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diff --git a/.gitmodules b/.gitmodules new file mode 100644 index 0000000..46a8d54 --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitmodules @@ -0,0 +1,6 @@ +[submodule "vendor/ikiwiki-plugin-mathjax"] + path = vendor/ikiwiki-plugin-mathjax + url = https://github.com/bk/ikiwiki-plugin-mathjax +[submodule "vendor/MathJax"] + path = vendor/MathJax + url = https://github.com/mathjax/MathJax.git @@ -9,8 +9,15 @@ RewriteRule ^fisl$ /events/2015/fisl/ [R] RewriteRule ^static$ /suckless/sites/ [R] RewriteRule ^cli$ /suckless/cli/ [R] - RewriteRule ^virtual$ /suckless/virtual/ [R] + RewriteRule ^sarava$ /poesia/sarava/ [R] + RewriteRule ^services$ /research/computing/services/ [R] + RewriteRule ^suckless(.*)$ /research/computing/suckless$1 [R] + RewriteRule ^virtual$ /research/computing/suckless/virtual/ [R] RewriteRule ^orphans$ /research/archived/ [R] + RewriteRule ^research/git$ /research/computing/git [R] + RewriteRule ^research/libreboot$ /research/computing/libreboot [R] + RewriteRule ^research/thinkpad$ /research/computing/thinkpad [R] + RewriteRule ^research/token$ /research/computing/token [R] RewriteRule ^books/amor(.*)$ /books/love$1 [R] RewriteRule ^books/vida(.*)$ /books/life$1 [R] RewriteRule ^books/historia(.*)$ /books/history$1 [R] @@ -21,4 +28,10 @@ RewriteRule ^books/sociedade(.*)$ /books/sociology$1 [R] RewriteRule ^books/tecnopolitica(.*)$ /books/technology$1 [R] RewriteRule ^organizacao$ https://templates.fluxo.info/organizacao [R] + RewriteRule ^research/lab$ https://templates.fluxo.info/lab [R] +</IfModule> + +<IfModule mod_alias.c> + # Barebones URL shortener service + Redirect /shortener/keyringer https://keyringer.pw </IfModule> @@ -1,27 +1,50 @@ # -# Ikiwiki Makefile by Silvio Rhatto (rhatto at riseup.net). +# Global Makefile - https://templater.fluxo.info # -# This Makefile is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it -# under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the Free -# Software Foundation; either version 3 of the License, or any later version. -# -# This Makefile is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT -# ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS -# FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU General Public License for more details. -# -# You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License along with -# this program; if not, write to the Free Software Foundation, Inc., 59 Temple -# Place - Suite 330, Boston, MA 02111-1307, USA +# This Makefile contains basic, common targets and also includes +# any Makefile.* available in the current folder. # -web: jhead - @ikiwiki --setup ikiwiki.yaml +# Port to serve content +HTTP_PORT="8000" +HTTP_SERVER="http.server" + +# Base to serve the content +HTTP_BASE="." -web_deploy: - @rsync -avz --delete www/ blog:/var/sites/blog/www/ +# Set CONTAINER based in what we have available in the system +# This variable can be user in other, included Makefiles to handle virtualization tasks +ifeq ($(shell which kvmx > /dev/null && test -s kvmxfile && echo yes), yes) + CONTAINER = kvmx +else ifeq ($(shell which vagrant > /dev/null && test -s Vagrantfile && echo yes), yes) + CONTAINER = vagrant +else ifeq ($(shell which docker > /dev/null && test -s Dockerfile && echo yes), yes) + CONTAINER = docker +else + CONTAINER = '' +endif -publish: web web_deploy +# See http://unix.stackexchange.com/questions/32182/simple-command-line-http-server#32200 +# http://php.net/manual/en/features.commandline.webserver.php +serve: + @if [ "$(HTTP_SERVER)" = "SimpleHTTPServer" ]; then cd $(HTTP_BASE) && python -m SimpleHTTPServer $(HTTP_PORT); fi + @if [ "$(HTTP_SERVER)" = "ssi_server" ]; then cd $(HTTP_BASE) && PYTHONDONTWRITEBYTECODE=0 ssi_server.py $(HTTP_PORT); fi + @if [ "$(HTTP_SERVER)" = "http.server" ]; then cd $(HTTP_BASE) && python3 -m http.server $(HTTP_PORT); fi + @if [ "$(HTTP_SERVER)" = "php" ]; then cd $(HTTP_BASE) && php -S localhost:$(HTTP_PORT); fi + +# Configure a git post-receive hook +post_receive: + git config receive.denyCurrentBranch ignore + test -s bin/post-receive && cd .git/hooks && ln -sf ../../bin/post-receive + +# Process any other Makefile whose filename matches Makefile.* +# See https://www.gnu.org/software/make/manual/html_node/Include.html +# +# Some of those files might even contain local customizations/overrides +# that can be .gitignore'd, like a Makefile.local for example. +-include Makefile.* -jhead: - @find -name '*jpg ' -exec jhead -dc -de -di -dx -du {} \; - @find -name '*jpeg' -exec jhead -dc -de -di -dx -du {} \; +# Customization examples can be as simple as setting variables: +#CONTAINER = vagrant +#CONTAINER = docker +#DESTDIR ?