The rise of data and the death of politics

The Guardian ^ | 7/19/2014 | Evgeny Morozov

[scouter]

Tech pioneers in the US are advocating a new data-based approach to governance – 'algorithmic regulation'. But if technology provides the answers to society's problems, what happens to governments?

...

Compared with the impressive police gear of today – automatic number plate recognition, CCTV cameras, GPS trackers – Operation Corral looks quaint. And the possibilities for control will only expand. European officials have considered requiring all cars entering the European market to feature a built-in mechanism that allows the police to stop vehicles remotely. Speaking earlier this year, Jim Farley, a senior Ford executive, acknowledged that "we know everyone who breaks the law, we know when you're doing it. We have GPS in your car, so we know what you're doing. By the way, we don't supply that data to anyone." That last bit didn't sound very reassuring and Farley retracted his remarks.

[scouter]

How do you say "1984, Fahrenheit 451, A Clockwork Orange, Brave New World, Nazi Germany, and Hell, all wrapped into one?"

Let me give you a hint: "algorithmic regulation".

Kind of long, but worth the read. We're definitely headed in this direction because we have a deadly mix of morons, idiot savants, and evil geniuses calling the shots these days

[Crazieman]

?

[kjam22]

Everyone needs one of these stashed somewhere.

[catman67]

Sorry, but I'd rather have one of these:

[kjam22]

Nice car... but not nearly as stealthy as the 72 impala.... :)

[scouter]

Here's another chilling quote:

As Silicon Valley keeps corrupting our language with its endless glorification of disruption and efficiency – concepts at odds with the vocabulary of democracy – our ability to question the "how" of politics is weakened. Silicon Valley's default answer to the how of politics is what I call solutionism: problems are to be dealt with via apps, sensors, and feedback loops – all provided by startups. Earlier this year Google's Eric Schmidt even promised that startups would provide the solution to the problem of economic inequality: the latter, it seems, can also be "disrupted". And where the innovators and the disruptors lead, the bureaucrats follow.

[E. Pluribus Unum]

To paraphrase Josef Stalin, “It’s not the people who collect the data that count. It’s the people who analyze the data.”

[gattaca]

bump

[hopespringseternal]

You can’t miss how their primary concern is the survival of the welfare state when everyone can know you are a useless parasite.

[GeronL]

Jim Farley, a senior Ford executive, acknowledged that "we know everyone who breaks the law, we know when you're doing it. We have GPS in your car, so we know what you're doing. By the way, we don't supply that data to anyone."

You know who, when and where people are breaking the law and you don't tell the authorities? Doesn't that usually make one complicit or an accessory in the crime?

[GeronL]

I have always thought these were cool

[Cen-Tejas]

my favorite vette and I have had 4 vettes though never this one! I believe this is the first year of a few that they had fuel injection. I see the “fuel injection” insignia on the side.

If this is yours, I’m jealous.

[GeronL]

nope, just a wish list kind of thing

[GeronL]

I also hear that the numbers of those cars still around is dwindling pretty fast