Philosophy Spotlight: BH Ogmios

”We know that the people living on Earth have nothing to do with the tyrants who exiled our ancestors, a crime which happened over a century ago. In all likelihood, the world has forgotten us entirely. But our war is not motivated by a desire for justice. We invade for conquest. I can admit that my desire for power drives me, and know that everyone else wants the same for themselves.”

-Thrax, Mech Designer of BH-Ogmios

Inspiration: Plato

In Plato’s Republic, Thrasymachus says justice is defined by what serves the interests of the powerful. At first, this definition seems to affirm “might makes right”. It is just that the powerful dominate, and whoever seizes power has the right to determine what is just for their subjects. Socrates presses this point, pushing Thrasymachus to concede that an abusive tyrant does not act justly in any real sense, so what he really means is that the tyrant gets to act unjustly while those following him (serving the tyrant’s interests) are acting justly.

This concession makes Thrasymachus’ view seem like a cynical take on justice that dismisses it as a lie told by those in power to keep their subjects in line. Rulers make laws that serve their own interests, weak people follow laws out of fear and tell themselves that they are noble for doing so. 

Mech invasion in Sunyata

Instead of dismissing this view as naive cynicism, Socrates sniffs out the underlying view of justice that motivates it, which he sees as the biggest threat to real justice. Thrasymachus believes there is no justification for following laws, except insofar as you are compelled by force, because he does not believe there are good reasons to act ethically instead of pursuing your own desires. People who behave ethically for its own sake, rather than out of fear of punishment, are being fooled by those in power to sacrifice their self-interest for no good reason. So what Thrasymachus ultimately believes is that the only good thing is getting what we want, and he idolizes the life of a tyrant because he is able to maximally satisfy his desires through power.

Socrates’ critique of the tyrannical mindset is both extremely demanding and surprisingly modest. He methodically describes what must be true in order to reject its definition of the good/just, noting that justice must be its own reward independent of any other consequences. Even more challenging, if justice is the system we use to determine moral behavior, it must always be the case that it is better to act justly rather than unethically, no matter what the potential costs or benefits are. The most destitute just person must have a preferable life than the most successful tyrant, because acting justly must always be what we should do even if it means sacrificing our entire self-interest.

After setting the bar this high, Socrates admits he cannot convincingly argue for this sense of justice, but instead leaves it to the reader to think through the reasoning themselves, optimistically hoping that someday philosophy will be able to demonstrate the argument he could not form. The philosophy for BH-Ogmios is an homage to this challenge, demonstrating the tyrannical value set that moral philosophy still has difficulty refuting.

Philosophy Spotlight: Z-Virus

“The virus was created to suppress dissent when our Parliament feared revolts. We were told to create an invisible poison that could inhibit humanity’s aggressive instincts, so we designed a virus that seemed to make our test subjects more agreeable. After we unleashed the virus on the public, its effect changed - inhibitions eroded and victims began uncritically attacking their neighbors. The symptoms continually get worse with no cure in sight.”

-Unknown Chemist

Inspiration: Paternalism, Propaganda

The Z Virus backstory is a metaphor for propaganda from the perspective of those who use it. It is easy to understand how propaganda can serve their self-interest, deceiving others in a way that benefits them, but the more interesting mindset occurs when those in power use propaganda for the benefit of the people being deceived. Although self-interest is a powerful bias, people are complicated and it is likely that world leaders envision how their ideals would create a better society despite what others think.

The paternalistic mindset here is naturally off-putting. It is arrogant to tell others that I know what is good for them better than they do. Propaganda has to be nuanced to be effective, so that it convinces people that the leader’s cause aligns with what they already believe. The extent that the truth differs from the projection determines how paternalistic the leader has to be to feel motivated by anything other than self-interest.

At a meta level, propaganda is a destructive force that stalls humanity’s collective progress. It’s impossible to know how much knowledge is prevented, or creativity stunted, due to the false worldviews it spreads. Like the virus, the more effective it is at its original goals, the more damaging it is.