You Affect Reality

[- Neobop - <neobop@antionline.org>]

[: hacktivism :]

A Plan...

   Spouse there was one boy who was thrown into this world like a storm, growing up in one small town 13 years of his existence; ignorant of the rest of the world and the harshness of this reality.  Then when he was 14 he bagged his parents for a computer just because it sounded like the kewlest thing since clear pepsi.  Well within a month he got his christmas and birthday present combined into one package early.  Soon would come his discover of the internet, taking his parents credit card to try out then his 10 hours of free AOL access, unknowing he could use his friends local isp account and get free access.  Boy witnesses the internet in it's precommerical stages not even realizing what the word media really means.  Within four years he sees a transformation of a technology that let him fall further down the rabbit hole.  It appears that boy is me, and that boy has transformed along with it.  And now being subscribed to this list I have been blessed without the wisdom dire!
!
ctly from freedom fighters of the present.  Never sure how to respond, but wanting you to know there are many like me who are observing your actions, your thoughts, only awaiting the inspiration and freedom to stand up to be at your electronic side.  Creating public labs in India and third world countries is a wonderful idea, it will connect the two halves of the world like the right and left brain.  Perhaps Megan is on to something that should be created. -->?.org<--
Always seeking out the truth.  <ne0>

>Date: Wed, 17 Nov 1999 16:07:43 -0800 (PST)
>From: megan <megan@tao.ca>
>To: hacktivism@tao.ca
>Subject: The real question....     
>Reply-To: hacktivism@tao.ca
>
>[: hacktivism :]
>
>... is the one that yael asks here...how do we use the internet to
>mobilize people in the flesh - 
>
>I was just thinking about some of this stuff today because I've been asked
>to do this television interview thing about activism and the web.... and
>the person doing the spot has already revealed himself to be one of the
>many who seems to believe that the internet is this entity that's somehow
>doing activists this great service - how is the web affecting your
>activism kindof stuff.... rather than - how are you affecting the web -? 
>
>And geez - when it gets to web page hacking and stuff - I just don't even
>want to talk about it - since the majority of hacks out there are
>apoltical - and a great number of them containing language that is
>blatantly racist and sexist.
>
>It may be true that a floodnet action might cost some company some $$$
>(though I haven't seen lots of proof of that) - but costing a company
>money isn't what is going to bring the system to a halt - neither is
>defacing their web page. The only thing that's going to do it is a lot of
>people with a goal for a better system in mind - that would be physically
>able to take on the system - and for that we need education (which is
>where I see the usefulness in information systems like the web) and the
>ability to communicate (which is where lists and email come in hand).
>
>But the problem is that a lot of people on lists aren't asking themselves
>these questions: how do I use this technology (as a tool) to bring people
>out on the street, to empower those around me, to educate, to change the
>world. Mostly it seems that the ethic of individualization so pervasive in
>the rest of society is hyper-amplified on the Internet - and this is
>certainly true in the community of those who want to learn how to be 
>hackers (there have been a number on this list so far)... not once has
>anyone said that they want to learn to be a hacker because they want to
>change the world - mostly its some inane reason like just to screw with
>things a little (if there's any reason for it at all). And I think it also
>comes down to personal feelings of power (the power over some company's
>web site for example) that aren't fostered in the same way as a "marshall"
>on a demonstration.
>
>So we have to not only question this emphasis on the way that the web
>affects activism (back to how activism can affect the web) - but also
>look at how information technology can be utilized by all of the
>communities that we work in as activists..... (that to me is true
>hacktivism by the way - setting up free machines in autonomous spaces for
>free use)....
>
>Anyhow - those are just some of the thoughts going through my head this
>Wednesday afternoon....
>
>Megan


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