= vendor diff --git a/Makefile.env b/Makefile.env new file mode 100644 index 0000000..f41c74a --- /dev/null +++ b/Makefile.env @@ -0,0 +1,44 @@ +# +# Ikiwiki Makefile by Silvio Rhatto (rhatto at riseup.net). +# +# This Makefile is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it +# under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the Free +# Software Foundation; either version 3 of the License, or any later version. +# +# This Makefile is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT +# ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS +# FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU General Public License for more details. +# +# You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License along with +# this program; if not, write to the Free Software Foundation, Inc., 59 Temple +# Place - Suite 330, Boston, MA 02111-1307, USA +# + +# Parameters +HTTP_BASE = www + +web: jhead mat + @#echo Applying workaround since exclude patterns are not working... + @find vendor -name '*.md' -exec rm {} \; + + @ikiwiki --setup ikiwiki.yaml + + @#echo Cleaning up... + git submodule foreach git restore . + +web_deploy: + @rsync -avz --delete www/ blog:/var/sites/blog/www/ + +publish: web web_deploy + +jhead: + @find -name '*jpg ' -exec jhead -dc -de -di -dx -du {} \; + @find -name '*jpeg' -exec jhead -dc -de -di -dx -du {} \; + +mat: + @#find -type f -name '*.ods' -exec mat2 -V {} \; + @#find -type f -name '*.ods' -exec rename -f 's/\.cleaned.ods/.ods/' {} \; + @#find -type f -name '*.pdf' -exec mat2 -V {} \; + @#find -type f -name '*.pdf' -exec rename -f 's/\.cleaned.pdf/.pdf/' {} \; + @#find -type f -name '*.ods' -exec chmod 644 {} \; + @#find -type f -name '*.pdf' -exec chmod 644 {} \; diff --git a/local.css b/assets/css/local.css index b94d3f7..b94d3f7 100644 --- a/local.css +++ b/assets/css/local.css diff --git a/books/economics.md b/books/economics.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..f256e31 --- /dev/null +++ b/books/economics.md @@ -0,0 +1,3 @@ +[[!meta title="Livros - Economia"]] + +[[!inline pages="page(books/economics*)" archive="yes"]] diff --git a/books/economics/game-theory-critical-introduction.md b/books/economics/game-theory-critical-introduction.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..462b4aa --- /dev/null +++ b/books/economics/game-theory-critical-introduction.md @@ -0,0 +1,2397 @@ +[[!meta title="Game Theory: a Critical Introduction"]] + +## Index + +* Difference between meteorological and traffic-jam-style predictions: 18. +* Frequent assumption (but not always) on game theory that individuals knows + the rules of the game; that they even known their inner motives: 28. +* Individualism, separation of structure and choice, 31. +* MAD, 86; 88. +* Elimination of non-credible threats, 88. + +# Excerpts + +## Intro + +What is game theory: + + In many respects this enthusiasm is not difficult to understand. Game theory + was probably born with the publication of The Theory of Games and Economic + Behaviour by John von Neumann and Oskar Morgenstern (first published in + 1944 with second and third editions in 1947 and 1953). They defined a game + as any interaction between agents that is governed by a set of rules + specifying the possible moves for each participant and a set of outcomes for + each possible combination of moves. + +How it can help: + + If game theory does make a further substantial contribution, then we + believe that it is a negative one. The contribution comes through + demonstrating the limits of a particular form of individualism in social + science: one based exclusively on the model of persons as preference satisfiers. + This model is often regarded as the direct heir of David Hume’s (the 18th + century philosopher) conceptualisation of human reasoning and motivation. It + is principally associated with what is known today as rational choice theory, or + with the (neoclassical) economic approach to social life (see Downs, 1957, and + Becker, 1976). Our main conclusion on this theme (which we will develop + through the book) can be rephrased accordingly: we believe that game theory + reveals the limits of ‘rational choice’ and of the (neoclassical) economic + approach to life. In other words, game theory does not actually deliver Jon + Elster’s ‘solid microfoundations’ for all social science; and this tells us + something about the inadequacy of its chosen ‘microfoundations’. + +Assumptions: + + three key assumptions: agents are instrumentally + rational (section 1.2.1); they have common knowledge of this rationality + (section 1.2.2); and they know the rules of the game (section 1.2.3). + These assumptions set out where game theory stands on the big questions of + the sort ‘who am I, what am I doing here and how can I know about either?’. + The first and third are ontological. 