A certain social score has progressively been rolled out over the past few millennium. It began in the granaries of Mesopotamia and the Yellow River, and nowadays only a few tribal people aren't part of it. It's known as "money" and currently measures how well people work, sell, save, invest, not get caught, and other such characteristics. It's stacked because people's opening balances are fixed by birth rite. Because of the existence of different currencies and asset classes, it's been controlled by a loose consortium of various central banks and regulatory authorities. This Social Credit Score in China to supplement its People's Currency (Renmin Bi) merely changes the ranking criteria and governing authorities involved. There's no new paradigm here.
Brasil by Terry Gilliam already predicted this. As the main character, Sam Lowry, is being brought in to be tortured, a guard tells him, "Don't fight it son. Confess quickly! If you hold out too long you could jeopardize your credit rating."<p>It's amazing to me to see the dystopian comedies of the 70's and 80's becoming all too true. Another good example is Network from 1976 based on the farcical premise that a news organization would be taken over by the network's entertainment division.
"Earlier this year, I noticed something in China that really surprised me. I realized I felt more comfortable discussing controversial ideas in Beijing than in San Francisco. I didn’t feel completely comfortable—this was China, after all—just more comfortable than at home." ~Sam Altman 12/14/2017<p>China is systematizing, really appifying, inequality and privilege. The public in the US is starting to push back on that same privilege. To me, Sam's quote, this article, and Erin Griffith's other recent piece[0] all make sense together in a way that really concerns me.<p>[0]<a href="https://www.wired.com/story/the-other-tech-bubble/" rel="nofollow">https://www.wired.com/story/the-other-tech-bubble/</a>
So China thought that the plot of a Black Mirror episode[1] was a great idea to enact in reality? Spectacular.<p>[1]<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nosedive" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nosedive</a>
And this is the point where I just check out of the internet except for perfunctory interactions.<p>I think this will be a growth area for AI, where we will have bots running pretending to be us so they can properly minmax all of the measures showing us as model participants in a system that "... will forge a public opinion environment where keeping trust is glorious. It will strengthen sincerity in government affairs, commercial sincerity, social sincerity and the construction of judicial credibility."
What really frightens me is how Tim Cook and Zuckerberg swoon head-over-heels for a country that implements such an aggressive top down control of their citizens as this program.<p>I have already become acutely aware of self censorship, especially with posts associated with my name, out of expectation of something similar making its way into the US. Heck, I would not be remotely surprised to find out Facebook already has a working prototype to associate and score people based on their connections.
Here is also a good and disturbing look at this: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHcTKWiZ8sI" rel="nofollow">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHcTKWiZ8sI</a>
Would this fly in the United States? Is there a near-future where this will happen in the U.S. as well?<p>I think it would not. Americans value their individuality too much. I think "trustworthiness" is not really a characteristic that Americans would want to rate each other on.
Hmm. The cultural revolution may have attempted to wipe out the traditional Chinese culture, yet this idea is very much aligned with Chinese sensibilities (such as Confucian ideas).
"rate its citizens": The 'that black mirror episode!' clickbait<p>"The Chinese government plans to launch its Social Credit System in 2020. The aim? To judge the trustworthiness – or otherwise – of its 1.3 billion residents": The more accurate subtitle, which you can now see since you gave us your click. Gotcha!<p>Credit rating is nothing new, be it for people, corporations or even countries.