So before I was a lawyer I was an engineer, and most of my friends are still engineers. One of the things that I noticed then and still notice now is that tech people think they're special. They think that their problems are somehow qualitatively different from all the other problems that society has ever faced. They are simultaneously optimists (we can build anything!) and pessimists (we have no hope of influencing the system!). They are both self-centered (our things are the most important things!) and convinced of their own impotence (nobody cares about the things we do!). Indeed, this article exudes of "we're special!"

If tech people want a world with sensible tech laws, the first thing they have to do is internalize one simple fact: computer tech isn't special. It's no different, in the grand scheme of things, than petrochemical refining or agriculture. It's just one specialized problem domain within a larger society.

That realization is simultaneously humbling and empowering. If tech is the same as everything else, then that means the same social tools that work for everything else can be leveraged to work for tech! And that means (c), lots and lots of (c).

But not just (c), even though (c) is the starting step. Ultimately, through (c) you can do (b). For example, a judge isn't a domain expert in petro-chemical refining either, but they make rulings on petro-chemical refining all the time and it works more or less well. That's because the system is structured so as to not require judges to be experts in everything. It is structured so people versed in a specific problem domain, be it petro-chemical refining or code, can explain in plain terms the moving parts of his case, and the judge, generally a highly intelligent person, can make decisions based on those explanations. And ultimately, through (c) you get to (a). Ultimately, the burden is on tech people to convince the public at large to care about the things that they care about.

I've used this example elsewhere, but I think it's a really important one. The tech industry complains up and down about its inability to fight the "big money" of the media companies. Yet, the entire U.S. movies and music industry put together are about $50 billion in domestic revenue per year, or equivalent to just Apple's revenues in just one quarter. You're telling me that the tech industry can't fight the "big money" of an industry that's a fraction of its size? Please! Another example: Apple's revenues and profits are about the same as Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and JP Morgan Chase combined. Tech isn't the skinny schoolboy getting picked on by the big kids--it's the behemoth. The only sector that can compare is the petro-chemical sector.

We live in a democracy. In a democracy, you can't just sit around waiting for everyone else to realize how wonderful and special you are and legislate to further your interests. You have to integrate. You have to participate in the political process. You have to explain to policymakers the moving parts of your industry, and you have to convince the public to care about the things you care about. And you have to accept that the policy makers sometimes will not agree with you (because they're balancing a broader array of interests than just your own), and you'll have to accept that the public won't necessarily buy into your worldview. But when that happens it's not an excuse to take your marbles and go home.

For a contra-example, look at environmental legislation. Environmentalists have been incredibly successful considering there is very little money behind the movement, and that the people on the opposing side of the table are petro-chemical giants, each of which are 2-10x as large as the entire domestic media industry that tech people think are too monied to be overcome. Yet they have been remarkably successful given those odds! Why? Because they don't hole themselves up in ivory towers. They participate in the political process. They translate their value systems into things that perk up the ears of politicians (this environmental bill might cost a few jobs, but it will be more than made up for by the avoided health costs from the reduction in pollution!) Jobs, costs, etc. Those are things politicians care about, and indeed those are the things they're elected to care about! Sometimes, they even fight dirty. They participate in the war that is living in a democratic society with competing factions.