The fight might lose us the freedom.

I just finished reading a really interesting article about George Hotz, the hacker who broke into the iPhone and Sony Playstation.  Brilliant kid.  I have a soft spot for people who can break into things, fix things, make things.  My husband is an engineer. But, when Sony sued Hotz in retaliation, the incident became a trigger for a hacker war.  Anonymous, the code hacking group, came to Hotz's defense.

So, reiterating my interest in folks who can break into things, fix things, and make things, I have been following Anonymous online for ages, intially because they supported Wikileaks and Julian Assange, and, then subsequently, because they were interesting in and of themselves as a force in world politics - or, at least, corporate politics - and started supporting the Occupy movement.  I watched almost in real time as they shut down this or that website and broke into this or that server and, then, boasted about it all on twitter.  From my point of view, it seems that there is very little a government or a corporation can do to stop a dedicated hacker or group of hackers from breaking in.  At least right now.

I keep wondering at the silliness of my interest in these groups.  I am a mildly responsible adult, wife, mother of one, a theatre artist, and, from time to time, political activist of the smallest sort.  I will show up for protests and walk around calmly.  If pushed, I will carry a sign.  I will sign petitions.  But don't ask me to be an operative in some crazy scheme to blow up garbage cans in Dundas Square.  I do not believe that violence solves anything.  Violence is unjustifiable.  However, I do believe that non-violent civil disobedience is part of the democratic process.

I have to admit I was very much into Anonymous at first.  And still, to some extent, am now.  I am intrigued, for example, what will happen tomorrow.  Anonymous have called for a worldwide general strike on May Day.  Will there be a large response?  Will folks simply not go to work?  No idea.  Now, as a mommy, I am not allowed a day off but I will be watching with interest to see what happens tomorrow.

So what could be bothering me about Anonymous?  Again, I have to admit that I, sometimes, wish I could lend a hand.  I feel (perhaps perversely) good when a large corporations are proven so vulnerable in such a public face as a website.  But, of course, I cannot be of any assistance.  I don't even know what half their posts mean.  So, I watch.

And I am relieved that I cannot help.  When Anonymouse or Lulzsec, a splinter hacker group, broke into Sony's servers and compromised the personal information of thousands of folks, I was dismayed.  To me, this is the difference between toilet papering a house and breaking in to steal the silverware while the family sleeps upstairs.  Yuk.  I don't like it.  I know no one got hurt.  But if some unscrupulous member gets a hold of this information, a lot of folks could be robbed.  And that is, in my opinion, a violent act.  It crosses the line.  Take on the corporations all you want but leave folks like me alone.

And, I am worried.  Anonymous call themselves legion but the real legion are folklets like me.  Folks who get scared.  Why is this an issue?

The government will start to capitalize on our fear.  What if the real legion stops supporting the fight against initiatives to control and lock down the Internet?  What if the real legion stops because they perceive the current Internet environment to be unsafe?  If the Occupy movement had turned violent, for example, I am sure a lot of folks would stop quietly supporting it from their couches and their kitchen tables.  And so, too, those folks will stop quietly supporting Anonymous and other hacker groups.

I hope I am wrong but I am starting to think that Anonymous might be the excuse the government is looking for to lock down the Internet even as Anonymous fights to keep it free.  And, sadly, that lockdown will hurt us all.


Jacqui Burke is a freelance director, writer, and theatrical teacher living in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.  She is currently directing Wrong for Each Other for Encore Productions opening in April, Kidsplay 2012:  The Mayan Prediction opening in June, and The Last Five Years for TOKL Productions opening in July.  She is, also, serializing The Pretender, her first novel, online at http://thepretender-amarcienoelnovel.blogspot.ca/.  She is preparing for two Shakespeare is Boffo! summer camp sessions for 2012.

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