We think we control dogs. We think we will control AI. History shows coexistence is never one-sided. Yesterday, I watched a debate show on a popular Tamil channel. The topic was the rise of stray dogs, rabies cases, and public safety. At first, it looked like a heated argument, but very quickly I realized the show missed the real point.
Instead of inviting vet doctors to talk about rabies, or municipal officials to explain waste management and sterilization efforts, the stage was filled with two groups: victims of dog attacks and people who love and feed dogs. The media made it look like the problem was a fight between these two sides. In reality, the real issue is limited urban planning, healthcare, municipal responsibility, policies and bigger picture.
We all already know there are too many stray dogs. The real questions should be
- Why is sterilization not scaled up?
- Why is waste not controlled, attracting dogs in large numbers?
- Why is rabies vaccination limited?
Without addressing these, the debate was just noise. Pure noise and diversion.
Why Dogs Are With Us in the First Place?
Thousands of years ago, humans were hunters and gatherers. Wolves began hanging around human camps because of leftover food and waste. Over time, the wolves that were less aggressive and more cooperative stayed closer, got food, and survived better.
Their guts adapted to human food even before their skulls and faces changed. Over time, they evolved into dogs not just serving humans as hunters and guards, but also shaping our emotions and daily lives. In many ways, dogs didn’t just get domesticated by us. They also domesticated us. They trained us to accept companionship (within home), loyalty, and emotional bonding with another species. It was also an extension of existing human social complexity.
Emotion vs Logic
In the debate, I saw major two emotions:
- Fear and anger from victims.
- Love and attachment from dog feeders.
Both are valid. But emotions cannot solve rabies. Only logic and policy can. Solutions are clear. Mass sterilization and vaccination programs. Better garbage control. Public awareness on rabies prevention. A humane system like the Dutch model, where strays are sterilized, sheltered, and adopted.
The AI Connection
Later that day, I listened to a podcast about birth rate decline and the rise of AI. A strange thought caught me as that tab was left open in my head. What if humans and AI end up like humans and dogs?
For thousands of years, dogs shifted from hunters and guards to pampered dependents fed, sheltered, and entertained by humans without needing to work. Today, AI is doing to humans what humans once did to dogs, taking over our roles, this time in cognitive work. Even dogs at risk!
The shift is happening at terrifying speed. Dogs had 30,000 years to adapt to dependence, humans may get just 30 years or less. Within a few decades, we could find ourselves in the dog’s position (Assumption or Sci fi or reality) living in comfort of AI-supported lifestyle first. Just as dogs today don’t understand the economic systems that feed them, maybe future humans might live comfortably while remaining fundamentally powerless in an AI-dominated economy.
But here is the difference. Gogs give something AI cannot yet replicate innocence, presence, and living in the moment. AI can fill intellectual gaps and even emotional ones, but it cannot replace the raw life energy of a living being.
The Bigger Lesson
Both stray dogs and AI show us the same truth: coexistence doesn’t happen by accident. It has to be managed. With dogs, poor management created today’s crisis. With AI, poor management could create tomorrow’s. In every case, the weaker side suffers most. Today it is dogs. Tomorrow, it could be us!
Cheers
Check out the previous post: The Bear and the tabs we keep open!
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