Computing Our Liberty: July 2005

Computing Our Liberty: July 2005

Victory

It's summer time folks! Well, at least for the most of us (most of Earth being mainly on the northern hemisphere). For many summer is a vacation time, but this summer may also be a celebration time. The timing is great, just before you may have picked up your suitcases you heard the great news, the battle we were all fighting for the past months is won. EU wont see software patents legalized in quite some time after this. However, while you may certainly afford yourself a nice and happy vacation there, winning a battle (however significant it may be) isn't winning the war. Software is being patented in Europe no matter if these patents aren't universally enforcable and some countries may yet legalize them. This merely means that the eyes and ears should be kept open.

It would be good idea to track the related news in your country, if you are in EU, to see what is going on and organize an opposition when software patents are to be discussed in your government body. Lobbying shouldn't just halt at this point, neither on the local nor on the global level. We're not to be silent. In a contrary, we should be louder than ever as it was our victory, our voice was heard and its power enforced. It should also serve as a textbook example of how a majority of people who are aware and who care of the important issue at hand, one threatening their rights and freedoms, do have great power if they only act together, and most importantly act at all.

In this monthly column I once mentioned MPlayer project which has announced that it may be closing its doors if software patents in EU get passed. I am happy that this didn't have to happen. Great video player software that MPlayer is, will continue its development. Now, that is just one example. There may be so many more good software that is now enabled a life instead of death. Just imagine what a deathblow could have software patents legislation give to the creative world in EU with just the mere approval (not to mention if the lawsuits started ensuing). A world with software idea patents is a creativity death zone. All we'd be left with is "assimilation" or disobedience.

US still is in this deathzone. By purging EU of software patents we might affect US to reconsider its patent policy and maybe some day dismiss it as a whole. Let us hope that the power of the people through Free Software and Free Culture continues to grow rapidly to finally wipe out the unfree world being pushed upon us these days (monstrous version of copyright, various related legislations such as DMCA, DRM, proprietary software, etc.). Let's not only hope, let's ensure that it does, together and cooperatively!

Loss

Besides the big victory over software patents, there is a significant sequence of impacting events that happened in just a few days of the month: the "make poverty history" campaign, London bombing and the G8 summit, besides the usual anti-globalisation protests.

The "make poverty history" campaign with the live 8 concert as its crowning event is yet another example of what the mass of people can acomplish together, with good organization, marketing and awareness. Although I am sure it was a success not only because of the cause it was organized for, but for the fact that it was simply plain fun for people to get involved (hey, just look how many good artists performed), it still mattered, 'cause if providing "fun" is the effective way to mobilize people to action, even indirect, then so be it. Its better than nothing. All of you are probably aware of how massive and certainly spectacular this event was, so I wont babble about that much.

The question to ask is: did it succeed? The goal was to urge G8 representatives to dismiss all of the debt to Africans. Did that happen? Well, according to my understanding of the speeches and what was said in the press conference, it actually did not happen. No, the debt doesn't seem to be canceled. The "only", although admitelly significant, progress made was doubling the aid to African countries. Should the campaigners be satisfied? I'm not sure about that. Boldly said, no, they should not and we certainly should not. According to my understanding the campaign asked for total debt cancellation, but what happened was a guarantee of "merely" doubling the existing help and just an "agreement" of ending export subsidies to African countries (with no end date specified) and sending more peacekeeping troops to Africa.

Now, is it really so hard for these almighty eight leaders to do something absolutely concrete and historical for once, and actually cancel those debts? You can talk politics all you want explaining why it just "isn't so simple" (if you will), but to hell with that. Good part of those eight countries had alot to contribute to the state in which Africa is today. Just think of mercyless colonisation, exploitation of resources and even people (slaves) and today denial of life saving medications due to the stupid patents. When you sum it all up, it is not the African people who owe debt to G8, it is G8 who owes Africans! From this perspective, the whole summit is just shameful and those anarchist protesters are right on for opposing it (no I don't condone violence that sometimes ensues there, but the protest in general I do condone).

Now you may come arguing how they did make some progress in some other areas. So, let's observe these, shall we. According to Tony Blair, they have agreed that the ecological threat exists, that it should be acted upon with urgency, that "in order to do that we have to slow down, stop and then in time reverse the rising greenhouse gas emissions" and that they "have to put in place a pathway to a new dialogue when Kyoto expires in 2012", with these being four *separate points* of agreement.

For the pete's sake, the whole freeking world knows that the ecological threat exists and that it should be acted upon with urgency as well as that emissions should be reduced. So, they're basically saying us that this message finally reached their corrupt minds?? That's just great, the world will be so much of a better place now.

All that Tony Blair speaks about is "commitments" that they made on the meeting, ones that just have to be fullfilled now. But those very "commitments" (a term he totally overuses on the press conference) are more or less meaningless compared to what they could have done. As always, it is just cold blooded politics with their interests being the paramount goal. Don't be so fooled to think that they actually do care about anything else. They're yet to really prove that.

If the next G8 is about to pass like this, I really don't want to see it. I'd rather go and join those anti-globalist protesters in opposition to it.

And you know what? The ensuing terrorism (London bombing being the most recent major example) may just be another symptom of that sick and corrupt world. As much as the sick version of capitalism grew in the western world, so did terrorism. Now I know that many of those walking demons (walking bombs actually) do what they do because of the twisted version of islam in their twisted minds, but where did that come from? The islam is not a religion that teaches this kind of violence, nor is christianity or practically any other mainstream religion. Where did this kamikaza style islam come from? And why do they increasingly target the western world? I don't have all answers, but I'm sure that the western powers aren't so innocent neither. I'll leave it at that for now. Interpret it as you wish.

However, the terrorists aren't only muslims. Terrorist actions may as much come from within the very western world. Now there is a thought. Why? Would it be so if the fair and balanced social system was achieved instead of this twisted version of capitalism? Would it be so if we were living in a Free Culture world?

Again, I don't have all answers, but the basic point I am trying to make is that nothing happens without reason, in this case provocation, and that as much as evil those terrorists were, the western powers aren't angels either. They may just turn out to be those provocators. Terrorists are not aliens attacking from space in order to take over the planet and colonize it so that we can just say that we're the poor victims and they are the evil invaders. It is just not true.

So, world's gone mad, what can ya do, right? No!

What is true though is that you can do your part for a better and more liberated world, which inevitably becomes the world liberated from such terrorism as well (in a balanced and free world there is not much fuel left to fuel the anger of terrorism).

You wont believe it, but something as trivial as simply caring about your own personal freedom and doing whatever you can to preserve it, is already doing much of your part. Support Free Culture, be aware, open minded and do care about your freedom. Don't be too gulible to believe everything you see or hear in the media, be your own self and be informed on your own initiative, don't be just a sitting duck, just a consumer. That's a small thing you can do.

Significant victory like the one over software patents in EU comes exactly out of that kind of behaviour, out of caring and awareness. Next victory for the better world can only come that way as well.

Until next time

Thank you for reading. Danijel Orsolic

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