In the last couple hours, the term "Kill Switch" has come up twice in two very different contexts.
The first was an article from Australia which was looking at the rollout of a an account kill switch that put the power in the hands of the user to put a hold on their accounts from new transactions going through. This is to put more control in the hands of the user without having to go through the time-consuming and therefore often costly process to get accounts under attack shutdown. This is a good idea, even though ultimately it is likely to be used to get out of some liability.
The second was in relation to the Finnish defence force's usage of Lockheed Martin F-35 fighter jets, where with the growing bromance between the US and Russia, there has again been raised the question whether it is possible to disable the planes remotely. This has come up earlier and raised in other counties also, but supposedly it is not a thing - according to the Finnish military. Still if countries are banning social media, using military technology from what might soon be considered an untrustworthy trade partner, is a risk.
We are in interesting times at the moment, because over the last decades we have been conditioned to be increasingly reliant on authority. We have largely embraced this, because it is more convenient and easier than taking responsibility for ourselves. Bit by bit, we gave up our control over aspects of our lives, until we had nothing left. We knew that power corrupts, but that convenience was just too attractive, so here we are, living in a corrupt world at the mercy of those we are beholden to.
Some people think that due to the current situation, I am anti-American, but that is not the case at all. I am someone who recognises the difference between the state, and the people under the control of the state. And, it is under control, because the people must adhere to the rule of law, and those laws are made by those in control - even if they are detriment for the people. As I see it, if we are to create a healthy society, we need to decentralise authority, not further pool it. But, the state by nature is designed to capture more control over resources of all kinds.
What this means is, nationalism doesn't work.
We have been tricked into believing it does because that is how we have been conditioned, and this is how authority remains in control. It is a convenient mechanism, because it always has leverage behind it - because people want to be in some exclusive club - even if that club takes advantage of them. No government around the world is working for the people it governs. If they did, we would have a very different world, with very different levels of wellbeing. I always find it off-putting how many people put so much faith in their governments to do the right thing - despite all the evidence pointing elsewhere.
For how long will we keep choosing incompetent convenience?
How many times do you visit the mechanic who keeps charging through the nose, but not getting your car running properly? How long will we keep paying for service that not only doesn't fix the problem, but exacerbates it? How long until we recognise that the convenience is an illusion, and it is the service that is making life harder for us?
When are the costs too high to pay for bad service?
There are better ways to govern, especially since we have information and technologies at our disposal that we never had before. The systems we are using are antiquated and no longer fit for purpose. And the more we use them, the more damage we do, and the harder it is to pull back from the edge of disaster. The brakes are failing, and the mechanic has no idea where to put the brake fluid.
Perhaps we need a kill switch for the government so that when they go too far, we can just shut down their engines, and stop them from doing more damage. We should be able to opt-out of a government, even one we might have chosen, if they are not delivering what we expect of them. We are the customer, and we should be able to walk away. But we can't.
Because they have authority over us.
We are just passengers.
With our hands tied.
In the trunk of the car.
Taraz
[ Gen1: Hive ]