1 They establish what game theory takes as + the material of social science: in particular, what it takes to be the essence of + individuals and their relation in society. The second raises epistemological + issues 2 (and in some games it is not essential for the analysis). It is concerned + with what can be inferred about the beliefs which people will hold about how + games will be played when they have common knowledge of their rationality. + +Instrumental rationality (_Homo economicus_): + + We spend more time discussing these assumptions than is perhaps usual in + texts on game theory because we believe that the assumptions are both + controversial and problematic, in their own terms, when cast as general + propositions concerning interactions between individuals. This is one respect + in which this is a critical introduction. The discussions of instrumental + rationality and common knowledge of instrumental rationality (sections 1.2.1 + and 1.2.2), in particular, are indispensable for anyone interested in game + theory. In comparison section 1.2.3 will appeal more to those who are + concerned with where game theory fits in to the wider debates within social + + [...] + + Individuals who are instrumentally rational have preferences over various + ‘things’, e.g. bread over toast, toast and honey over bread and butter, rock + over classical music, etc., and they are deemed rational because they select + actions which will best satisfy those preferences. One of the virtues of this + model is that very little needs to be assumed about a person’s preferences. + Rationality is cast in a means-end framework with the task of selecting the + most appropriate means for achieving certain ends (i.e. preference + satisfaction); and for this purpose, preferences (or ‘ends’) must be coherent + in only a weak sense that we must be able to talk about satisfying them more + or less. Technically we must have a ‘preference ordering’ because it is only + when preferences are ordered that we will be able to begin to make + judgements about how different actions satisfy our preferences in different + degrees. + + [...] + + Thus it appears a promisingly general model of action. For instance, it could + apply to any type of player of games and not just individuals. So long as the + State or the working class or the police have a consistent set of objectives/ + preferences, then we could assume that it (or they) too act instrumentally so + as to achieve those ends. Likewise it does not matter what ends a person + pursues: they can be selfish, weird, altruistic or whatever; so long as they + consistently motivate then people can still act so as to satisfy them best. + +An agent is "rational" in this conext when they have preference ordering" and +if "they select the action that maximizes those preferences: + + Readers familiar with neoclassical Homo economicus will need no further + introduction. This is the model found in standard introductory texts, where + preferences are represented by indifference curves (or utility functions) and + agents are assumed rational because they select the action which attains the + highest feasible indifference curve (maximises utility). For readers who have + not come across these standard texts or who have forgotten them, it is worth + explaining that preferences are sometimes represented mathematically by a + utility function. As a result, acting instrumentally to satisfy best one’s + preferences becomes the equivalent of utility maximising behaviour. + +Reason and slavery: + + Even when we accept the Kantian argument, it is plain that reason’s + guidance is liable to depend on characteristics of time and place. For + example, consider the objective of ‘owning another person’. This obviously + does not pass the test of the categorical imperative since all persons could + not all own a person. Does this mean then we should reject slave-holding? At + first glance, the answer seems to be obvious: of course, it does! But notice it + will only do this if slaves are considered people. Of course we consider + slaves people and this is in part why we abhor slavery, but ancient Greece + did not consider slaves as people and so ancient Greeks would not have been + disturbed in their practice of slavery by an application of the categorical + imperative. + +Reason dependent on culture: + + Wittgenstein suggests that if you want to know why people act in the way that + they do, then ultimately you are often forced in a somewhat circular fashion to + say that such actions are part of the practices of the society in which those + persons find themselves. In other words, it is the fact that people behave in a + particular way in society which supplies the reason for the individual person to + act: or, if you like, actions often supply their own reasons. This is shorthand + description rather than explanation of Wittgenstein’s argument, but it serves to + make the connection to an influential body of psychological theory which + makes a rather similar point. + +Cognitive dissonance and free market proponents: + + Festinger’s (1957) cognitive dissonance theory proposes a model where + reason works to ‘rationalise’ action rather than guide it. The point is that we + often seem to have no reason for acting the way that we do. For instance, we + may recognise one reason for acting in a particular way, but we can equally + recognise the pull of a reason for acting in a contrary fashion. Alternatively, + we may simply see no reason for acting one way rather than another. In such + circumstances, Festinger suggests that we experience psychological distress. It + comes from the dissonance between our self-image as individuals who are + authors of our own action and our manifest lack of reason for acting. It is like + a crisis of self-respect and we seek to remove it by creating