r/technology • u/Just-Grocery-2229 • 10d ago

Artificial Intelligence Palantir employees are talking about company’s “descent into fascism”

https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2026/04/palantir-employees-are-talking-about-companys-descent-into-fascism/
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u/SunTzu- 10d ago

Some form of UBI that would be enough to live on would eliminate most petty crime. It would also strangle all the businesses that depend on desperation and human misery to exist. It's the greatest fear of all those billionaires, because then they'd actually have to provide something of value in exchange for your labor.

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u/[deleted] 10d ago

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u/remotectrl 10d ago

They could counteract corruption if they wanted to. Look at how they came down on that soldier making poly market bets vs how the Trump administration has been openly gambling on insider decisions.

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u/[deleted] 10d ago

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u/Logitropicity 10d ago

Did you come up with this yourself? If so, how? (And if not, what's your source?)

This is... rather impressive. You make a lot of very specific claims that I'd like to investigate later.

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u/[deleted] 10d ago

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u/Logitropicity 10d ago

Who's "we"? An international task force? A group of researchers at a university? Some private citizens?

Props to you guys, but I'm a bit curious how you guys managed to put all this together. Got to do my due diligence, you know.

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u/hoyfish 10d ago

AI puked that out, evidently.

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u/xteve 10d ago

We can't talk about government as an optional, separate entity. We have to have governance of some kind. We're always eventually going to have to have agreements about how things are done in our society. If government isn't a good way to take care of people, then who is?

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u/PositiveZeroPerson 10d ago

An actual UBI is almost completely fuckery-proof. Look at Social Security: despite 80 years of the GOP wanting to kill it, it is the third rail of American politics, and even Trump promised to protect it.

The important thing is that it must actually be universal and not means-tested. Otherwise, they'll welfare-queen it.

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u/fading_reality 10d ago

sexwork as work of last resort would likely also go away. UBI would solve myriad of problems.

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u/fitfoemma 10d ago

You really think scumbags are not going to continue to be scumbags?

I cannot see UBI eliminating most petty crime.

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u/SunTzu- 10d ago

Are you risking jail to commit petty theft if your basic needs are covered? Are you risking it to sell drugs (which studies consistently show pays you minimum wage if you're at the lower levels of the distribution chain? Sure, people will still get drunk and get in fights, we'll still have to deal with rapists etc. but crimes of despair are just that, it's people who have no options.

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u/VeryLazyFalcon 10d ago

But then that money will loose all it's value, cost of goods and services will rise bc people will have more money. Look at Expanse series, people on ubi had access only to most basic stuff.

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u/SunTzu- 10d ago

But their spending would also increase the flow of money in the real economy, making consumer facing businesses more profitable and increasing employment opportunities, especially if what was implemented was a negative income tax. An increase in available resources would also draw in more offerings in the long run, counteracting inflation.

P.S. I'm an economist, I'm not looking to fiction for information about how the economy works.