Elon Musk's Neuralink and the Trap of Transhumanism

By: Jude R. Johnson, Ph.D. written Nov 9, 2019

Society’s Spiral Dance with Communication Technology and Power

The technologies of books, radio, television, telephone, and Internet have one thing in common beyond their obvious use for mass communication. They were all eventually co-opted and hacked by those in power to control our minds. In the beginning these technologies always promised more freedom through the free flow of information. But what inevitably happens is that the powerful corrupt those technologies by corralling and centralizing that information. Once a certain degree of centralization is reached the powerful push their agenda on to a public that still believes in those initial promises of freedom and empowerment.

The first book created by Gutenberg’s printing press was a bible which offered the public wisdom once reserved for the Catholic Church. This democratization of biblical wisdom and the printing of Luther’s 95 Theses created just the right conditions for the spark of the Reformation to blaze across Europe. Yet, over 400 years later the vast majority of all books sold in the U.S. are published by one of only six conglomerates who control the message of practically everything you see in print.

Television was first introduced as a way to uplift us culturally by broadcasting the most refined examples of drama and documentary. Who would believe that early TV broadcasts of Othello would eventually be replaced by shows like Buffy The Vampire Slayer.  Who would have imagined the unassailable integrity of Walter Cronkite devolving into Charles Jaco reporting a fake Iraqui gas attack from a CNN soundstage safe in the U.S. Who would believe that that early TV’s three channels of something would be replaced by 500 channels of nothing. Which leads us to the technology that is making TV obsolete.

If you were to make an Internet search of Jaco’s fake gas attack you would probably go through Youtube which is owned by the Internet’s most powerful, singular influence... Google. The company’s motto during its infancy was “Do no evil.” A strange byline for any corporation. But stranger still when you consider that Google eventually used their technology to manipulate search results to influence a populace to support a favored candidate for office. Yet long after the horrible truth of Google came to light the vast majority of people still use Google for Internet searches without thinking, as if by reflex. Oh, and let’s not forget that Google was funded by the department of defense and has essentially become the CIA’s  most powerful, global surveillance app. How’s that for doing no evil?

The most successful Internet sites have been those that have connected millions through social media. Facebook, Snapchat, and Instagram were all supposed to bring us closer together. Yet everyone of those companies eventually prostituted our information to whoever would pay. Since we’re on the subject of the Internet, let's not forget the illegal information gathering of our own government.

Everyone seemed so surprised by Edward Snowden’s release of evidence that the NSA had massive data centers that are monitoring everything from your phone call with Mom to the racy Skype video sessions with your girlfriend living abroad. But this is nothing new. The government had access to everything that was transmitted through early landline telephones. The Internet that was supposed to level the information playing field ended up being just another surveillance platform for the elite.

So all this history leads to our present where we are on the verge of a new communication technology that will completely change how we define humanity... We will soon have direct communication between brain and computer.

Actually that bridge has already been crossed. The company, Cyberkinetics, has developed a technology that has allowed quadriplegics to control a cursor, type text, and surf the net using only their minds. This same link between mind and computer is being used to allow prostheses to communicate with the brain. On TED I saw a dancer who lost a leg beneath the knee. Two years after her accident, she was able to dance better than me because of mind-connected prosthetics. Now that the first brain/computer bridges have been created, bigger and better bridges will be constructed. In fact, Elon Musk recently introduced the Neuralink Technology that promises a brain/computer connection unrivaled by previous technology 

(BrainGate lets your brain control the computer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJJPbpHoPWo )  

(The Robot-Arm Prosthetic Controlled by Thought https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sk1NkWl_W2Y ) 

(TEDX-Bionics-Let’s Dance https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJ9dLw0wpQA)

(Elon Musk’s Neuralink presentation https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lA77zsJ31nA )

The weak electrical noise from other areas of the brain will eventually be decoded. That means that more of the five senses will be virtually bypassed. We are on the precipice of the most dramatic development in communications technology that humanity has ever experienced. Not only will humans be able to immerse themselves in alternate realities but the Internet allows us to do it together. But will we truly be brought together in the Metaverse or will we be brought together like social media has brought us together? 

We will be promised a world that is as free as our imaginations. And just like every communication technology before... it will be corrupted by those in power to control us. And now that we’re tapping right into the brain itself we will be invaded and controlled to such a degree that Orwell’s 1984 will be listed under “romance.”

Transhumanism... will be billed as humanity’s apotheosis. It’s reality will be a one-way rocket ride away from our humanity. And what is the saddest part of this story is that the majority of mankind will enthusiastically pay for that privilege. Remember the long lines of folks camping the night before in hopes of buying Apple’s latest personal surveillance device ... aka Iphone ?

Where humanity’s road splits 

Transhumanism is an inevitability. But there will be those of us who will resist. The Buddhists believe that this current reality is an illusion. The entirety of man' s purpose should be focused on understanding the nature of this illusion. Why would we bury ourselves under another layer of illusion?

If we choose to merge with the digital, we will forfeit our opportunity to fulfill our human potential as spiritual beings. We are already connected on a level much deeper than anything we could experience on the Internet. We can connect our hearts and develop a technology that ends all technologies... The technology of consciousness. 

I’m particularly interested in the power of collective consciousness. I've developed a collective form of Kriya Yoga that synchronizes the nervous system and entrains the brains of the participants to create a larger energetic entity. We use special kriya breaths that create a collective, coherent heart state. From this platform we project healing intent to the planet. 

The technology of Collective Heart Yoga is impossible with minds that are distracted by alternate realities. Consciousness technology requires a mind that is focused and quiet. The average mind is bombarded by hours of images, many violent, sexual, or trivial. The power of one's mind is diminished by every distraction. When we are zeroed in on our devices we are put into a hypnotic state. We become like old grandmothers in Vegas playing the slots with zombie stares not realizing that they have been playing all night.

The scenario I describe is created by the current devices we stare into and manipulate with our fingers. How far down the black hole of diminished, conscious potential will we fall when our minds are jacked directly into the digital domain? If you doubt the gravity of my message... go to any public place, stand still, and look around.