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C00002 00002	The survival of freedom
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The survival of freedom
3000 words (250 lines) for Jerry Pournelle collection
5000 words (417 lines)

possibilities

COMPUTERS AND THE ADVANCEMENT OF FREEDOM

Computer Technology and Freedom

	Along with other authors in this collection, I believe that
American freedoms are in some danger - chiefly from those who call them
"procedural freedoms" and propose to replace them by what they call
"substantive freedoms".  Curiously enough, I want to suggest some
"substantive freedoms" in the form of new technology that will help
us preserve our procedural freedoms of speech, of movement, and of
enterprise.  Also I see promise for freedom in some technologies in which many
politically liberal computer scientists see only threats.

	In general new technology advances human freedom, both
legal and practical - practical first.  It advances practical
freedom, because it gives people more options in addition to
the ones that already exist.  Legal freedom is advanced, because
less coercion is required for survival and prosperity.  Of course,
someone can ask, "What if X, Y or Z is invented and used in the
following way by an oppressive government?".  People can and have
been drawn into infinite gloomy scenarios from such %2what ifs%1.
Some effort in answering specific worries is justified, but the main
answer is twofold. (1) Look at history. (2) What if U, V and W
happen that advance freedom.

(they will misuse it)

library of Congress
freedom of publication
BEGIN DIGRESSION
	the problem of copyright
	the motive to gyp the author should be less if the amount he
charges has a lesser ratio to his and the reader's income
	what about programs that use data bases, e.g. my reading
selector that scans NYT book reviews among other documents.  How
does a program automatically judge how trivially it uses as database?
END OF DIGRESSION
freedom of manufacture
freedom of emigration - the key substantive freedom
small viable technology, microtechnology
(most likely unspoiled nature will not be an issue in space, because
bare nature will be an extreme desert from any human point of view,
so there will be no objection to changing it)

Can we achieve freedom from crime?
league of civilized nations

Perhaps we should measure human welfare in terms of the opportunities
to pursue happiness rather than in terms of food, etc.  The idea is
that people don't maximize a welfare function, they form short and
long term goals and try to achieve them.  A person's need to eat is
measured by his ability to eat when and what he wants to and not just
by the nutritional adequacy of what goes into his stomach.

see reply[f77,jmc]
OUTLINE

computers and the advancement of freedom

intro

	advancement not just preservation

1. the publication system

2. computerized democracy becomes a possibility - maybe a good one,
but maybe juries would be better.  More likely, the problem is the
classical one that politics doesn't attract the best people.  A
"congressman's" salary should depend only logarithmically on the
number of his voters.

3. New rights including the right of reply

4. Making "freedom of information" effective.

conclusion

	It won't make everybody happy for ever and ever, but it will
help many people achieve their personal goals.  That is better than
imposing one's social welfare function on society.