reasons. In short + we often rationalise our actions ex post rather than reason ex ante to take them + as the instrumental model suggests. + + [...] + + Research has shown that people seek out and read advertisements for + the brand of car they have just bought. Indeed, to return us to economics, it is + precisely this insight which has been at the heart of one of the Austrian and + other critiques of the central planning system when it is argued that planning + can never substitute for the market because it presupposes information + regarding preferences which is in part created in markets when consumers + choose. + +Infinite regress of the economics of information acquisiton (i.e learning, eg. +from a secret service): + + Actually most game theorists seem to agree on one aspect of the problem + of belief formation in the social world: how to update beliefs in the presence + of new information. They assume agents will use Bayes’s rule. This is explained + in Box 1.6. We note there some difficulties with transplanting a technique from + the natural sciences to the social world which are related to the observation we + have just made. We focus here on a slightly different problem. Bayes provides + a rule for updating, but where do the original (prior) expectations come from? + Or to put the question in a different way: in the absence of evidence, how do + agents form probability assessments governing events like the behaviour of + others? + + There are two approaches in the economics literature. One responds by + suggesting that people do not just passively have expectations. They do not + just wait for information to fall from trees. Instead they make a conscious + decision over how much information to look for. Of course, one must have + started from somewhere, but this is less important than the fact that the + acquisition of information will have transformed these original ‘prejudices’. + The crucial question, on this account, then becomes: what determines the + amount of effort agents put into looking for information? This is deceptively + easy to answer in a manner consistent with instrumental rationality. The + instrumentally rational agent will keep on acquiring information to the point + where the last bit of search effort costs her or him in utility terms the same + amount as the amount of utility he or she expects to get from the + information gained by this last bit of effort. The reason is simple. As long as + a little bit more effort is likely to give the agent more utility than it costs, + then it will be adding to the sum of utilities which the agent is seeking to + maximise. + + [...] + + This looks promising and entirely consistent with the definition of + instrumentally rational behaviour. But it begs the question of how the agent + knows how to evaluate the potential utility gains from a bit more information + _prior to gaining that information_. Perhaps he or she has formulated expectations of + the value of a little bit more information and can act on that. But then the + problem has been elevated to a higher level rather than solved. How did he or + she acquire that expectation about the value of information? ‘By acquiring + information about the value of information up to the point where the + marginal benefits of this (second-order) information were equal to the costs’, + is the obvious answer. But the moment it is offered, we have the beginnings of + an infinite regress as we ask the same question of how the agent knows the + value of this second-order information. To prevent this infinite regress, we + must be guided by something _in addition_ to instrumental calculation. But this + means that the paradigm of instrumentally rational choices is incomplete. The + only alternative would be to assume that the individual _knows_ the benefits that + he or she can expect on average from a little more search (i.e. the expected + marginal benefits) because he or she knows the full information set. But then + there is no problem of how much information to acquire because the person + knows everything! + +Infinite recursion of the common knowledge (CKR): + + If you want to form an expectation about what somebody does, what + could be more natural than to model what determines their behaviour and + then use the model to predict what they will do in the circumstances that + interest you? You could assume the person is an idiot or a robot or whatever, + but most of the time you will be playing games with people who are + instrumentally rational like yourself and so it will make sense to model your + opponent as instrumentally rational. This is the idea that is built into the + analysis of games to cover how players form expectations. We assume that + there is common knowledge of rationality held by the players. It is at once + both a simple and complex approach to the problem of expectation + formation. The complication arises because with common knowledge of + rationality I know that you are instrumentally rational and since you are + rational and know that I am rational you will also know that I know that you + are rational and since I know