we could put all the hundreds of thousands of computers we throw away every year in the classrooms. we could give every kid a computer. we could put linux on all of them. we could guarantee an unprecedented evolution of contributions and understanding of the basics of an information world. we could give birth to a new system of free software and free information. we could demand the right of corporate and political disclosure. the right of anonymity. the right of access. the right of distribution. the right of equal education. the right of equal opportunity. the right to remain autonomous – and to elect to join a political/social/economic structure on our own terms. the right to not consume. the right to be – to not be bombarded incessantly with advertisements whose sole purpose is to tell us we are not happy with what we have. thousands upon thousands of advertisements telling us how we are not content. removing us from a state of perception and physicality to one of desire. and this is sold as if it is a public service (by the mega-companies who make our culture). we could demand the right to not be bombarded with advertisements. remove brand names from everything you own. don’t buy things with brand names prominently displayed and then remove them. remove the tags, the stickers, the buttons. put blank stickers over any brand names you can not remove. paint them out. cut them down. people who steal hood ornaments are doing us all a favor. melt them for their metal. we are assaulted every second by a barrage of advertisements and brand names (which are only advertisements). i demand the right to be. the right to not be forcefully reminded of how terrible my life is without this or that product. the right to sit on the beach without planes flying banners across my horizon. the right to ride in a bus without mini-billboards. the right to sit in my home without seeing a thousand brand names plastered over everything. the right to read articles without various web banners and full page pullout sections (check out some web ad blockers that seem to work with varying degrees of success – why download ads – it is your computer right?). the right to come home to my house and not have flyers cluttering my porch. the right not only to the full disclosure of corporate and government organizations, but also the right to be able to choose not to participate. i not only want to know that viacom now owns cbs, mtv, nickelodeon, vh1, tvland, shotime, the movie channel, tnn, cmt, home team sports, midwest sports channel, 34 televison stations, eyemark entertainment, king world productions, paramount television, viacom productions, spelling television, paramount pictures, paramount home video, blockbuster video, simon & schuster publishing, five theme parks and interests in comedy central, the sundance channel, united paramount network, united international pictures, and infinity broadcasting (which operates 163 radio stations). i also demand the right to not be force fed a single advertisement or media production that viacom produces. (and viacom is only the third largest media giant behind time warner and walt disney.) i want to know every product made by philip morris, by procter & gamble, by r.j. reynolds. i want to have a choice to live my life without increasing the power of mega-media truth makers who push mega-companies products as staples. i want to know every country we sold arms to and what they were. i want to know every record the united states government has on me. i demand the right of anonymity.
information warfare