Tom Burtless Class time:11 – 11:50
KEEP THIS TO 1-3 – PAGES LONG (excluding reference page)
Authors: Catharine Smith, Scott Neuman, Adrian Chen
Dates of Publication: July 21st, 2011, September 16th, 2011, November 4th 2011
Articles: Huffington Post, NPR, and Gawker
1. (Knowledge)Tell three interesting elements of these articles:
a. Even after having members arrested, Anonymous hackers still believe that “your threats to arrest us are meaningless to us as you cannot arrest an idea.”
b. Anonymous has released easy to use hacking program that allows anyone in helping to cripple a website.
c. Barrett Brown is seen by the Anonymous collective as a “famewhore” riding Anonymous to lucrative book deals.
2. (Comprehension) Summarize what is being discussed within these articles?
In the Huffington Post article, Catharine Smith discusses the resilience of the hacking group Anonymous even though members of their group have been arrested. The article also discusses why Anonymous believes in what it does, and why they feel justified in hacking the websites that they do. The second article from NPR talks about how easy it is to join the hacking society through using simple programs. The article also branches how the different Anonymous hacks have gained popularity and that the targets do not usually expect the hack. The final article, from Gawker, talks about Barrett Brown and his lucrative book deal from Amazon which delves into him being the “face” of Anonymous. The article shows a heavy bias against Barrett Brown and claiming a lot of what he has to say to be “bull shit”.
3. (Application)Name a specific example or NEW solution for this type of problem/similar situation in society or that you have experienced – be specific and explain?
I think what Anonymous has been promoting in terms of online freedom and over all lack of government control is something that can be compared to what the Occupy Wall Street has been trying to do for financial equilibrium. Both movements are fighting for a revolution in our country and to change things that have become embedded in our society. Anonymous fights for freedom of speech, and Occupy Wall Street fights for financial equilibrium.
4. (Analysis)Address ANY that apply. How can you compare one of the situations in this chapter to something that does not relate to computers, technology, or the Internet? Be sure to reference the chapter and your solution. What ideas NEW can you add to the issue that is being presented within the reading? Try to connect what you have by reading this article and how it applies to the stages in Bloom's taxonomy in 2 full sentences.
A new idea that I can add to the articles presented for this reading would be another article about a traitor to Anonymous. Sabu, the head of LulSec, has been working with the FBI to have many hackers that have been part of Anonymous arrested (Biddle). In the article, the author discusses how the legendary hacker was brought to turning in fellow hackers because of his children (Biddle). Sabu did not want to go to jail and leave his children fatherless (Biddle). This shows that even high ranking people within this online revolution can be brought against the ideas they believe so dearly. It raises a lot of questions about the organization and its future.
5. (Synthesis) Address all that apply. Do you agree with what is being said within the article (Why/Why not? Back up with FACTS)? What new conclusions can you draw about this (or other topics) after reading this material?
I do agree with what these articles state, especially the first Huffington Post article. The principles that Anonymous list as being unacceptable that are carried out by our government outrank the ones listed by our FBI. As read in previous chapters of A Gift of Fire, our government has torn down our privacy and online freedom (in some regards). I agree with the principles that Anonymous promote because they care about citizens and people, while some of the policies that the government have enforce(and currently do) do not seem to do that.
6. (Evaluation) Address all that apply. Judge whether or not this topic is relevant in today’s society? Evaluate why you are viewing the topic in this manner based on your experiences. What ethical evaluations (see Chap1-1.4 for exp of Ethics) or decisions were made/can be assumed from this chapter? What new ideas will you make after reading this chapter?
Giving that these articles only come from a couple months ago, and that Anonymous is still a very prevalent group in our culture, this is definitely a relevant topic in society. In reading these articles and having some prior knowledge of Anonymous, a word that consistently comes to mind is “revolution.” This group has stood up for so much, for the first time in so long, in the name of protecting our freedom and saying “no” to big business and our government. While I have my reservations of what the group’s intentions may be sometimes, they report news that can be backed up by other sources that promote awareness of what our government is doing. However, there is a decent amount of ethical questioning that occurs in reading through these articles. With a group entitled Anonymous, how do you know who is really behind everything? How many people are like Barrett Brown who seems to be riding off the fame and claiming what Anonymous believes in?
References
Biddle, Sam. "LulzSec Leader Betrays All of Anonymous." Gizmodo. 6 Mar. 2012. Web. 15 Apr. 2012.
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