Off Topic: People Are Really This Pathetic?

[Kernewek]

We don’t really need to discuss the rather on-the-nose parallels to the Matrix film (and the metaphor has been tainted by the ‘MRA’) but a lot of people choose the blue pill.

Or, in the language of memes, “Always Has Been”.

Or, in the language of horror, this is just a similar outlet as the story to  Stephen King’s ‘Misery’. Arguably less harmful in some ways.

[Neurotic Guy]

Cost aside, to each their own... I mean, real or not, how many of us have an emotional attachment to something? We are in sports fandom after all, yet we have an emotional attachment to this that doesn't (for the most part) interact personally with us.

What about movies, is it pathetic to get an emotional response while watching one? I mean, that's not real... what about books? And so on and so forth. What about pets that are basically trained to love us?

In the end, I couldn't care less about what people do with their time if it helps them feel less lonely in this world, as fake as it may be.

But yeah I'm sure there's a wide range of users and it can get creepy quite fast, but I'm not going to knock the technology.

In the end, whatever... I find it better than used panties vending machines.

I think I’m mostly with you on this.  I don’t understand it fully but entertainment, connection, and emotional investment all happen in various forms, human sources and non-living sources.  Many here convince their children to get very invested in a being called Santa - made up (artificial?) person.  Billions across the world commit themselves to belief in an invisible Supreme Being - spend parts of each day or week investing in worship of that being.  People like me think they’re all mistaken, that none of it is real (other than the feeling, the commitment, the connection).  I think we all know for sure that at least some of the believers are worshipping something that is not a real being. As in, they can’t all be right.

The difference with AI may just be that AI followers as referenced here are aware (who knows, maybe they’re not) that the connection they are making isn’t with a real person. But in some ways - I’m not sure that matters all that much.  I hope it’s serving a helpful purpose for them.

[Phantom255x]

There actually is a small portion of the population out there (primarily Asia) where someone legit marries a virtual character (like anime or cartoon), or doll/figurine. No joke. And it's not just that, but they interact with them as if they are an actual person, and act "normal" like that in society too.

Here's one example.

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/24/business/akihiko-kondo-fictional-character-relationships.html

But there's COUNTLESS others out there. I saw one where someone wrote an IG post actually proposing his love to an anime character figure and both of them wearing wedding rings. The caption even said something along the lines of, "we may have our issues, and you may hate me for certain things, but I still love you to the very end and I know the feeling is mutual" which was also cringe lol

[Roy H.]

There actually is a small portion of the population out there (primarily Asia) where someone legit marries a virtual character (like anime or cartoon), or doll/figurine. No joke. And it's not just that, but they interact with them as if they are an actual person, and act "normal" like that in society too.

Here's one example.

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/24/business/akihiko-kondo-fictional-character-relationships.html

But there's COUNTLESS others out there. I saw one where someone wrote an IG post actually proposing his love to an anime character figure and both of them wearing wedding rings. The caption even said something along the lines of, "we may have our issues, and you may hate me for certain things, but I still love you to the very end and I know the feeling is mutual" which was also cringe lol

Sounds like mental illness to me.

[gouki88]

RE: title question - yes!

The more concerning area of this for me is the AI / deepfaking of illicit material that is done without the consent of whomever is being used as the base for it. There have been lots of instances of fake p**n of women who have never even made the content, let alone consented to it being published online. Dark invasive stuff