[MD] Dawkins a Materialist (is watching?)

[William Robinson]

Case Writes:
I have read his "Free Culture" and
"The Future of Ideas" I highly recommend them.

I likewise recommend all of Lessigs books.  There are 4, I believe.  He has
an extremely popular blog as well. The second edition of one of his titles
in now under going revisions for a new edition.  Anyone can participate in
the re write.  He is going to republish it as open source.  He, lessig will
act as the Editor to whatever the public submits for the rewrite.  Get the
details from his blog.  Access the blog quick through Technorati.com
robbie


On 1/21/07, Case <Case at ispots.com> wrote:
>
> Mark,
>
> I really have not idea what you thesis is here so disregard my comments.
> I was interested in this side note:
>
> Mark 20-01-7: I don't claim to be computer savvy, but i hear those who
> have
> an idealist view of the net wish to make it as democratic as possible by
> making the net itself the server with each computer acting as an element
> in
> the whole server?
> In this sense it would be more like a brain.
> You may know more about this Case?
> I don't even know if this is feasible, but if it were so, would not the
> Genie be out of the bottle?
> And if this is so, the organisation of the World brain would be a Dynamic
> function with static elements?
>
> [Case]
> A big chunk of the internet was originally designed to insure its survival
> in the event of nuclear war. The military wanted it so that if parts got
> blown up other parts would function. The other great contributors to the
> early network were academics who wanted a way to freely communicate.
>
> As a result the system was made open. The network itself did little of
> nothing to monitor or control what was passed across it. All security and
> processing takes place at the end points. What makes the internet so much
> fun is that it is open and decentralized.
>
> So in a way it is more like a nervous system with lots of brains. It was
> at
> its most open and democratic pre-Napster. Napster merely showed the public
> an easy way to do what all the computer savvy folks had figured out how to
> do long before. That is exchange information that you are not supposed to
> exchange. There are ongoing efforts to close this system, to monitor
> traffic
> and enforce order. The most obnoxious attempts involve attempts to stop
> child pornography. No one supports kiddie porn types. Any sensible person
> would like to see the problem surgically removed. But using this emotional
> reaction certain powerful interests have been able to begin a legal
> process
> for monitoring and invading the privacy of regular folks. I mean who would
> be against modest restriction? Are you guilty of something? Are you a
> child
> molester?
>
> But so far so good, the internet exceeds my wildest expectations. In
> seconds
> I can find out about anything. I can access nearly any book, movie, song
> or
> program ever written. I am in awe. I first saw the possibility of this in
> about 1982 on an Apple IIe with a 300 baud modem. I connected to a local
> bulletin board and downloaded Apple Panic or some similar game and I
> thought. This is a whole 'nuther ball game.
>
> When William Gibson coined the term Cyberspace it was science fiction.
> Today
> I live there. It is a beautiful thing. What you are asking for is already
> here. You should be more concerned with preserving it. Lawrence Lessig has
> written eloquently and passionately about this. His first book "Code" is
> about the development of the internet. I have read his "Free Culture" and
> "The Future of Ideas" I highly recommend them. Oddly enough an example of
> the utter coolness of the net just happened. I suddenly realized that it
> was
> easier to Google Lessig than to look over at my book shelf and scan for
> his
> titles. What does than mean?
>
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