From: peb@netcom.com (Paul E. Baclace)
Date: Sat, 4 Jun 94 16:25:17 PDT
To: frissell@panix.com
Subject: Re: Pedophiles in Cybersp
Message-ID: <199406042325.QAA05709@netcom.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain


>From: Duncan Frissell <frissell@panix.com>

>P >of the article is "May you live in interesting times".

>This phenom is one of my big hopes for cyberspace.  

Me too.  The growth of non-centralized transfer of information will 
certainly bring about more democracy in the world (and thus, less
war).  Even the presence of large flame wars would not totally 
diminish the emergence of cooperation.  E.g., in WWI, trench warfare
dragged on because the soldiers on each side started to cooperate
in a sort of subliminal way: trench soldiers from either side would
develop a pattern of engagement that created a status quo where no
one would get killed.  This cooperation trend is eliminated by 
constantly swapping in new soldiers--this depersonifies the enemy
and makes it easier to shoot to kill.  

(I think this same effect is also seen in police beats--if the local 
cop gets really friendly, s/he starts cooperating with the people s/he 
is protecting rather than being completely objective.  From the 
"authority and control" perspective, this makes the cop corruptable.  
From the citizens perspective, this makes the cop more cooperative to 
the direct needs (however unfair--it is more personal) of the citizens.)

I mention "interesting times" since the transition to new freedoms
does not occur without a fight from the side that loses some of
its control.  Overall, the effect of personifying people's enemies 
(proportionally less slanted, centrally transmitted news) should have 
a positive impact. 


Paul E. Baclace
peb@netcom.com