The Delirious, Violent, Impossible True Story of the Zizians
February 26, 2025 at 11:29PM“Timeless decision theory.” “Roko’s basilisk.” “Vegan anarchotranshumanism.” The story of the group known as the Zizians is an explanatory minefield–one that Evan Ratliff artfully navigates for Wired. Following a recent, high-profile arrest, news outlets the world over published “explainer” pieces in an attempt to untangle the history of the group and the violent allegations against its members. Here, Ratliff explains on the fly, weaving years of reporting through a narrative whose brisk pace masks its complexity.
The more time I spent following the group that some called the Zizians, the more their story started seeming itself like some kind of basilisk. Just by virtue of having examined its events, you were trapped in its world, subject to its terms. Inside that world it felt like some future evil was rapidly approaching, ominous events waiting just beyond the horizon. But speaking of them could usher them faster, closer. I was certain the story as I understood it was incomplete but unsure where to look to complete it. Or if I did, whether I could tell it without attracting the basilisk’s gaze myself.
from Longreads https://longreads.com/2025/02/26/the-delirious-violent-impossible-true-story-of-the-zizians/
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