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Silk Load

Article from Issue 161/2014

Sometimes when I'm watching the Internet news unfolding, I feel like I'm in one of those weird dreams where everything looks the same, but all reason is inverted in some way that only the people in the dream understand. The Internet brings down barriers, including those comforting barriers that provide a cozy space for our moral certainty to flourish. We lapse into approaching problems from the circle of our own experience, sometimes not noticing that we have traveled into very different places. And we mistake our viewpoint for our values, aligning ourselves with others who share a common attitude or rhetorical framework.

Dear Linux Pro Reader,

Sometimes when I'm watching the Internet news unfolding, I feel like I'm in one of those weird dreams where everything looks the same, but all reason is inverted in some way that only the people in the dream understand. The Internet brings down barriers, including those comforting barriers that provide a cozy space for our moral certainty to flourish. We lapse into approaching problems from the circle of our own experience, sometimes not noticing that we have traveled into very different places. And we mistake our viewpoint for our values, aligning ourselves with others who share a common attitude or rhetorical framework.

So rare it is for people in the news to take responsibility for their actions and own up to their mistakes. I was struck by the candor, humility, and accountability of a community-minded admin who recently announced to his users that the network had been hacked. When describing the scenario that led to the attack, this conscientious soul was quite concerned and self-reflective, stating, "In retrospect, this was incredibly foolish, and I take full responsibility for this decision." He even added, "I have failed you as a leader and am completely devastated by today's discoveries."

[...]

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