Terminator, The Matrix, I Robot and many other movies deal with an exciting topic of what happens when humans gain
the powers promised by a certain technology. Will the robots rebel? Could internet turn into SkyNet? Will advanced
nano technology allow building bombs that make nuclear weapons seem like sticks and stones? What about merging
ourselves with technology?
In so many ways further technological development seems akin to playing with fire and powers once only prescribed to
gods. Are we up to the challenge? Are we ready? And if not, how can we become ready? Technology could give us the power
to destroy, but it could also give us the power to create a world of unimaginable prosperity and freedom. It could be used
to enslave, but also to liberate the potential of each individual.
We need to identify the *good* uses of technology and we need to evolve our social and cultural mentality to the point
where destruction and enslavement wont even be a temptation anymore. If that ideal is an utopia, if it cannot be reached
then perhaps we are already doomed.
I used to be what is sometimes called a "Free Software purist". "Free" here refers to "free as in freedom" according to Richard Stallman's Free Software Philosophy. As such I was opposed to all proprietary software licensing. If a program doesn't come with a license that allows you those "four freedoms" (to run, modify and share both unmodified and modified versions of the program as you wish) then using it meant you don't care for your freedom and are choosing to be a "slave" to the developer.
The Nanotechnology Age is an absolutely fascinating read. As someone who believes that technology is only a natural and even inevitable outcome of simply being human I welcome it with open arms. You cannot deny a human his technology no more than you can deny a flower its bloom.
It has finally come full circle. There was a problem, whether perceived or real. Corporations were seen as intending to ruin the level playing field on the internet by starting to prioritize certain types of traffic over others. We feared that before we know it access to small and lesser known web sites and businesses that they represent would be slower and worse than access to more popular and larger web outlets. We feared that the wealthy would end up cornering the online market while completely shutting off small business.
While some politicians would have us believe the crisis is over and we're recovering I think we can never be too sure, at the very least. Respectable people who are widely credited for predicting this crisis (George Celente, Peter Schiff, Ron Paul etc.) are saying there are even worse times to come. Suffice it to say it would probably be a bad idea to go get too comfy right now and think saving and being prepared is no longer so vital.
In my recent article titled ""Intellectual Property" a Violation of Real Property" I've laid down the reasoning behind my rejection of the intellectual property idea, primarily in recognizing that it cannot exist without the medium and that in fact it is the medium itself - a specific property of the medium such are the dents arranged on the surface of a compact disc or energy patterns within the brain, and so on.
