The ultimate act of government control in this century will be to outlaw the personal computer. I can think of some more technically efficient approaches (outlaw compilers and scripting editors), but they are more complicated. No, the 'take no prisoners' simple approach is to outlaw the personal computer. What is left is the thin system, of course, that enables delivery of services and content, but absolutely removes the ability to build anything useful locally and without oversight.
Why do this Draconian thing?
Simple. Anything profitable and digital quickly gets burgled and its creator gets buggered in today's "I want it, I want it now, and I want it for free" entitled generation, and computer geeks young and old, smart and not so smart have stepped up to the challenge around the world. The virus writers are simply immature show offs or curmudgeon terrorists compared to the devils of the freeware open source open content generations. These burglars are the real pros who have dedicated their skills to relieving the rich and powerful of their means of holding onto wealth and power: distribution.
From Napster to BitTorrent to MythTV, the systems to liberate content from the shackles of the pay-to-play and monthly cable bills grow in strength and intensity and no one seems to be able to stop them.
I have. Outlaw the personal computer. That will put it on a par with Schedule A drugs. We all know how successful that war has been.
Just Say No to Personal Computing.
:-)
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