Questionnaire
Version 2026
Today’s post is a reinterpretation of Wendell Berry’s brilliant “Questionnaire” from his 2011 book of poems, Leavings.
I consider the questionnaire above to be an addition to Berry’s, not a replacement. Unfortunately, we are still answering his questions too.
QUESTIONNAIRE
by Wendell Berry
How much poison are you willing
to eat for the success of the free
market and global trade? Please
name your preferred poisons.For the sake of goodness, how much
evil are you willing to do?
Fill in the following blanks
with the names of your favorite
evils and acts of hatred.What sacrifices are you prepared
to make for culture and civilization?
Please list the monuments, shrines,
and works of art you would
most willingly destroy.In the name of patriotism and
the flag, how much of our beloved
land are you willing to desecrate?
List in the following spaces
the mountains, rivers, towns, farms
you could most readily do without.State briefly the ideas, ideals, or hopes,
the energy sources, the kinds of security,
for which you would kill a child.
Name, please, the children whom
you would be willing to kill.
"Questionnaire" by Wendell Berry from Leavings. ©2011, Counterpoint Press
SOURCES
Reader advisory: some distressing content and difficult topics below
“AI-Powered Surveillance Is Turning the United States into a Digital Police State. Now is the Time to Stop It.” https://www.aclum.org/publications/ai-powered-surveillance-is-turning-the-united-states-into-a-digital-police-state-now-is-the-time-to-stop-it/
“AI systems are enabling mass surveillance in the US, and there is no national law that ‘meaningfully limits’ the use of this data” https://www.livescience.com/technology/artificial-intelligence/cameras-have-quietly-appeared-in-thousands-of-us-cities-now-their-integration-with-ai-is-sounding-alarms-opinion
“How AI can enable public surveillance” https://www.brookings.edu/articles/how-ai-can-enable-public-surveillance/
“US government ramps up mass surveillance with help of AI tech, data brokers – and your apps and devices” https://theconversation.com/us-government-ramps-up-mass-surveillance-with-help-of-ai-tech-data-brokers-and-your-apps-and-devices-277440
“The phenomenon of deep nudes—a new threat to children and adults” https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00146-025-02425-4
“Researchers warn of rise in AI-created non-consensual explicit images” https://news.ufl.edu/2025/05/non-consensual-fake-imagery/
AI-powered online abuse: How AI is amplifying violence against women and what can stop it” https://www.unwomen.org/en/articles/faqs/ai-powered-online-abuse-how-ai-is-amplifying-violence-against-women-and-what-can-stop-it
“The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Violence Against Women and Girls” https://www.stimson.org/2026/the-impact-of-artificial-intelligence-on-violence-against-women-and-girls/
“Using AI for Just 10 Minutes Might Make You Lazy and Dumb, Study Shows” https://www.wired.com/story/using-ai-negative-impact-thinking-problem-solving-study/
“Are these AI prompts damaging your thinking skills” https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cd6xz12j6pzo
“Is AI Dulling Our Minds?” https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2025/11/is-ai-dulling-our-minds/
“Is Generative AI Rewiring Our Brains? Here’s How It Happens” https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-art-of-critical-thinking/202512/is-generative-ai-rewiring-our-brains-heres-how-it-happens
“Scientists have found an alarming environmental impact of vast data centers” https://www.cnn.com/2026/03/30/climate/data-centers-are-having-an-underrported
“The Health Divide: The AI data center boom will harm the health of communities that can least afford it” https://centerforhealthjournalism.org/our-work/insights/health-divide-ai-data-center-boom-will-harm-health-communities-can-least-afford
“Data Centers, Pollution, and the Communities Left Behind” https://sustainabilitydialogue.uchicago.edu/news/data-centers-pollution-and-the-communities-left-behind/
“Construction and Consequences: The Human Impacts of Artificial Intelligence Data Centers” https://sites.uab.edu/humanrights/2025/10/02/construction-and-consequences-the-human-impacts-of-artificial-intelligence-data-centers/
“An AI chatbot pushed a teen to kill himself, a lawsuit against its creator alleges” https://apnews.com/article/chatbot-ai-lawsuit-suicide-teen-artificial-intelligence-9d48adc572100822fdbc3c90d1456bd0
“Colorado family sues AI chatbot company after daughter’s suicide: ‘My child should be here’” https://www.cbsnews.com/colorado/news/lawsuit-characterai-chatbot-colorado-suicide/
“Parents Allege ChatGPT Is Responsible for Their Teenage Son’s Death by Suicide” https://time.com/7312484/chatgpt-openai-suicide-lawsuit/
“AI Chatbots Are Telling Children to Commit Suicide” https://thenewamerican.com/us/tech/ai-chatbots-are-telling-children-to-commit-suicide
*Sunday Sparklies has always been and will always be 100% free of A.I.











This is so scary, Jenn. I'm reading Pure Human by Gregg Braden and he discusses the same thing and how we are on the verge of losing our divinity. It's absolutely mind-boggling how we've arrived at "this" place.