On Aaron Swartz
For those of you who don't know who he was, but would like to, this is a good start.
Aaron Swartz was possibly the smartest person that I have ever encountered (meaning alive, but unfortunately not in person). He committed suicide facing 35 years in jail - or so his prosecutors told him.
He had committed a crime - there is no doubt about that. But the way he was treated - not better than a murderer or a spy - indicates two things.
First, they were very happy to take him down, finally having had him for illegal activity. They were not prosecuting him for distributing academic articles. They were prosecuting him for being a "huge pain in the ass" (like all human rights activists), fighting the fight for online freedom; particularly, leading a successful opposition to SOPA.
And second - they were trying to shut him up. To prevent him from doing similar things in the future. To come out against CISPA, for example, when time comes. They were trying to scare him. But the truth is that they are scared. They feel threatened. By him and people like him. People who deserve nothing but infinite respect and admiration.
And what a surprise, one of the first links that came up with I googled Aaron Swartz: Aaron Swartz’s Prosecutor to Pursue Charges Against Dzokhar Tsarnaev. What a curious coincidence. What an interesting world we live in.
Aaron Swartz was possibly the smartest person that I have ever encountered (meaning alive, but unfortunately not in person). He committed suicide facing 35 years in jail - or so his prosecutors told him.
He had committed a crime - there is no doubt about that. But the way he was treated - not better than a murderer or a spy - indicates two things.
First, they were very happy to take him down, finally having had him for illegal activity. They were not prosecuting him for distributing academic articles. They were prosecuting him for being a "huge pain in the ass" (like all human rights activists), fighting the fight for online freedom; particularly, leading a successful opposition to SOPA.
And second - they were trying to shut him up. To prevent him from doing similar things in the future. To come out against CISPA, for example, when time comes. They were trying to scare him. But the truth is that they are scared. They feel threatened. By him and people like him. People who deserve nothing but infinite respect and admiration.
And what a surprise, one of the first links that came up with I googled Aaron Swartz: Aaron Swartz’s Prosecutor to Pursue Charges Against Dzokhar Tsarnaev. What a curious coincidence. What an interesting world we live in.