by 
“All I’m offering is the truth” — Morpheus in The Matrix
But he offered so much more — an image of a future in which Zion prevails!
Houston Foresight Advisory Board member Maggie Grayson recently posed the question: “Is there a risk in thinking about the future?” My initial thought was “of course,” but this was immediately followed by the thought that it is more risky to not think about the future. This in turn led me back to my favorite futures movie and character: The Matrix and Morpheus.
For those who haven’t seen it for a while, a brief refresher is that the blue pill puts you back in the fantasy-land of the matrix. The red pill pulls you out of the matrix and into the harsh reality of a world dominated by AI machines intent on wiping out humanity. (BTW, if you haven’t seen the original 1999 version, drop everything and do so immediately.) Morpheus adds: “You take the red (futures) pill and I show you how deep the rabbit hole goes.” I added in (futures) to the red pill.
If one takes the journey into the futures, the rabbit hole is indeed deep. Good futures work digs deep: we map, scan, identify drivers, create scenarios, identify implications, develop options, and recommend actions. It’s hard work. But the really good news is that doing this work reduces your risk. At Houston Foresight, we are more and more convinced that when you do your foresight homework, we find that change is much slower than we think; we will see change coming well in advance; we will not be surprised; and we will feel much more confident about future. Yep, gimme some more of those red (futures) pills! — Andy Hines
My initial reaction is no. There is never a risk in “thinking” about the past, present, or future. Acting (always in the moment) without thinking about the consequences is the biggest risk.
Should that person really be on the foresight advisory board? I don’t want you to respond to that question Andy. Has that advisor read 1984? Another question that doesn’t require a response.
It was a conversation prompt. Let’s not do that.
HI Andy,
yes, the ol’ Red Pill metaphor which we gave students – I also had a screenshot graphic, too.
But then there is also the attendant risk that they might develop Warren Ellis’s “abyss gaze” from “Normal” (2016), which I encouraged students to read for entertainment as well as a warning, lest they end up at Normal Head, the asylum for freaked-out futurists! (https://boingboing.net/2016/07/13/warren-elliss-normal-se.html) Obviously, it is satire, but … if Dator’s Second Law is right, a natural corollary is that “reality eventually becomes indistinguishable from satire” (https://thevoroscope.com/2021/01/24/dark-clouds-in-the-crystal-ball/#duty)
Cheers,
Joe