Ah, 1996, what a time to be alive! Of course, this was before “my time,” but I can only imagine what it was like during the creation and popularization of the Internet. All bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, excited for the endless opportunities that could come from this new invention. A time when the conversation focused more on cyberdemocracy than it did on cybersecurity. 1 A time before we knew of the dangers that lurked in the deep, dark, hidden corners of the World Wide Web. And a time when only approximately 20-30 million Americans had access to the Internet and spent fewer than 30 minutes a month surfing the Web. 2 With a somewhat “manageable” number of internet users per month like that, of course, the idea of absolute freedom through cyberspace sounds like a fun idea. But, it is not practical, and it’s not a good idea. Not then and especially not now.
To fully comprehend why I don’t believe cyberspace should be entitled to the same kinds of self-determination as the citizens of the thirteen colonies were allotted in 1776, especially with the world we live in today. First, I think we need to consider just how unrecognizable our world is just 27 years later. By January 2022, the number of daily internet users in America alone grew to a staggering 307.2 million people. 3 With 90% of Americans currently using the Internet daily. 4 And that’s nothing compared to the whopping 5.07 billion (with a B) people who use the Internet worldwide. Think about that for a second. That is a truly insane number to wrap your mind around.
And not all of those 5.07 billion worldwide internet users, or even the 307.2 million Americans, are good people. The borderless opportunities of the Internet and the luxury of anonymity doesn’t only attract good people who desire privacy while surfing the Web; it also attracts those with less than pure intentions like predators, extremists, and other types of bad guys who wish the use the veil of anonymity to protect themselves from rightful prosecution. Without the government being involved (even if it is minimal), those committing crimes, spreading hateful rhetoric, and harming others would be completely vindicated and able to continue these acts without fear of reprisal. This is an extremely dangerous idea.
While I believe the government infringes upon our freedoms, I don’t believe this extends to the Internet as much as people would like to believe. The Internet, if anything, seems more like the Wild West (or Westworld) than ever before, as the laws are still attempting to catch up with the insane amount of progress we’ve made in just 27 short years. This post isn’t to discredit Barlow or his optimism about the future. To have visions and dreams of what the future could be is a necessity for progress. It inspires future generations to broaden their belief systems and think so far outside the box that they don’t even recognize the box when they’re done. But, there must always be a healthy dose of reality with those dreams and visions to keep us grounded and from becoming some sort of science fiction dystopian world.
1 Wolfgang Kleinwächter, 25 Years of JohnBarlow’ss Declaration of Independence in Cyberspace: When Visions Meet Realities, CircleID (Feb. 6, 2021), https://circleid.com/posts/20210206-25-years-of-john-barlows-declaration-of-independence-in-cyberspace/.
2 Farhad Manjoo, Jurassic Web, SLATE (Feb. 24, 2009), https://slate.com/technology/2009/02/the-unrecognizable-internet-of-1996.html#:~:text=In%201996%2C%20just%2020%20million,subscribe%20to%20satellite%20radio%20today.
3 Simon Kemp, Digital 2022: The United States of American, DataReportal (Feb. 9, 2022). https://datareportal.com/reports/digital-2022-united-states-of-america.
4 Andrew Perrin and Sara Atske, About three-in-ten U.S. adults say they are ‘almost constantly’ online, Pew Research Center (March 26, 2021). https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2021/03/26/about-three-in-ten-u-s-adults-say-they-are-almost-constantly-online/.
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