Revolution on the internet, or will laws like SOPA and PIPA take them down?
Ever since I got my first computer, and started using a modem (Modulator-Demodulator) to dial up to other computers and communicate using BBS’s (Bulletin Board Systems), I’ve thought the next revolution, and future of politics and business would be a collaborative effort done through on-line communication. Today I believe we’ve all see the beginning of that while major Internet sites like Google, and Wikipedia, and others protested the SOPA and PIPA bills with “blackouts”.
While old school politicians continue to attempt to bow down to their old buddies on K Street to stop what they perceive to be a threat to their old way of doing business, the new and upcoming generation of internet savvy and ever connected, technology driven people let them know otherwise. In the government’s attempt to control and regulate the internet, in the name of stopping piracy and keeping us all safe from scammers, they sought the power to take down internet sites deemed as threatening. But threatening according to whom? As the new generation continues to threaten the old school establishments, we can expect to see more conflicts like this one as those in power attempt to stay in power by attaching the new ways of thinking, collaborating, communicating, and doing business.
Eventually something will have to give. Eventually the old school will grow even older and retire; moving out of the way to allow the newer generations to come into their own, and do what they know how to do best; collaborating with their friends and businesses via all sorts of electronic communications media. On-line services like Facebook, Twitter, and others will allow for new ways for people to do things such as vote. Imagine if voting was simply a matter of “liking” or supporting and discontinue support for those who represent you; making elections obsolete and participation much easier.
If a truly collaborative world government where to be formed over the internet, would it even require such divisions of power such as those found in the U.S. Constitution? True collaboration allows people to self-organize into self-governing groups that would inherently be a separation of powers, responsibilities, as well as spreading the risk to all participants; ultimately leading to a new way of dividing up the governance and power. With that in mind it seems that it would be better to “Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s“, and instead build something completely new, something better, that would let current governments and organizations stay as they are, or do as they may, while inviting them to participate within this new collaborative world government.
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