[LINK] Forget far-right populism – crypto-anarchists are the new masters

[Bernard Robertson-Dunn]

<brd>
For those of us around when the graphical browser became available and
the Internet really started to grow, it's interesting to see how the
early optimistic dreams of freedom and liberation have been hijacked.

Or maybe the correct observation is that the technophiles have been
proven to be totally wrong in their predictions and expectations.

And maybe there's a lesson here for those predicting the rise of AI and
self driving cars.
</brd>

Forget far-right populism – crypto-anarchists are the new masters

Many are concerned about the internet’s role in politics. But more
worrying is the digital tsunami poised to engulf us, as machine
intelligence and a rising tech elite radically restructure life as we
know it
The Guardian
Jamie Bartlett
8 June 2017
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/jun/04/forget-far-right-populism-crypto-anarchists-are-the-new-masters-internet-politics


Those who mistakenly thought 2016 was an anomaly, a series of
unprecedented events, should have few remaining doubts. Marine Le Pen
may have stuttered but still picked up almost 11 million votes. Her
opponent, the “normal” candidate, was leader of a party only one year
old. The ongoing terror attacks, fake news panic, Trump’s tweets and
James Comey: last year never really ended, it just carried straight on
into this one.

After decades of exaggerated prediction, the internet is finally
transforming politics, but not in the way the digital prophets expected.
The 90s, you may recall, were awash with optimism about our online
future: limitless information and total connection would make us more
informed, less bigoted and kinder citizens. But the internet is an
overwhelming mess of competing facts, claims, blogs, data, propaganda,
misinformation, investigative journalism, charts, different charts,
commentary and reportage. It’s not the slow and careful politicians who
have thrived in this busy environment, it’s the people with the
shareable cut-through messages. Donald Trump might very well be the
first truly social-media politician: his emotion-filled, simplistic
blasts are perfect for the medium.

As a result, society is currently gripped by a curious consensus: that
the internet has conspired with rightwing populists to sew up the future
of politics. Noting the emergence of populist strongmen and demagogues,
who seem to be digital wizards like recovering Twitter addict Trump, and
violent opponents who seem only to bolster their support, many are
comparing – with a certain grim fascination – our current turbulence
with the 1930s. That is a very short-term view of things. The supremacy
of the populist right is not the inevitable future. The rise of the
right is better seen as an early skirmish in a much longer, and far more
significant, technology-led restructuring of our politics and society.
Digital technology has helped the populist right for now, but it will
soon swallow them up, along with many other political movements unable
or unwilling to see how the world is changing.

... etc, etc

-- 

Regards
brd

Bernard Robertson-Dunn
Sydney Australia
email: brd at iimetro.com.au
web:   www.drbrd.com
web:   www.problemsfirst.com
Blog:  www.problemsfirst.com/blog