Behemoths - Is Resistance an Option?

On Data Centers- The Sprawl of the Needless and the Heedless- Brian Keeler

What a dystopian and run-a-mok disaster is being foisted on us!  Not like lemmings over a cliff willingly but more like hapless boaters sucked into a whirlpool.  Just like the men in ships in the Odyssey, Ulysses scuttled  a whirlpool with his returning Ithacans. In our metaphorical vortex, we may not have such a homecoming as Ulysses. More on that later. We are being force-fed what certainly seems like a prescription for a techno nightmare.  The headlines are replete with how data centers, AI, and all the related industries and the consequences are upon us. Who needs self-driving taxis and all the rest?  Our governments seem inept and woefully unprepared to cope with anything resembling governance.

 A painting by the author of a Philadelphia cityscape- titled "Resistance is Futile". The ad campaign on the billboard shown here reflects the the theme of this essay- to resist or aquiesce.

As a veteran of the opposition to other aspects of industrial onslaught upon our earth, such as fracking and the fossil fuels etc this current tech obsession seems like a ratcheted up version  that is beyond the scope of dysfunctionality.  Who asked for this really?  Was there a vote, a conversation?  Hence, in my opinion, all this obsession seems really out of control.  In previous efforts to thwart fracking it was characterized as, "a floodgate that has been opened."   That was apt as it was not just one industry but an entire group of industries that are related that came along with fracking.

Now this new technological confluence is ballooning even more.   Years ago, back in the late 1970's after TMI, I became attuned to the dangers of nuclear power and wrote some columns in opposition to it. Now that nuclear energy has reared its ugly head again, after moratoriums, it brings up new concerns.  And the moratoriums and regulations were in place for good reason- after seeing disasters like the Chernobyl incident and the Fukushima accident in Japan in 2011.  Now with these voracious data centers on the rise- they are justifying nuclear power as a necessary supportive industry of data centers.  Two horrendous industries in cahoots in other words- and indeed a new open floodgate of colossal scope is opening.  

There is fortunately a lot of pushback. And it is good to see.  Even in Pennsylvania in Bradford County, where I hail from, there is opposition coming from surprising quarters- even from those who think the natural gas industry is a Godsend. I attended a town hall meeting in Athens last weekend.  The meeting was moderated by Pam Hemann of Meshoppen, PA who is running for the PA State Representative position that has been held by Tina Pickett for many years.    Pam has seen the deleterious effects of fracking.  A few years back her great grandfather's 110 year old barn was razed to make a wider road for fracking traffic. People she knows in Mehoopany and Dimmock have had their water ruined as well, as a result of fracking. Now she's making a stand against data centers.  Pam is encouraged by her neighbors throughout the northeast. She is especially encouraged by young people who seem to view data centers warily. 

There are no data centers planned in her home area, Wyoming County (yet) but a 600 acre facility is looming in Asylum township - near Towanda.  And as Pam notes, these centers usually come in clusters.  So, if the plans were to proceed, we could expect an 800 acre monstrosity there as well.  And as it has been pointed out- these behemoths suck up ground water. they're voarcious in energy consumption as well. Hence, the floodgate of disastrous industries is also part of data centers.

There are the aesthetic or even the spiritual aspects that should concern us as well.  The loss of property values is one upshot that comes up. Who would consider these data centers a beautiful addition to the Susquehanna region?  Spiritually, what are the connotations of meddling with Earth forces and violating eco systems on a global scale?  Obviously- this cannot be good.

There is the sanctity and beauty of a place, (like those beautiful views along the Susquehanna or the Finger Lakes that I have long painted) in a pristine state or at least in an unsullied agrarian land should be honored not defiled .   The basic inhuman aspect or the devoidness of humanity in all this techno stuff  is another frightening part. With the materialist and their techno onslaught, nothing is sacred and all is up for grabs.

Above- The beauty of the landscapes of the Finger Lakes- in this painting by the author overlooking Seneca Lake near Lodi,NY should be honored not defiled.

In her talk, Pam mentioned how our cell phones and so many aspects of our lives seem to be hopelessly in this vortex of tech involvement. We could say it is almost ubiquitous at this point. I would even use a metaphor from the recent movie The Odyssey- the pull of tech is a virtual  giant whirlpool sucking in anything and everything. The two monsters, (from Homer's Odyssey)   lurking in the cliffs above, Scylla and Charybdis made easy pickings of Ulysses' men in their boats below. Like them we are sitting ducks for these voracious techno giants. 

My question is; is all the sacrifice, and loss of safety and life on the planet even remotely worth it? If the cost is to see our beautiful land, air, water and general humanity all violated it renders the benefits tech hardly worth it.  At some point in the future will there be a level of balance and rationality restored? 

One easily can wonder about how this reliance on tech is really beneficial.  For example, AI as an aid to writing has already compromised teaching and those writing.  Students today are challenged enough in the learning process and now we may be fostering a generation that knows not how to compose or articulate anything.  Just push a tab and let AI do it.

And what about the ethics or morality of consigning our lives, decisions and creativity over to a warehouse of computers? This was brought up in a feature article in the Financial Times Weekend. That excellent article by a priest and philospher, Juanjo Gasull revealed some of the banality and dearth of ethics not so much in the machines but in the motivation of the men behind AI. He was invited by Anthropic to conference in San Fransico to adivise on the morality. He says, "I didn't want to talk about Claude,, I wanted talk about accountablity," And as he should and as they should also.

We are all complicit to some extent and it is hard to be a purist in opposition. It is like global warming- the use of all these plastics, fossil fuels and carbon producing vehicles are all choking the earth.  The fellow that does our website showed me within minutes how a new website could be formed to help in my effort to stop data centers. This was done with AI.  It showed a visual that looked like a painting or an illustration for sci-fi film depicting a huge data center looming over the Susquehanna.  Well, the irony of using AI to defeat AI is apparent.  This underscores how entwined in the web or caught in the currents of the tech whirlpool we are.

In New York State the situation is similar.  They are trying to put a data center into a site overlooking Cayuga Lake at Lansing.  I've been following it in the news and the process has not been pretty.  Those promoting this data center are touting the  supposed economic benefits as a justification.  The process in local government has been fraught with unnecessary  and puerile stuff.  Cartoons have been posted online with disparaging depictions of elected officials.  It is uncertain if the moratorium just put in place by governor Kathy Hochul will prevent this data center. 

What to do?  Make a stand, protest,  put up a yard sign, or  live off the grid perhaps?  Seems impractical. Yet with a global ecosystem collapse or techno war with drones and worse- maybe not so far fetched or futile after all.