So this week's lecture got me thinking in a broader perspective, not only about the impacts of technology but one problem that technology (the Internet in particular) has brought into our view.
Currently all of the commotion with SOPA, ACTA, Bill C-11, Bill C-30 comes to solve one problem: "How can we control the freedom that is allowed by the Internet."
To me this question is contradictory, control and freedom do not go well together. That point being made, lets take a look at our past. As a side note, history repeats itself, and we must always learn from the experiences of our ancestors.
So lets go far back to the medieval times where there was a hierarchy of kings, lords, knights, serfs etc.
Each king had the freedom of setting whatever rules on his land. Each lord reported to the king and so on. To me this was a system of total control, where the power is held by one person, and whatever they say goes. Whether this system was effective or not is entirely another matter, but note the level of control.
Now fast forward to WW2, in Germany, when Hitler was in power. It was either you follow his rules, and look the way he wanted you to look or you are dead. That's it, the end.
We can also see that while Hitler was busy with his dictatorship, on the other side of the nation there was a new method of governing that was becoming more popular every day: democracy. Which was a much gentler, softer way of handling a society. A place where every individual had a voice and rights to help create a peaceful society. That to me is one of the greatest examples of crowd sourcing. Where ideas are proposed, evaluated, and put into effect by the public. And its been working so far so good.
So where am I going with this history/civics lesson? I wanted to point out the difference between controlled and free societies.
Now lets look at control and freedom in another context, The Great invention of the Internet (which is obviously freedom). I see the Internet as this big power that has been handed over to us. We are trying to use this power, but we are not all aware of its full potential to either destroy or improve this world we have created. A writer of The Guardian, Tom Chatfield says, "The rise of the Internet, from obscurity to ubiquity in the course of a few decades, has had profound effects on our society and on us as individuals. No one could have predicted how significant it would become, and no one can predict with any certainty how it will develop."[1]
One main thing that we need to understand, is that the Internet's purpose is to allow freedom. Freedom of information, freedom of speech, and just plain freedom. Google's chairman Eric Schmidt said the following in a news article “The openness of the Internet is one of the greatest achievements of our lifetime,” Schmidt said. “Do not give that up, you will regret it.”[2]
What some of us are trying to do, is to control this freedom. Its like telling a democratic society to turn into a monarchy or a communist society. All you will achieve by attempting to do so is pure chaos, at least in my opinion.
Citizens will be angered over the attempt of control (already happening with SOPA and Bill-C30). In response to these controlling attempts, humans have a tendency to "get back" so there will be a lot of rebellion and so on. Hopefully you can see where this is going.
So just like how democracy has replaced a system where there used to be total control, we need to think of a "democratic" solution to the total freedom that the Internet offers. In other words we need a middle ground. And when hunting down for this solution, it is very important to keep in mind that one person doesn't make a democracy; everyone acting together does.
What we can do is start by using the problem to solve the problem itself. I know, you must be thinking What?? Let me explain, our problem is to find a democratic Internet system, where majority are given equal freedom, privacy and rights. All guided by effective regulations put together by the people.
So then isn't it simple? Why not use the Internet, to spread the word about this problem, and come together with a solution? A process today known as crowd source. As discussed in lecture, crowd source the problem, then crowd source again to narrow down the solutions, and repeat until a desired solution is found. Reality is that a new idea doesn't usually come from experts in the field but from a fresh face who very few know.
Give me your opinions, I would love to talk more on this!
Aside:
When I say internet's purpose is to allow freedom, I mean "one of the purposes". However that is not the internet's main purpose (to allow information to be shared).
Also, although we have currently appointed people to make decisions on our behalf, as our representatives, it is also their responsibility to ask for our opinions on major decisions that impact our lives. Laws that guard the internet are no small issue, it affects each one of us deeply.
Currently all of the commotion with SOPA, ACTA, Bill C-11, Bill C-30 comes to solve one problem: "How can we control the freedom that is allowed by the Internet."
To me this question is contradictory, control and freedom do not go well together. That point being made, lets take a look at our past. As a side note, history repeats itself, and we must always learn from the experiences of our ancestors.
So lets go far back to the medieval times where there was a hierarchy of kings, lords, knights, serfs etc.
Now fast forward to WW2, in Germany, when Hitler was in power. It was either you follow his rules, and look the way he wanted you to look or you are dead. That's it, the end.
We can also see that while Hitler was busy with his dictatorship, on the other side of the nation there was a new method of governing that was becoming more popular every day: democracy. Which was a much gentler, softer way of handling a society. A place where every individual had a voice and rights to help create a peaceful society. That to me is one of the greatest examples of crowd sourcing. Where ideas are proposed, evaluated, and put into effect by the public. And its been working so far so good.
So where am I going with this history/civics lesson? I wanted to point out the difference between controlled and free societies.
Now lets look at control and freedom in another context, The Great invention of the Internet (which is obviously freedom). I see the Internet as this big power that has been handed over to us. We are trying to use this power, but we are not all aware of its full potential to either destroy or improve this world we have created. A writer of The Guardian, Tom Chatfield says, "The rise of the Internet, from obscurity to ubiquity in the course of a few decades, has had profound effects on our society and on us as individuals. No one could have predicted how significant it would become, and no one can predict with any certainty how it will develop."[1]
One main thing that we need to understand, is that the Internet's purpose is to allow freedom. Freedom of information, freedom of speech, and just plain freedom. Google's chairman Eric Schmidt said the following in a news article “The openness of the Internet is one of the greatest achievements of our lifetime,” Schmidt said. “Do not give that up, you will regret it.”[2]
What some of us are trying to do, is to control this freedom. Its like telling a democratic society to turn into a monarchy or a communist society. All you will achieve by attempting to do so is pure chaos, at least in my opinion.
Citizens will be angered over the attempt of control (already happening with SOPA and Bill-C30). In response to these controlling attempts, humans have a tendency to "get back" so there will be a lot of rebellion and so on. Hopefully you can see where this is going.
So just like how democracy has replaced a system where there used to be total control, we need to think of a "democratic" solution to the total freedom that the Internet offers. In other words we need a middle ground. And when hunting down for this solution, it is very important to keep in mind that one person doesn't make a democracy; everyone acting together does.
What we can do is start by using the problem to solve the problem itself. I know, you must be thinking What?? Let me explain, our problem is to find a democratic Internet system, where majority are given equal freedom, privacy and rights. All guided by effective regulations put together by the people.
So then isn't it simple? Why not use the Internet, to spread the word about this problem, and come together with a solution? A process today known as crowd source. As discussed in lecture, crowd source the problem, then crowd source again to narrow down the solutions, and repeat until a desired solution is found. Reality is that a new idea doesn't usually come from experts in the field but from a fresh face who very few know.
Give me your opinions, I would love to talk more on this!
Aside:
When I say internet's purpose is to allow freedom, I mean "one of the purposes". However that is not the internet's main purpose (to allow information to be shared).
Also, although we have currently appointed people to make decisions on our behalf, as our representatives, it is also their responsibility to ask for our opinions on major decisions that impact our lives. Laws that guard the internet are no small issue, it affects each one of us deeply.
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