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How Technology Holds Us Back

A threats diagram
An existing chart of (mostly) non-Free software-related aspects is just work in progress



Summary: Ongoing effort to identify and classify the perils or threats; this is meant to guide our future focus

DEALING with a wide range of changes, some of which may constitute emergent threats, isn't easy. Technology changes fast and software changes incredibly (sometimes notoriously) fast. Last month we started mapping certain types of threats with a sort of "silo" that deals with the Internet, without yet including the Libre (free) software issues, internal threats such as entryism, or legal issues such as SLAPP and software patents. In addition we've since then identified media control and infiltration, along with NDAs (for censorship and a lack of portability, to which CFAA contributes) as very potent threats. GeekWire is an example of captured "media" that burns sources, using NDAs as a weapon. It lets companies like Microsoft simply lie, disseminate their lies, and abuse workers while pretending none of that is happening. As the title of the latest batch of Daily Links notes, some companies attack their workers and then blame the workers (victim blaming). It's a widespread strategy and it's very obvious in technology; they claim there is a "Great Resignation" and skills "shortage"; if workers lacks some skill, the employers can train for it, but this isn't what they want. The baseless old canard is just used as a pretext to get "fresh" workers on low-end salaries and non-committal contracts (so even when there are layoffs they can pretend it's merely an end of contact). We think we can identity this as a risk and explain how to counter it (other than correcting the record; there are legal measures one can take).

The reason we are mapping all these threats is that we want to see which ones are high priority and whether to tackle them first (and if so how). A lot of these are closely connected.

Can anyone please report to us more aspects to explore and add? Tell us in IRC... the above chart is just a draft.

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