Then you will have the regression of supposedly democratic governments towards fascism to stem personal freedom and choice, in their attempts to stop such enhancements from progressing or falling into the wrong hands. The wrong hands meaning anyone but themselves.
This book was no different. Nexus is also termed as coercion technology as its ability to connect human minds also enables mind control. Throughout the entire time I was reading this, I found myself flipping back and forth on what’s right and what’s wrong. And the answer is “no one really knows.”
Do I condone the methods used by the government to stop the threat of the elite few utilising Nexus to potentially control the entire human race? Do I think that the good or benefit of widespread availability of Nexus will outweigh the potential abuse? The best aspect of this book is how it makes one empathise with both sides of the coin. I can appreciate how the connectedness of the general human mind if properly guided and trained can only advance the human race to greater heights (both spiritually and mentally). I can also understand how to such technology if left unchecked in the hands of the few elite can lead to a dystopian society. Or how political or religious extremists can seek to abuse it.
The characters were well developed to illustrate such themes and the quandary of people achieving such revolutionary advances as to make them more than just human, all without being preachy. In the end, though, I’m still not sure if the main protagonist did the right thing. This book really was that thought-provoking!
On the storytelling itself, there was a lot of action and the pacing of the plot made it an absorbing read, neurological mumbo-jumbo aside. What unnerved me the most was not part the main story but an afterword where the author wrote a section called the Science of Nexus, highlighting how such technology is plausible based on various discoveries / advances in neurological science at the turn of the century.
Recommended for fans of cyberpunk science fiction.
