The authors of the following article published in German by DER SPIEGEL and translated in today's New York Times link the mobilisation of young Germans for the peace movement and their use of SMS and the Internet. I guess the real effect of these ICTs is on the speed of mobilisation. There already was a peace movement a couple of years before anyone dreamed of the Internet. Frank Thomas The Gulf War Generation March 25, 2003 By DER SPIEGEL Most of those involved in the peace movement are young people. A genuine and simple faith in the good is taking the place of ideology. ... Last Thursday, seven hours after the start of war in Iraq, 50,000 demonstrators surged out of the U-Bahn [subway] tunnels at Alexanderplatz and the Friedrichstrasse train station. By the time the police, who were taken by surprise, managed to block access to all vehicular traffic, the young peace marchers had already arrived at the Brandenburg Gate. ... The effects of ideological disarmament on the new protest culture vary. ... In Leipzig where 30,000 people are once again routinely coming to the Monday Demonstrations, Pastor Christian Führer had to explain to the newcomers that one does not make telephone calls or applaud in a House of God. ... Professional guidance and support is only requested from the organizers. ... The basic data can be accessed on their Internet Web pages - the rest is done through the demonstrators’ own means of communication. This new form of mass movement would be inconceivable without the Internet, cell phones, or SMS. And when like-minded people from Tokyo, Sydney, and Rome penetrate the Berlin youth scene via e-mail chain letters, you get the feeling they’re helping turn the political setscrews on an international level. ... STEFAN BERG, ALEXANDER KÜHN, CAROLINE SCHMIDT http://www.nytimes.com/2003/03/25/international/europe/25SPIEGEL.html?ex=104...