p2pnet - rss feed: French fries and Echo Boomers
p2p news / p2pnet: One of p2pnet’s most valued contributors is Alex H from over in Australia. His stuff is always insightful and, well, right on.
He’s now become a blogger in his own write with Tech Loves Art, “or Art Loves Technology. Every new technology produces new and exciting artworks - books written because they could be printed and read, extraordinary events captured on film because they could be broadcast and viewed. Information, art and culture are meant to be shared”.
French Fries …
… and Action >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
I was being dragged around a large department store the other day for the post-Christmas sales. I hate clothes shopping for two main reasons: the first is that I look good in practically anything I wear and apparently most of the enjoyment in shopping comes from walking through miles of shops in search of something that looks good. The second is that my retail “experience” is always pretty feeble. You know, people trying to sell you a $90 T-shirt with increadible features like “Calvin Klein” written on it in big letters.
Then, as I was walking through this shop, I was startled by a shriek from a saleswoman: “Watch out! There are fries on the ground!”
She was right. I looked down and found that I was about to step in some French fries that someone had carelessly dropped on the floor of her section. I looked up to thank her for her warning, but she was on the phone. As I evesdropped shamelessly on her conversation, it became apparent that she was speaking with the stores’ maintainence department to arrange for someone to come and clean up the spilt fries.
I counted nine of the little bastards, and as I walked away I heard her crying out her warning to another passing shopper.
I asked someone at the stores front deask why the saleswoman didn’t simply pick them up herself. Apparently it would, “diminish her creadibility with respect to the [expensive] clothes” if she was seen doing manual chores. I didn’t think so. I think it diminished her creadibility with respect to her intelligence.
As an Echo Boomer (born somewhere in the 80s or 90s) mine is a typical response: just pick up the damned fries. It seems that years of Nike advertising as worked: Echo Boomers Just Do It.
A few months back, Kazaa was found guilty of encouraging copyright infringments through its “Join The Revolution!” advertising campaign. It just so happens we’re in the middle of one, but Echo Boomers don’t need to be told to “Join The Revolution”.
Although we’re social animals, we just do our own thing and if it happens to coincide with a “revolution,” then so be it. The idea that someone needs to be encouraged to “Join The Revolution” assumes that young people live in some kind of existential vacume when in fact, Echo Boomers do very little without consulting their friends.
Besides, there are only two reasons why anyone goes to the Kazaa website:
1) You already know what Kazaa is, what it does and want to download it.
2) You already know what Kazaa is, how badly it performs and enjoy laughing at their advertising copy. And you have no intention of dowloading it.
Copyright holders should probably be thankful that tech-savvy Echo Boomers arn’t as violent as other revolutionaries have been throughout the ages. Battles for power are increasinly being fought with computer networks: information, disinformation, hacked databases full of exposed secrets and compromised security systems.
Corporations are the “nouveau bourgeois” and this revolution will be just like the French one of 1789, except with fewer decapitations.
Power is being taken from those who have abused it and returned to the masses.
Unfortutately, Echo Boomers are so good at filtering advertising and ignoring stupid laws that there’s a very real danger that this younger generation won’t be able to enjoy these traits in the future. Unless we start playing by the old systems a bit, all the worst type of predictions of the future may come true. Things like your inability to write an email client without paying patent royalties, your right to hold a private conversation, the game mod you’re allowed to play, the server you can use without going to jail, the format you can store your digital music on.
Imagine everything that can now be done with the internet. Now imagine that you can’t do it any more. You have to stop that becoming a reality, because the alternative means missing out on the benefits brought by the most technologically advanced society to ever exist on our small planet.
Write a letter, send a fax or email, call someone up and let them know you’re not happy - your elected representatives are a good start. Seen a bogus statement quoted as “fact” by the mainstream media outlets? Send ‘em an email telling them they’re wrong and CC your frineds in while your at it. Let them know that if you’re going to be spending the rest of your life in this rapidly changing world, you’re not going let it be shaped by some corporate lawyers to suit the interests of big business.
Make this your little mission for 2006 and get the message out before it’s too late. Just Do It!
