*** Democracies Online Newswire - http://www.e-democracy.org/do *** Check out the 830 people on the "boycott_the_pumps" e-mail list. If you join as a web only subscriber you can view the message archive: http://www.egroups.com/messages/boycott_the_pumps The description: http://www.egroups.com/group/boycott_the_pumps This e-group is an independent platform to discuss issues related to lowering the outrageous tax on fuel in the UK. The views and opinions contained here are the views and opinions of everyday people and not those of the Boycott The Pumps group. Hence this group is moderated by independent moderators, who shall make every effort, that discussions are held in a mature and responsible manner. This group supports Boycott The Pumps and makes every effort to ensure that any good ideas are passed on to the Boycott The Pumps team. Support BTP at : http://www.boycott-the-pumps.com Also see: http://www.lesstaxonfuel.co.uk - Protest news http://www.petrolbusters.com - Fuel finder http://www.lowerfueltax.co.uk - Great links page And: http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/1/13237.html The UK fuel crisis: all thanks to the Internet By: Kieren McCarthy Posted: 13/09/2000 at 17:30 GMT Well, two tankers complete with whirring police escort have gone down Regent Street in the last hour, Tony Blair's pledge to have it all sorted within 24 hours is blown, the petrol pumps are still dry and it looks like we've got a top-notch crisis on our hands. And we love it. A good percentage of the UK never lived through the Blitz but that mentality has permeated the collective British subconscious. The chips are down and secretly we're all dying for some hardship. If this goes on for another two days, pianos will start appearing in local pubs and we'll all be having a right old knees-up. Talk to your granny now - she's got the inside track. What has this all to do with IT? Everything. If it weren't for mobile phones and the Internet it seems unlikely that such a protest would ever have happened. Old-style protests consisted of getting as many people together in one place as possible. This would never have worked for this petrol crisis. Instead, by communicating and organising over the Internet, anyone anywhere is able to keep up to date and the accumulation of knowledge enabled smaller groups to protest outside depots and effectively cut off the petrol lifeline. In this situation, the Internet is a truly terrifying tool for the government. People no longer rely on controllable, issue-led media or rumour for their information. Instead they get it straight from the horse's mouth and in real time. The collective feeling of anger at having the highest petrol price in the world is also bolstering those picketing. - end clip - *** Please send submissions to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] *** *** To subscribe, e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] *** *** Message body: SUB DO-WIRE *** *** To unsubscribe instead, write: UNSUB DO-WIRE *** *** Please forward this post to others and encourage *** *** them to subscribe to the free DO-WIRE service. ***
