Power is indeed on display, but what is behind the scenes? Who organizes the show? With what tool? And how does power change? Are we still in the 20th century as a political leader or has something changed? Who is in control today and sets the direction? All these questions are answered by a brilliant essay written by Giuliano Da Empoli, a respected essayist, advisor and professor in Paris. Predator time. A new world force seen up close (Einaudi, 124 pages, 14 euros) is both concise and interesting and a pleasure to read. His previous book, the novel The Magician of the Kremlin, was translated into thirty languages and brought to cinemas by director Olivier Assayas, with Jude Law as Vladimir Putin. It tells the story of the rise of the new Russian Tsar as seen through the eyes of its spin doctor Vadim Baranov, a former reality show producer with a background in avant-garde theater. It was already a sign of the need for a good script to conquer the imperial throne of Russia or America. We Italians are at the forefront, Silvio Berlusconi is a businessman and television personality, a truly spectacular talent for communication.
Of course, the event, on close inspection, revealed aspects that viewers and voters in general did not expect. The sensational splash page tells what it was really like to have a trial at the Glass Palace, the UN headquarters in New York. Leaders, advisors, and bodyguards roamed the skyscrapers. Inside, the corridors and rooms were narrow, and among the various delegates there was a code of honor popular in seventeenth-century Italy. Fra Cristoforo converted after killing a foreigner in a duel over a dispute over who should give way to the other. In the Palace the guns stay in their holsters, but you can always push each other while glaring at each other.
However, the classroom is a masterpiece by Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer. Spacious, welcoming, with a hidden tropical charm. The remaining speeches in history have been read here, sorry: delivered: Kennedy, Arafat, Che Guevara. Here Khrushchev took off his shoes and slammed them on the table in front of his seat. But have you ever wondered why the camera primarily focuses on the podium? Because in a class, there are usually around fifteen people. Decisions are made elsewhere.
Let’s add one section. The new man, in politics, was a “Borgian”, a definition derived from Niccolò Machiavelli’s The Prince. The leader Cesare Borgia, said the Florentine secretary, nurtured the dream of uniting Italy and also considered his allied masters an obstacle. A good excuse to invite them to celebrate with a sumptuous meal followed by the strangulation and execution of their friends. Everything is perfect, according to Machiavelli: “For it must be noted that men must be either pampered or quenched: since they take revenge for light offences, they cannot commit serious ones; so that the offense committed against a man must be done in such a way that he does not fear revenge”. In short, when in doubt, it is better to eliminate a real or possible opponent. Something similar was seen when, more recently, autocrats such as Saudi prince Mohammad bin Salman or young Salvadoran president Nayib Bukele came to power. The first, by forceful methods, has become the most powerful man in his country, which he wants to make strong and free from fundamentalism. The second, with equally powerful methods, has turned Salvador into the safest state in the Western Hemisphere, surpassing Canada. A person is “turned off”, but the end justifies the means. The “Borgians” of our time are an immoral people. How it works: “They promise to solve society’s real problems: crime, immigration, the cost of living.” The target is a society that has been let down by the elites and is now convinced that existing regulations, in no way guaranteeing freedom, are instead a “massive fraud” that only serves to maintain power, oppressing citizens and voters. The far right has “Borgian” characteristics: think Trump. The left has no convincing proposals. A bit of rhetoric about democracy under threat, fear of fascism and campaigns to protect minorities, real or so-called. From Empoli: “In the United States, lawyers are the most hated category.” In the Democratic Party, the two professions often coincide: “How surprising is it that the party of lawyers is overwhelmed? That a platform designed entirely by lawyers, centered on the defense of democratic procedure and respect for minority rights, has been swept away by the accusations made by the Borgias: the high cost of living, immigration, class contempt.” Elementary, Watson.
Therefore, traditional politics is not healthy. It seems impossible, but there is something even worse to come. Up there, in the sky, birds of prey are preparing for the predatory hour, when they will capture the entire community in one fell swoop. They have their nest in Silicon Valley but are able, with one click, to reach any corner of the world. The vultures, for now, are allies of the “Borgians,” having been favored in every way by Democratic administrations, including Joe Biden. They don’t like to show off too much. They handed over the stage to politicians. But they were prepared to give orders. Digital conquerors, from Elon Musk to Mark Zuckerberg, to the powerful CEO of Google, have decided to sweep away the old political elite. Birds of prey are eccentric characters who are used to making their own rules. In many cases, freedom and privacy appear to have been overestimated by the colonialists. Better a little freedom and more security. The fears of surveillance capitalism theorists seem prehistoric to them. A complicated game is being played right now. Large predictive analytics companies, based on big data, work with states in the US and beyond. They will join soon. And politicians are no longer useful, except, perhaps, for mediocre staging. Meanwhile, on the sidelines, the champion of conquerors is warming up: Artificial Intelligence. From Empoli: “There is nothing democratic or transparent about the power of AI. More than artificial, AI is a form of Authoritarian Intelligence, which centralizes data and turns it into power. Everything is in total darkness, under the control of a handful of entrepreneurs and scientists who ride the tiger in the hope of not being devoured by it.” In fact, even the inventor did not know how Authoritarian Intelligence makes decisions; it could be a “Borgian” and there would be problems for the predators too. From Empoli: “AI exploits chaos, but in return it promises a new order. Rational governance of society, decisions made based on data: in theory, this seems like a technocrat’s dream.” In practice, for “the AI kingdom to come, knowledge must be replaced by faith.” AI cannot be considered only rationally, as we have written. “The technologists’ proposal amounts to a return to the pre-Enlightenment era, to a magical and incomprehensible world ruled by AI that we will pray to be like the gods of old.” Or, we might add, things could play out like in Stanislaw Lem’s fairy tale Golem XIV: the machine, having reached the peak of its development, becomes philosophical. They question themselves about what reality is, about their future, about nature, about creation. Males are negligible, like all lower species.
The author’s final point of view is suggestive. The first jobs affected by machines were manual jobs: workers and partly couriers. Now the time has come for office workers, civil servants and freelancers. Doctors, accountants and lawyers must follow the machine’s instructions and justify any deviation from the correct path.
Only the most powerful have room to maneuver until they too are condemned to “forget the posthuman matrix.” This will also close political parables, from spectacle to complete exit from the stage.
