Most of us on Kos get our news from the web - the MSM no longer suffices. We have our list of sites and we, in effect, make our own news channel. Through mechanisms like diaries, we are able to make and respond to news. By doing so, we are able to pass along our own views, adding a personal bi-directional mechanism which, again, adds to the revolutionary qualities of the internet and makes Kos a force that is even recognized by the MSM (often unkindly, curiously).
When I discovered DailyKos, I thought, "the internet might be democracy's saviour." Open networks for ordinary citizens to share and disseminate information around the globe was, and still is, revolutionary. With a competent search engine, we are able to harness the collective knowledge in new and exciting ways. Disruptively, real time communications over the internet is quickly taking over turf formally held by telephone companies.
But, I had a startling realization - we are already in a passive police state. The internet may actually, eventually, play a role in ending democracy as we know it. Our diaries, our collection of personal views and thoughts could be used against us - without a court of law.
Read More