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Today, AlterNet launches a series of articles and investigations on fear, and how to combat it.

Today, AlterNet launches a series of articles and investigations on fear, and how to combat it.

Techdirt will go beyond the talking points & fear mongering to bring facts to the debate - and we'll go even further, creating an ad campaign that reaches millions to better educate everyone about the importance of encryption. 95%funded so far23days left $9,504raised so far Back this work *This project will only be funded if $10,000 is raised by Mar 26th, 8:52pm CET

"The impact of technological change on culture, learning, and morality has long been the subject of intense debate, and every technological revolution brings out a fresh crop of both pessimists and pollyannas. Indeed, a familiar cycle has repeat itself throughout history whenever new modes of production (from mechanized agriculture to assembly-line production), means of transportation (water, rail, road, or air), energy production processes (steam, electric, nuclear), medical breakthroughs (vaccination, surgery, cloning), or communications techniques (telegraph, telephone, radio, television) have appeared on the scene. The cycle goes something like this. A new technology appears. Those who fear the sweeping changes brought about by this technology see a sky that is about to fall. These "techno-pessimists" predict the death of the old order (which, ironically, is often a previous generation's hotly-debated technology that others wanted slowed or stopped). Embracing this new technology, they fear, will result in the overthrow of traditions, beliefs, values, institutions, business models, and much else they hold sacred. The pollyannas, by contrast, look out at the unfolding landscape and see mostly rainbows in the air. Theirs is a rose-colored world in which the technological revolution du jour is seen as improving the general lot of mankind and bringing about a better order. If something has to give, then the old ways be damned! For such "techno-optimists," progress means some norms and institutions must adapt-perhaps even disappear-for society to continue its march forward. Our current Information Revolution is no different. It too has its share of techno-pessimists and techno-optimists. Indeed, before most of us had even heard of the Internet, people were already fighting about it-or at least debating what the rise of the Information Age meant for our culture, society, and economy."

does Kurtopia need someone to mow the lawn?

no, but we do need someone to take our throm-dib-u-lator apart though

"Open source scares people. And tossing them into the deep end usually doesn't help dampen that fear. Instead, we need to help ease people into using open source. Scott Nesbitt, technology coach and writer, shares some advice to help you do that."

"Open source scares people. And tossing them into the deep end usually doesn't help dampen that fear. Instead, we need to help ease people into using open source. Scott Nesbitt, technology coach and writer, shares some advice to help you do that."

"Today, the European Court of Justice significantly curtailed the freedom to hyperlink - one of the basic building blocks of the web. Together with the new special copyright protection for news articles the European Commission is planning to propose next week, the ability of Europeans to point to things online without having to fear breaking a law is in peril. Could the following message soon be commonplace on the European internet? Read on for details."

"Today, the European Court of Justice significantly curtailed the freedom to hyperlink - one of the basic building blocks of the web. Together with the new special copyright protection for news articles the European Commission is planning to propose next week, the ability of Europeans to point to things online without having to fear breaking a law is in peril. Could the following message soon be commonplace on the European internet? Read on for details."

"At OSCON this year, Amye Scavarda and Leslie Hawthorn gave a talk entitled "Fear of Failing Fast: How to Avoid Sabotaging Your Success." I just had to attend. Here's a summary of the talk."

"e emergence of cyberspace is undoubtedly creating a wave of religious enthusiasm. Partly, the infinity that cyberspace creates, functions as an ideal mechanism for the projection of our fondest hopes and deepest fears. "

" Stress results from a wrong definition of life. For most people life stands for 'Living in Fear Everyday'."

ScienceDaily (Mar. 7, 2011) - Despite the fears of some, a new study suggests that use of the internet in general does not make people more likely to believe political rumors.

[By Julian Websdale Guest Writer for Wake Up World Surviving the Matrix Looking at the global situation from the perspective of fear is counterproductive. We need to look at it from a perspective of concern, and see the opportunity that lies in having the knowledge of the global situation. ...]

"But Cabinet Office tells Ars research results can still be used for lobbying purposes. by Glyn Moody - Feb 23, 2016 4:50pm CET"

"Sustainability and sharing isn't just some 'silly, hippy thing,' says Musk"

"After the Paris attacks late last year, we noted that it was clear that they were evidence of an intelligence community failure, rather than an "encryption" problem -- which kind of explained why the intelligence community quickly tried to blame encryption. But, as we noted, most of the attackers were already known to the intelligence community and law enforcement -- and there's still little evidence that they used any encryption. "

"After the Paris attacks late last year, we noted that it was clear that they were evidence of an intelligence community failure, rather than an "encryption" problem -- which kind of explained why the intelligence community quickly tried to blame encryption. But, as we noted, most of the attackers were already known to the intelligence community and law enforcement -- and there's still little evidence that they used any encryption. "