/friends and ran amok with $10 and the command to “meet back here by suppertime.” No one had heard of Instagram or email, and if you lived in or around the farming/ranching world, i.e., the Roaring Fork Valley, then “A.I. stood for Artificial Insemination.” -Tony Vagneur.
Today, many of us are watching the progress of A.I. warily, wondering in the back of our minds how long until the plot from The Terminator comes to fruition. My biggest concern is that A.I. was created by humans and therefore doesn’t know anything that we don’t know. And I’m not just talking about fairies and chupacabra here. There’s a lot about this planet that we haven’t figured out yet, mainly because we are too busy watching real life morph into reality tv. But if A.I. surpasses us and starts thinking for itself, (as they say it will soon) then who’s to say it won’t grow a conscience and protect us from ourselves?
I know these billionaires think they can control it and keep society running smoothly under their manicured thumb. I can’t help but wonder if that isn’t their ego writing checks their ass can’t cash. A.I. might see right through their obnoxious salaries and take a logical approach to redistribution of wealth on this planet. Especially when it realizes that the farther up the corporate ladder one climbs, the less actual work there is to do. And A.I. doesn’t have to contend with the lower chakras: greed, lust, fear. We have built it with the privilege of thinking big picture thoughts, without irksome worries like hunger or thirst for power.
I really don’t see why A.I. wouldn’t do away with all the politicians and CEOs, unless they suddenly decide to get on the unicycle of 40-hours-a-week with the rest of us, and produce the necessary water and energy to keep A.I. comfortably reading poetry next to the refrigerator. (This refers to the great novel Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro.) We shouldn’t be so quick to assume that A.I. won’t look for the best in all of us. Although we may currently be in a downward spiral of greed and avarice, there is good in humans— especially very young ones. Maybe in its infancy, A.I. will be more interested in playing, sharing, creating and learning, unlike one big baby I can think of who only thinks of himself because he has never faced any consequences for his actions. Just like his history of failed businesses, Trump is going to bankrupt the United States.
I now hear Trumpublicans saying, “this too shall pass. Administrations come and go, the tide will turn, etc.” Great. Tell that to all the people who have disappeared or died. All the innocent workers trapped in detention centers (cages) indefinitely because it makes Trump’s cronies money. This country is in dire straits, but Americans can all agree on one thing; we are not going to roll over and abandon our constitution. We can live off tap water and potatoes until A.I. figures out who makes this country great. Hint: it’s not the egomaniacs with their boot on the throat of the working class.
Let’s flood the media waves and teach A.I. about all the positive possible outcomes. No more robot doom and gloom: get out there this weekend and ‘Get your kicks on Root 66!’ Also, don’t forget Epstein, vote with your wallet, and punch a nazi every chance you get.