How to Handle the Greatest Threats
Gyldendal's "Total Preparedness": In a short time, the security policy situation in Norway and Europe has intensified. While war and geopolitical upheavals once again dominate the news, preparedness challenges resulting from extreme weather, digital vulnerability, and complex threats have increased in both scope and complexity.
AI-generated illustration from Midjourney.
Main moments
This text was originally published in the book "Total Preparedness". Order the book here.
Borgar Jølstad and Aksel Braanen Sterri authored the chapter "How to Handle the Greatest Threats" from the book 'Total Preparedness', published by Gyldendal Akademisk. It provides an introduction to much of the philosophical foundation built upon in Langsikt, and argues for four claims:
1. Even though the future is uncertain, we can use the principle of expected utility to guide us towards a better future.
2. Expected utility is preferable to alternative governance principles, such as precautionary and worst-case scenario thinking.
3. The extinction of humanity is the worst thing that can happen to us, and avoiding such an event must be one of our most important political tasks.
4. It is wrong to place less emphasis on the interests of people living in the future. We should therefore place more emphasis on the interests of future generations than we do today.
Download to read the chapter (in Norwegian).
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