From: popec@korova.uucp (Mr. Charlie)
Newsgroups: alt.cyberpunk.tech
Subject: Re: HEY YOU BUNCH OF MORONS
Date: Thu, 08 Oct 92 16:52:41 CDT
Organization: VHF void tube of the mind (713) 492-2783

<DXZ102@psuvm.psu.edu> writes:

> Now that I have your attention.....I'm a media historian looking into the
> newest electronic medium,  namely the computer.  Media theorist,  Harold Adam
> Innis, wrote in his "Empires and Communications," that empires are attained a
> maintained by monopolizing the commerce of infomation through controlling
> communications technology. Empires are eventually usurped by the development 
> new media, and those who master its form,  will eventually take over.
> 
> Now, this is a little weak, but it does have some historical significance. Fo
> example,  the church maintained a power hegemony throughout most of the middl
> ages because it monopolized all information,  locking up foreign works in
> monestaries akin to fortresses. They controlled all interpretation of the Bib
> and forbid reading of the "classics." They even had their own language, Latin
> which functionally excluded the general populace. When Gutenberg developed hi
> printing press, and mass produced the Bible, written in High German, the info
> mation monopoly of the church was checked. Although Gutenberg wasn't soley
> responsible for the rise of secular governments or alternative Christian
> movements,  he certainly facillited their development on the information
> processing level. He made sure the "word" was able to get out, making
> access to information greater than it ever was.
>   Now, I've heard that the computer is now liked to Guternberg's press:  its
> allowing greater access to information than ever before.  My question before
> this group is:  Those who master this new media will have considerable
> influence on the dissemination of information; will hackers or 'punks, then,
> become the new bishops? Are programming languages the new Latin, so to say?
> Even though we are talking relatively easy now,  we are still at the mercy of
> the programmer who created this system. Do you think 'punks will gain a sort 
> class consciousness and attempt to direct influence over some aspect of
> society?  How will they do it? Viruses? Hmmmmmmm................


There is a lot of information out here on "the net", but it is of low 
grade for the most part.  Control is exerted by controlling quality 
information.  For instance, large political groups who have money can 
utilize Lexus for political opposition research.  Independent candidates 
simply cannot afford this.  Lexus is quality information but beyond the 
grasp of the common man, it is simply too expensive.  To pursueyour 
Gutenberg allusion, consider "Computer Books".  These can be damnably 
expensive and go outofdate very quickly.  It is hard to afford these. 
especially for the common guy.  A big organization can affordas many as 
they need and can also afford to pay somebody to sit down and extract the 
wheat from the chaff.
  Consider also such things as 'Dialog'.   A Dialog search on technical 
subjects can be amazingly expensive.  Only Government agencies, big 
businesses and Universities can afford the more esoteric and expensive 
quality information that does exist.
Viruses, codebreaking, ect, in pther words cyberpunk fantasies offer no 
solution to the fact that the common man does not have access 
electronically to quality information.  
  It will take political action to cause the government to pay for a 
system wherein every person with a modem can access the same quality 
information that is now available to only Governments, universities and 
businesses.  But even then the single person probably would not have the 
resourtces to utilize much of it even if you had access.
  Wouldn't it be great though, to have access immediatly to any piece of 
data in the Congressional Library over you modem?
And a sophisticated database front end with AI to help you extract that 
out of all the chaff it is buryed in?  You could for instance extract 
figures corrected and weighted to tell for sure if the rich actually got 
richer during the 80's and by how much.  Great for settling political 
flame wars, whether on alt.fan.wretch-scumbag or at a prsidental 
televised debate and all points in between.
  The nation that controlls the databases controls the universe.

Pope Charles  Subgenius Pope Of Houston           Slack!

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