Why the "Open Data Movement" is a Joke - 0 views
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simonmart on 02 May 12Two recent announcements from Canada prompt my mood this morning: Canada Joins International Open Government Partnership Conservative Cuts put half of Statscan jobs at risk A government can simultaneously be the most secretive, controlling Canadian government in recent memory and be welcomed into the club of "open government". The announcements highlight a few problems with the "open data movement" (Wikipedia page): It's not a movement, at least in any reasonable political or cultural sense of the word, It's doing nothing for transparency and accountability in government, It's co-opting the language of progressive change in pursuit of what turns out to be a small-government-focused subsidy for industry. In short, the open data movement is a joke. Those who are on the political left who lend their support to it have some hard decisions to make.