Alex H, p2pnet - Sydney, Australia
[Alex is an operations manager for an ATM (automatic teller machine) supplier and he specialises in infrastructure development and maintenance, and logistics. He’s also an[other] active member of the Shareaza community. He’s also just started his own blog. Good on ya, Alex]
Tired of being treated like a criminal? They depend on you, not the other way around. Don’t buy their ‘product’. Do bug your local political representatives. Use emails, snail-mail, phone calls, faxes, IM, stop them in the street, blog. And if you’re into organizing, organize petitions, organize demonstrations and then turn up on your local political rep’s doorstep, making sure you’ve contacted your local tv/radio station/newspaper in advance.
January 4th, 2006 at 2:53 pm
I’m 38 years old and, I work at the forefront of many innovations. By trade, I am a computer programmer. However, I have my associates degree in electronics engineering. I have no formal education in computer science, and I am not Microsoft certified. My job title is Integration Technician (I cannot even be called what I am). I have seen time and time again where smart, talented people are held down from reaching their potential simply because they do not belong to the Bachelors Degree Club. When I want to learn something in the past, I got a book and educated myself. Now, I use the Internet and get the same knowlege for free.
I find that this way of learning provides a much better education than what one gets at the so called education institutions. I know that Jon will agree with me on this point because he educates his daughter at home. IMHO (in my humble opinion,) the education cartels are going to go the same way as the media cartels. It will take much longer for the education cartels, however, because rather than persecute Internet users, it embraced them. When the web became big, the education cartel recognized it for the gold mine it was. It offered online courses.
If the media cartels do not strangle the Internet with a bunch of new restrictions, education, entertainment, communications, and news will be improved a thousand fold. If the Internet infrastructure is bought out and restricted by the media cartels, education, entertainment, communications, and news will still be improved a thousand fold, only now it will take about five years longer because the “Echo Boomers” and hackers will have to build a new infrastructure. Work is ongoing in this area already with the proliferation of community networks, Muni-nets, FreeWans, and sneakernets. The cat is out of the bag so to speak, and it will be next to impossible to get the cat back into the bag. I urge everyone who reads this to get the book (or e-book) called, “Building Wireless Community Networks” published by O’Reilly.
Just about all of the technology required to build community networks can be bought off the shelf in regular stores or from the Internet. The remainder can be hacked together. Between buying and hacking together techology, people can build a network that serves them rather than the government - corporate masters. It is true that the “Echo Boomers” are a big part of the bloodless rebellion. It is also true that many of us “older folks” are also a part. I have written files and done some coding in order to set up local FreeWans. I live in a rural area and have no access to broadband. I use broadband in the town where I work and I bring the content home to host it on my FreeWan Cell. Others do the same.
While I have no real problems with people writing their elected representative in order to let them know that the people are not happy with the way thay have been doing business, I believe that is is better to not rely on government (as it currently exists) to make the necessary changes. I believe that it is better to inform the public (especially those who stay at home on election days because they believe that their vote makes no difference) that there are alternatives to the lamescream political parties that currently infest the government today. If you live in the Police States of America, tell those who don’t vote about the Libertarian, Constitution, Green, Reform, Socialist, Veterans and other political parties. Get them interested in any party other than the corrupt Democrat and Republican parties. Also, tell those you know about the Fully Informed Jury Association http://www.fija.org . This organization will shoe those who serve on a jury how they can nullify stupid laws and how to take back the power that has been stolen from them by the politicians and judges. http://www.fija.org is a judge’s worst nightmare. Use it.
We now have the technology to take control of our lives, and it is time we start using it. The same technology that governments and the cartels use to control and monitor us can be hacked and use to do the same to them. It is time for those who know how to use the technology to do exactly that and teach others to do the same. The slaves are restless, and the masters had better fear.
January 4th, 2006 at 2:54 pm
By the way, this was written by Cyberscan.
January 4th, 2006 at 10:01 pm
If your motto is “Just do it”, then why did you sit and watch the woman, watch the other customers and ask another woman at the front desk about it? Why didn’t you just pick them up yourself and actually do something about an easily-fixed situation? A call to action is more powerful if you lead by action, rather than by pointing out the inaction of others.
January 4th, 2006 at 11:39 pm
“…this revolution will be just like the French one of 1789, except with fewer decapitations.”
Fewer decapitations? Damn!