[steve-b]

Obviously, giving people the ability to effectively control the physical universe is a blessing (from God, if you believe that's the ultimate source of the underlying order of nature that makes it possible).

(The fact that this particular advance is fairly recent is a more comprehensive rebuttal to your earlier point, such as it is, than the specific example of post-Soviet Russia.)

[Antoninus]

Obviously, giving people the ability to effectively control the physical universe is a blessing (from God, if you believe that's the ultimate source of the underlying order of nature that makes it possible).

Spoken like a true amoralist. Using that logic, we also have the means to control human "overpopulation" with the use of relatively recent modern advances like atomic weaponry. I suppose opposing that method would qualify one as a collectivist who rejected the blessings of God as well, eh Steve?