Philosopher Richard David Precht in conversation with Harald Welzer. Many believe that the future will be worse than the present. But isn't utopian thinking urgently needed for the challenges of our time?
To the interview (3sat.de / in German)
Description:
Social psychologist and bestselling author Harald Welzer discusses visions for a society in transition and ways to achieve a social and sustainable economy. The digital promises from Silicon Valley already seem antiquated.
The year 2020 has taught us how fragile humanity can be. Worries about jobs, security and the climate were joined by fears of a deadly pandemic. Was everything better and more manageable in the past? Many long for a return to the spirit of optimism of the 1950s and 1960s or no longer develop any visions of the future at all. What, asks Richard David Precht, are the consequences for a society that is already beginning to lose its inner cohesion?
Harald Welzer believes that our Western society, with the highest standard of freedom and living of all time, has "no right to pessimism. But he, too, misses encouraging visions. Precht counters that our reality has become highly complex, so that those responsible today tend to stagnate for fear of escalation. Everything is connected to everything else. Some people cling unwaveringly to systems that have proven themselves so far - such as constant growth - while younger people in particular have recognized that serious changes are inevitable - such as the conservation of resources. The absurd thing, says Welzer, is that the will to change may now be triggered by a fearsome virus, rather than by a changing awareness of what will be necessary in the future. On the other hand, Precht fears that the pandemic, with its financial burdens, will have to serve as the reason why some ecological measures are currently being cancelled or postponed.
Will Silicon Valley save the day? Certainly not, say Welzer and Precht. After all, securing the future in purely technical terms is of little use if society itself does not develop further. If the promises of salvation made by technology, especially in the area of digitization and artificial intelligence, are not accompanied by a corresponding social vision, society will be further divided. Welzer sees the technological optimism of Silicon Valley, where people dream of conquering the universe instead of dealing with earthly problems, as a step backward to the 1950s. Technology alone would not help. Therefore, according to Precht, all utopian thinking must always be based on the human being, his manifold needs and relationships. Only in this way can utopias be helpful for the future.
Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)