That rule was kinda unbelievable. Like yeah, I get the panic and the initial ban, but the rule holding up for 10,000 years? Yeah, probably not.
this post was submitted on 10 Aug 2025
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Isn't that kind of the point? I haven't read the books since I was a kid, but I feel like a major theme was a criticism of religious dogma and duplicity.
It is the point, I'm merely stating that while 10,000 is a nice round number, it's unrealistic that the dogma would keep that long.
Especially when it forces rich people to follow the rules of the guild and they don't like the rules.
Both agree but have to remember there are a couple other things in play.
One is that afterwards they have mentats so the ultra wealthy have access to something at least somewhat equivalent in function.
Second, while general AI (and arguably even general purpose CPUs) are banned they clearly have ultra advanced fixed function computing devices at ultra low prices everywhere. The Freman make still suits in their cave cities that are basically magic by modern standards so access to advanced fixed function computing and materials science is clearly essentially universal.
Yeah, but the ruling class reliance on guild navigators makes it unbelievable, given that computers could do the same and the great houses then could do whatever they wanted instead of having to follow the rules of the guild.
Yea I agree.
I can't remember if the Brian Herbert books or just my own trying to resolve that in my own head but I feel like I ran across an attempt at resolving that saying that even world sized computer systems of the thinking machines still had worse results than the guild navigators since the navigators weren't actually computing routes so much as using dune's bizarre mental abilities like telepathy etc. to directly reach out and connect to the destination.
Actually that could even be from one of the movies and TV. Blurry memory on it.
Love Dune overall and very glad it is in the world of well known stories now with things like the warnings against charismatic leaders etc. but it still definitely has its flaws.
I just reading The Butlerian Jihad and the fight against the AI (Omnius) has pushed humanity at the very edge of the galaxy and almost to extinction. That humanity survives is nothing short of a miracle.
The fight takes on a religious aspect coupled with the emerging Bene Gessirit starting their manipulation might ensure a longivety to the ban
Cold once pushed us irl much closer to extinction than the thinking machines ever did and we're not banning winter sports.
I get what you're saying, I'm just saying that 10,000 years is way too much time. Like, just look how much we changed in the last 10,000 years and how much has stayed the same or at least very similar.
Idk if I'm missing the joke but Yueh wasn't a mentat.
The joke is that hologram doctors are more loyal than real ones. Nothing to do with mentats. Everything to do with banning computers.
Gotcha. My mind went to AI first, then doctor.