Libertarianism and Programmers / Techies
I've heard, in Lessig's book "code" and informally in conversation about the link between free-market secularism / Libertarianism and programmers / technologists. Are there good resources that addresse how this link historically evolved and why it happened? (If it, in face, did?). Ericka Menchen Trevino Graduate Student University of Illinois at Chicago Department of Communication http://blog.erickamenchen.net/
It probably goes back farther, but the earliest take on it that is in not bored with brian elwell's Silicon Breakdown. http:// www.notbored.org/silicon.html, but I also have 50 other documents that mention some relation between the two ideas. I would tend to argue that it arises in the technological critiques of the late 50's through early 70's as a difference between the IBM and related type of computing and the university computing and its derivatives in startups, and similar institutions. On Apr 20, 2006, at 11:05 PM, Ericka Menchen Trevino wrote:
I've heard, in Lessig's book "code" and informally in conversation about the link between free-market secularism / Libertarianism and programmers / technologists. Are there good resources that addresse how this link historically evolved and why it happened? (If it, in face, did?).
Ericka Menchen Trevino Graduate Student University of Illinois at Chicago Department of Communication
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I've heard, in Lessig's book "code" and informally in conversation about the link between free-market secularism / Libertarianism and programmers / technologists. Are there good resources that addresse how this link historically evolved and why it happened? (If it, in face, did?).
Ericka Menchen Trevino Graduate Student University of Illinois at Chicago Department of Communication
http://blog.erickamenchen.net/ _______________________________________________ The air-l@listserv.aoir.org mailing list is provided by the Association of Internet Researchers http://aoir.org Subscribe, change options or unsubscribe at: http://listserv.aoir.org/listinfo.cgi/air-l-aoir.org
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One concrete link is John Perry Barlow and his famous "Declaration of the Independence of Cyberspace" (1996). As a lyrics writer for the Grateful Dead and good libertarian Wyoming rancher, while also co-founder of the Electronic Freedom Foundation, Barlow was (is?) a prominent and influential spokesperson for this collocation of views. Ann Willis (University of Canberra, Australia), both in her PhD thesis and in " NERDY NO MORE: A case study of early Wired (1993-96)" (Electronic Journal of Communication / La Revue Electronique de Communication, Vol. 12, nos. 3-4) nicely documents how Wired magazine expresses the predominantly libertarian views of its predominantly white male, middle-to-upper class readership - many of whom, presumably, included programmers / technologists in Silicon Valley (and elsewhere). I'm sure someone(s) has done a more extensive and careful study, but hope these bits off the top of my very superficial head are of some use. cheers - and please share what you find! - cX Charles Ess Distinguished Research Professor, Interdisciplinary Studies <http://www.drury.edu/gp21> Drury University 900 N. Benton Ave. Voice: 417-873-7230 Springfield, MO 65802 USA FAX: 417-873-7435 Home page: http://www.drury.edu/ess/ess.html Co-chair, CATaC'06: http://www.catacconference.org Co-chair, ECAP'06: http://www.eu-cap.org Professor II, Globalization and Applied Ethics Programmes Norwegian University of Science and Technology NO-7491 Trondheim, Norway http://www.anvendtetikk.ntnu.no/pres/bridgingcultures.php Exemplary persons seek harmony, not sameness. -- Analects 13.23
Well in my vaguest memories of the olden days, I understood the 'war' was between IBM and DEC. I think to tease it out I would start with 'Hackers' by Steven Levy where the libertarian ethic is considered as part and parcel of hackers - based at MIT on the PDP 11's. In the PC world, it was carried on by DOS vs. CP/M - then between IBM and pretty much the rest of the computing world, and then along came Apple! Ok, early stuff is accessible at: Frieberger, P. and M. Swaine (1999[1984]). Fire in the valley: The making of the personal computer. Berkeley, CA, Osborne/McGraw-Hill. Denise N. Rall, Ph.D. submitted, School of Environ. Science, Southern Cross University, Lismore NSW 2480 AUSTRALIA Tuesdays: Room T2.12, +61 (0)2 6620 3577 or Mobile 0438 233 344 http://www.scu.edu.au/schools/rsm/staff/pages/drall/index.html Virtual member, Cybermetrics Group, University of Wolverhampton, UK http://cybermetrics.wlv.ac.uk/index.html
participants (4)
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Charles Ess -
Denise N. Rall -
Ericka Menchen Trevino -
Jeremy Hunsinger