What would his predecessors - the motley crew of freedom fighters, terrorists and other fanatics of centuries past - have done for such a capability? The success of these heroes to some, villains to others, was always dependent upon the force of their leader's character. Victory would be the result of his (Boudica and Joan of Arc would be rare examples of her) ability to instil enough fervour in others so as to create a loyal following with which to mould the world toward their goal. Whatever their cause célèbre, the tools employed were word, paper and fist - which makes for a lot of blood, sweat and tears.
These days, however, the World Wide Web allows activists, hactivists and slactivists, along with other more dangerous unmentionables, to take root at any time, in any location, as long as they have broadband. Demagogues never had it so good. Even nature requires her seeds to travel by water, ground or air, but we have overcome such spatial constraints when disseminating ideas around the world. So, a nifty mechanism, being connected.
Could someone please make an animation of the Earth from above with small flashes indicating whenever someone, somewhere gets hitched to a cause and takes it upon themselves to lash out against the world that they cannot tolerate. It would probably be quite a pretty sight, flashy too, and scary, to boot. I suppose a nicer version could be made with flowers indicating each time someone, somewhere donates to charity or gets involved in a good cause.
The internet has, alas, the potential to unleash a perfect storm - so let's make sure the good flowers outnumber the flashes, shall we, however Manichean that may sound. On second thought, that sounds more like hippy-talk. Ah well, so be it, I still stand by the point.
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