Not about safe for children, but safe to do traverse, transact and explore. See abstract below to a forthcoming paper.
----------------------------- Every economy requires a physical, institutional and legal infrastructure, as well as understandable and enforceable marketplace rules, in order to function smoothly. The building of such an infrastructure, which provides trust and confidence for all those who operate in or are affected by it, is a necessary condition for the development and efficient functioning of a global, digital economy. While the Internet is often said to be different; in one important respect it is like all previous infrastructures: a system of governance, oversight and sanctions are needed if the Internet is to live up to its full potential. The presentation also indicates one possible enormous cost which could result if the global Internet economy has to deal with growing distrust: A move away from open online networks to closed networks or back to some amalgam of the bricks and mortar world. The Internet is an open network where there is no outside body that can administer sanctions. It appears to be unique in commercial history. One characteristic of the public Internet is that, since it consists of many thousands of autonomous networks spanning a large number of jurisdictions, it has no well defined "they". There is no global oversight body (a "they") that can intervene when wrongdoing occurs. Drawing upon the lessons of history and historical analogies, the presentation outlines the uniqueness and fragility of our current situation and emphasizes the need for international action to provide remedies. For the Internet to achieve its maximum social and political potential, there will have to be agreed upon and effective rules of the road. There is a need for effective governance, both nationally and globally. From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of michael gurstein Sent: Saturday, February 06, 2010 2:24 PM To: 'RE-DESIGNING WORK, INCOME DISTRIBUTION, EDUCATION' Subject: Re: [Futurework] FW: [p2p-research] Santa Fe Institute economist:one in four Americansis employed to guard the... As well of course, there are those who rather dislike the somewhat anarchistic nature of online discourse and who (in the currently fashionable jargon) look to create a "moral panic" sufficient to justify making the net safe for "the children" or to control "piracy on the electronic high seas"... through various kinds of over-reaching draconian moves (think airport security... MBG -----Original Message----- From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Arthur Cordell Sent: Sunday, February 07, 2010 12:02 AM To: 'RE-DESIGNING WORK, INCOME DISTRIBUTION,EDUCATION' Subject: Re: [Futurework] FW: [p2p-research] Santa Fe Institute economist:one in four Americansis employed to guard the... With increasing distrust on the net (arising from concern with identity theft, cybercrime, etc.etc.) we will see increasing amounts of energy and labour devoted trying to make the net a safe place to do business. This is one of the costs of distrust. arthur From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of michael gurstein Sent: Saturday, February 06, 2010 4:17 AM To: 'RE-DESIGNING WORK, INCOME DISTRIBUTION, EDUCATION' Subject: [Futurework] FW: [p2p-research] Santa Fe Institute economist: one in four Americansis employed to guard the... -----Original Message----- From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Kevin Carson Sent: Saturday, February 06, 2010 3:57 PM To: [email protected] Subject: [p2p-research] Santa Fe Institute economist: one in four Americansis employed to guard the... Sent to you by Kevin Carson via Google Reader: Santa <http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/UTD9Jx3Y874/santa-fe-inst itute-e.html> Fe Institute economist: one in four Americans is employed to guard the wealth of the rich via Boing Boing <http://www.boingboing.net/> by Cory Doctorow on 2/5/10 Here's a fascinating profile on radical Santa Fe Institute economist Samuel Bowles, an empiricist who says his research doesn't support the Chicago School efficient marketplace hypothesis. Instead, Bowles argues that the wealth inequality created by strict market economics creates inefficiencies because society has to devote so much effort to stopping the poor from expropriating the rich. He calls this "guard labor" and says that one in four Americans is employed to in the sector -- labor that could otherwise be used to increase the nation's wealth and progress. <http://craphound.com/images/Newchartguardlabor.jpg> The greater the inequalities in a society, the more guard labor it requires, Bowles finds. This holds true among US states, with relatively unequal states like New Mexico employing a greater share of guard labor than relatively egalitarian states like Wisconsin. The problem, Bowles argues, is that too much guard labor sustains "illegitimate inequalities," creating a drag on the economy. All of the people in guard labor jobs could be doing something more productive with their time--perhaps starting their own businesses or helping to reduce the US trade deficit with China. Guard labor supports what one might call the beat-down economy. Community Action's Porter sees it all the time. "We have based almost everything we have done on the idea that we always need a part of our workforce that is marginalized--that we can call this group into action at any time, pay them nothing and they will do anything that needs to be done," she says. More discouraging, perhaps, is the statistical fact that a person born into this workforce has little chance of rising beyond it. Born Poor? <http://sfreporter.com/stories/born_poor/5339/all/> (via MeFi <http://metafilter.com> ) Previously: * China's <http://www.boingboing.net/2009/02/02/chinas-labor-unrest.html#previouspost> labor unrest worse than suspected - Boing Boing * Which <http://www.boingboing.net/2009/03/13/which-side-are-you-o.html#previouspost > Side Are You On? Explaining what happened to labor in ... * Questions <http://www.boingboing.net/2009/12/07/questions-from-econo.html#previouspost > from economics honors exam at Oberlin College Boing Boing * EVE <http://www.boingboing.net/2008/10/02/eve-onlines-economis.html#previouspost > Online's economist speaks -- economics as an experimental ... * Max <http://www.boingboing.net/2009/01/09/max-keisers-curmudge.html#previouspost > Keiser's curmudgeonly TV economics show: the Oracle - Boing Boing * Mackerel <http://www.boingboing.net/2008/10/03/mackerel-economics-i.html#previouspost > economics in prison - Boing Boing * Economics <http://www.boingboing.net/2007/09/07/economics-of-malware.html#previouspost > of Malware - Boing Boing * MP3s <http://www.boingboing.net/2006/03/31/mp3s-from-economics-.html#previouspost > from "Economics of Open Content" conference - Boing Boing * Boing <http://www.boingboing.net/2007/07/20/psychology_design_an.html#previouspost > Boing: Psychology, design and economics of slot-machines <http://ads.pheedo.com/click.phdo?s=2bbbfb2f471bdfa1382c7f0a2b2770fc&p=1> <http://a.rfihub.com/eus.gif?eui=2226> <http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/boingboing/iBag/~4/UTD9Jx3Y874> Things you can do from here: * Subscribe <http://www.google.com/reader/view/feed%2Fhttp%3A%2F%2Ffeeds.boingboing.net% 2Fboingboing%2FiBag?source=email> to Boing Boing using Google Reader * Get started using Google <http://www.google.com/reader/?source=email> Reader to easily keep up with all your favorite sites
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