Know Your Enemy Reasons To Believe [Teaser]
May 4, 2026
A personal conversation about believing in God or not, traced back to a decade-old friendship. They probe atheism versus agnosticism and why a religious revival in the U.S. remains elusive. The role of church as refuge from tech-driven distraction comes up. They argue for asserting human sacredness against profit-driven dehumanization.
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Attention Economy As Spiritual Anesthesia
- Matthew Sitman argues that ubiquitous short-form video and attention economies create a culture that anesthetizes inner life and prevents encounter with the sublime.
- He points to subway scenes of everyone flipping from video to video as evidence that platforms capture attention and lubricate the passing of time.
Distraction Both Causes And Soothes Suffering
- Matthew Sitman connects constant distraction to an inability to tolerate being alone with oneself and to experience serious feelings or the sublime.
- He frames accessible, half-focused entertainment as both a cause and soothing response to inner suffering.
Defend Humanity By Asserting Sacred Dignity
- Sam Adler-Bell suggests defending human dignity by making a firm, almost religious claim that persons are sacred to resist dehumanizing technologies.
- He recommends drawing a moral circle around people and asserting their infinite dignity rather than treating them as utility-maximizers.