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Brrriinnggg on the 21st Century
September 3, 2008 | Posted by Kip - 11:36pm | 7 Comments
Kip is supposedly responsible for technology commentary on this blog, and as Charlie reminds him occasionally, e.g., today, he has not exactly lived up to that responsibility.
But from time to time, the occasional story pops up on cell phones, and in the vein of going with what you know, here it is (thanks Charlie for sending me the article).
Anyway, in Tuesday's Washington Post, Frank Ahrens writes on new and novel uses for the cell phone. Kip believes that politics, of which war is an extension (or simply part of the continuum, or as Michael Foucault once wrote, its actually the other way around, but I digress), is in its simplest the effort to influence people to act in a particular manner; force is one of the ways by which they are influenced.
As such, cell phones add complexity to the battlefield by providing access to streams of influence regardless of the physical location of the individual, not to the mention all the nasty ways in which cell phones can be used to physically kill people as parts of weapons systems. Cell phones are nearly ubiquitous, as the article notes with penetration to 50% of the world and growing.
Indeed, cell phones have made their way into all walks of life and particularly so in the world's least developed countries. And they have made their way into war, as the article describes:
But from time to time, the occasional story pops up on cell phones, and in the vein of going with what you know, here it is (thanks Charlie for sending me the article).
Anyway, in Tuesday's Washington Post, Frank Ahrens writes on new and novel uses for the cell phone. Kip believes that politics, of which war is an extension (or simply part of the continuum, or as Michael Foucault once wrote, its actually the other way around, but I digress), is in its simplest the effort to influence people to act in a particular manner; force is one of the ways by which they are influenced.
As such, cell phones add complexity to the battlefield by providing access to streams of influence regardless of the physical location of the individual, not to the mention all the nasty ways in which cell phones can be used to physically kill people as parts of weapons systems. Cell phones are nearly ubiquitous, as the article notes with penetration to 50% of the world and growing.
Indeed, cell phones have made their way into all walks of life and particularly so in the world's least developed countries. And they have made their way into war, as the article describes:
Cellphones played a key role in the recent Maoist insurgency against the Hindu monarchy, allowing protesters to quickly organize. They became so effective as a tool of the opposition, the government tried to ban texting twice. During spring elections, the Maoists sent texts to voters: "A new thinking and leadership for a new Nepal . . . Give Maoists a chance this time."It is perhaps time we got as good at the text message as our counterparts in the developing world.
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