Felix Stalder explores the swarm politics of the 'endlessly fascinating Anonymous story' in an essay written for Le Monde Diplomatique, where it appeared in a slightly edited version and under a different title.
This version of the text was originally distributed via the international nettime mailing list.
'Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this
right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to
seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and
regardless of frontiers.' -Article 19, United Nations Declaration of
Universal Human Rights
To whom it concerns,
Over the past years, we have borne witness to a technological
revolution. The individual has become free, in the most extreme
anarchistic sense, to share ideas. Some of these ideas are shared
behind proxies, darknets, or similar ?closed doors?. Nevertheless, the
ideas are out there. There have been similar instances of such
revolutions of the mind. Their effects on society are inestimably
great. As in past times with the invention of the printing press, so it
is today that the people embrace this revolution, this new ?anarchy? of
freedom to share, while their autocratic rulers seek to crush this
freedom.
A demonstration in solidarity with Anonymous Hacker Jeremy Hammond occurred last night (December 3, 2013) at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Sunset Park, Brooklyn where he is temporarily being held. Just two weeks ago, the 28 year old was sentenced to 10 years in federal detention for cyber crimes. Amongst other high-profile breaches, he leaked confidential intelligence data to Wikileaks from a private intelligence firm known as Stratfor. Many consider Stratfor to be a "shadow CIA" operating under even less regulation and oversight than a government entity.
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Jeremy Hammond Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison! Show Him He Still Has Our Support!
Jeremy Hammond is a 28-year-old political activist sentenced to 120 months in prison, with an additional 3 years probation upon his release,
after pleading guilty to the Anonymous conspiracy to hack the private
intelligence firm Strategic Forecasting (Stratfor). A longtime proponent
of "hactivism," his actions are a form of electronic civil
disobedience. He believes that "people have a right to know what
governments and corporations are doing behind closed doors."
We are the outraged, the anonymous, the voiceless. We were there, silent but alert, watching. Not gazing upward at the powers that be, but looking from side to side for the right time to unite with each other.
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