-Caveat Lector-
http://www.infoanarchy.org
Mission statement
What this site is about:
Reviews of File Sharing / Anonymity Tools
Announcements of New Releases
Ideas and Concepts
Legal Proceedings, Statements and other Relevant News
Viewpoints
...
Why we are here:
In the past centuries, technological progress has exponentially increased
our ability to communicate. First there were one-to-many media: orators,
priests in churches. Then came the few-to-many media: newspapers, radio, TV.
In both environments it was possible to control the flow of information and
to treat information as "property", as if it were something scarce like any
other good offered on the free market.
With the rise of the Internet, many-to-many communication became possible.
Everyone can reach everyone, theoretically at least. In a "many-to-many"
environment, "intellectual property" laws can no longer be enforced without
controlling any information exchanged between any two persons or groups.
This cannot be automated since automats cannot be taught the difference
between "good information" and "bad information", there are too many false
positives and false negatives, as porn filters clearly show (although porn
should be easier to control since there are so many people who claim to
recognize it when they see it -- have you ever met someone who recognizes
copyrighted content when he sees it?) . Additionally, in a restrictive
environment, users will find ways to disguise "improper" information as
"proper" information.
So you would need nearly one human "watcher" for each user, since you would
have to control them all of the time.
This is, obviously, impossible.
The only way to enforce "intellectual property" in such an environment is
therefore by changing the environment back to what it was before, i.e. by
turning back time. This is what the industry is currently trying to do. By
outlawing hyperlinks and peer-to-peer sharing software, they are effectively
trying to pull us back from many-to-many to few-to-many. They would like the
Internet to be just TV with some extra features.
This is, obviously, in violation of the First Amendment, other national free
speech laws, and the internationally guaranteed right to freedom of speech.
It is also, obviously, extremely stupid and dangerous. Mass media were
utilized in some of the most atrocious crimes in human history, from the
crusades to the Holocaust to, in more recent times, the genocide in Rwanda
and the massacres in East Timor. People were manipulated to believe that
their lives and lives of others were in immediate danger ("Pagans rape
women, kill children", "Jews rape women, kill children", "Tutsi rape women,
kill children" ..). This is very effective, since mass media enjoy a very
high credibility. What they report is perceived as true, especially when
there are no alternative sources.
How do you want to tell whether a genocide is really happening -- which
would require intervention -- or whether its portrayal is just an attempt to
manipulate you in some direction or another, with most or all information
sources in the hands of very few people? The answer is that you can't.
This is not only dangerous for the freedom of the general population, but
also for those in power. For without freedom of speech of the masses,
important information will not find its way to them. Any environment that
restricts thinking of the powerless will also restrict thinking of the
powerful, in a sort of feedback effect that is inevitable. Had Hitler gotten
the nuclear bomb, the world would be a pile of debris today. It was, to some
degree, pure chance, that he didn't (it was also the result of Hitler's own
restriction of freedom of speech) as was the nuclear arms race in the Cold
War. In the long term, everyone is the victim when freedom of speech is
restricted.
Take the Greenhouse Effect as another example: Instead of reducing CO2
emissions, companies pay PR flacks to say that it doesn't exist, produce
pseudo-scientific videos, bribe mainstream media to print/not to print
certain stories, etc. etc. Or the effects of tobacco on health: Hundreds of
pseudo-scientific studies are produced, mass media are used as an outlet for
obvious lies, etc. In both cases, company CEOs and their children will
inevitably become the victims of their own propaganda: They will live in a
world with a depleted ozone layer, with global warming, they might get lung
cancer from smoking. Do they believe in their own lies? Yes, of course. They
have no other choice since they try to stifle the sources of all
contradicting information.
That is one reason why we need many-to-many media like the Internet, with no
central control allowing dictators or corporations to put us all in danger
and to throw us back into the Dark Ages. Most dictatorships are fully aware
of (and afraid of) the power of the Net, and that's why they are rigorously
trying to censor the Net. If we do the same, we are no better than they are.
In fact, we will become closer to them the more we do it.
And in this modern age, it becomes clearer than ever that copyright is
nothing but a special type of censorship, enforced by the government.
We may only have one chance.
So we must fight vigorously against any and all attempts to restrict
information freedom on the Net and elsewhere. We must work together to
develop the tools that are necessary to protect freedom of speech. Of
course, we must also make this new future attractive for everyone, with new
means to compensate the producers of information. Perhaps this requirement
for monetary compensation is only a transitional step before we step into a
new information economy, but in any case, it is a required step.
We, the infoanarchists, must be the best-informed, the best-organized. This
site is one attempt to organize our efforts better. We want to share news
about new tools and important happenings, we want to propose ideas and
discuss them, and to review what's already there. We will also try to
develop a very extensive collection of links (see resources). More is in the
making.
Don't forget one thing: This site depends on your input. If you're a coder,
you can alert us of new releases of your software. If you watch the media,
feel free to submit interesting stories. If you have an interesting idea,
let's discuss it! If you're just playing around with the tools, how about an
extensive review of the latest ones? You decide what gets posted (except for
the pieces that the Editors vote up because of perceived importance).
The future is ours if we cooperate. Let's take this chance.
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DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER
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CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic
screeds are unwelcomed. Substance�not soap-boxing�please! These are
sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'�with its many half-truths, mis-
directions and outright frauds�is used politically by different groups with
major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought.
That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and
always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no
credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply.
Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector.
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