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[robotamerica]

The article I have provided in the link below essentially sums up my own critique of not only facebook, but of most "communication" sites on the internet; yes, this includes my skepticism of livejournal as an appropriate means of communication. I hope you all take a read of this article and take a few critical moments to think about it. What

Comments

[robotamerica]

Yes, this is often something that I debate. Autonomous and non-commercial avenues/venues in internet communication technologies (ICT) are, to say the least, far superior to commercial avenues/venues. I am skeptical of the paranoid; however, this is a contentious debate, and it is true that big brother is ever more present in our postmodern condition. It is strange to see an overtly, and often unilateral, approach to the "rationalization" of ICT's without much room for debate - even us radicals see it as progressive and emancipatory. I must maintain, however, that it can be very disempowering and actually create a fragmented sense of community - as well as maintaining a very overly bourgeois sense of the world. Remember that literacy rates in the world are not 100% even in our cities; so, do ICT's actually come to the aid of the so called "marginalized"? Or do they further extend the digital divide?
I think that the term "digital divide" needs to be redefined; it shouldn't be about accessibility. Instead the digital divide should aim at a structural explanation of not only technological marginalization, but at the power relations in class struggles. It is certainly true that we are a technologically saavy society here in North America; however, we are highly irrational and our technologies are often put to ill-use. Communications sites, like facebook, have no tangible utility. Instead they quantify our relations in mere numerical and abstract forms with no real quality; they damage the integrity of both friendship and community; they do commodify community relations and market them back to us as if we were shopping for a new pair of pants; and furthermore, they compromise our personal security, and I would go as far as to say -- our autonomy as well.
So, Pablo, my friend, I too am interested in the question of online autonomy. I am unsure if such a thing actually exists. An online conception of autonomy, perhaps, should reflect our own autonomy in a way that respects our ontic selves. It should not compromise our being-in-this-world; instead, it should allow for creative avenues to express our being. But, it should always be cautioned, this expression will never be as genuine as it is in the concrete world, nor will it ever truly be "accessible".