that you are rational and that you know that I + am rational I will also know that you know that I know that you are rational + and so on…. This is what common knowledge of rationality means. + + [...] + + It is difficult to pin down because common knowledge of X + (whatever X may be) cannot be converted into a finite phrase beginning with ‘I + know…’. The best one can do is to say that if Jack and Jill have common + knowledge of X then ‘Jack knows that Jill knows that Jack knows …that Jill + knows that Jack knows…X’—an infinite sentence. The idea reminds one of + what happens when a camera is pointing to a television screen that conveys the + image recorded by the very same camera: an infinite self-reflection. Put in this + way, what looked a promising assumption suddenly actually seems capable of + leading you anywhere. + + [...] + + The problem of expectation formation spins hopelessly out of control. + + Nevertheless game theorists typically assume CKR and many of them, and + certainly most people who apply game theory in economics and other + disciplines + +Uniformity: Consistent Alignment of Beliefs (CAB), another weak assumption +based on Harsanyi doctrine requiring equal information; followed by a +comparison with Socract dialectics: + + Put informally, the notion of _consistent alignment of beliefs_ (CAB) means that + no instrumentally rational person can expect another similarly rational + person who has the same infor mation to develop different thought + processes. Or, alternatively, that no rational person expects to be surprised + by another rational person. The point is that if the other person’s thought is + genuinely moving along rational lines, then since you know the person is + rational and you are also rational then your thoughts about what your + rational opponent might be doing will take you on the same lines as his or + her own thoughts. The same thing applies to others provided they respect + _your_ thoughts. So your beliefs about what your opponents will do are + consistently aligned in the sense that if you actually knew their plans, you + would not want to change your beliefs; and if they knew your plans they + would not want to change the beliefs they hold about you and which support + their own planned actions. + + Note that this does not mean that everything can be deterministically + predicted. + +Reason reflecting on itself: + + These observations are only designed to signal possible trouble ahead + and we shall examine this issue in greater detail in Chapters 2 and 3. We + conclude the discussion now with a pointer to wider philosophical currents. + Many decades before the appearance of game theor y, the Ger man + philosophers G.F.W.Hegel and Immanuel Kant had already considered the + notion of the self-conscious reflection of human reasoning on itself. Their + main question was: can our reasoning faculty turn on itself and, if it can, + what can it infer? Reason can certainly help persons develop ways of + cultivating the land and, therefore, escape the tyranny of hunger. But can it + understand how it, itself, works? In game theory we are not exactly + concerned with this issue but the question of what follows from common + knowledge of rationality has a similar sort of reflexive structure. When + reason knowingly encounters itself in a game, does this tell us anything + about what reason should expect of itself? + + What is revealing about the comparison between game theory and + thinkers like Kant and Hegel is that, unlike them, game theory offers + something settled in the form of CAB. What is a source of delight, + puzzlement and uncertainty for the German philosophers is treated as a + problem solved by game theory. For instance, Hegel sees reason reflecting + on reason as it reflects on itself as part of the restlessness which drives + human history. This means that for him there are no answers to the + question of what reason demands of reason in other people outside of + human history. Instead history offers a changing set of answers. Likewise + Kant supplies a weak answer to the question. Rather than giving substantial + advice, reason supplies a negative constraint which any principle of + knowledge must satisfy if it is to be shared by a community of rational + people: any rational principle of thought must be capable of being followed + by all. O’Neill (1989) puts the point in the following way: + + [Kant] denies not only that we have access to transcendent meta- + physical truths, such as the claims of rational theology, but also that + reason has intrinsic or transcendent vindication, or is given in + consciousness. He does not deify reason. The only route by which we + can vindicate certain ways of thinking and acting, and claim that those + ways have authority, is by considering how we must discipline our + thinking if we are to think or act at all. This disciplining leads us not to + algorithms of reason, but to certain constraints on all thinking, + communication and interaction among any plurality. In particular we are + led to the principle of rejecting thought, act or communication that is + guided by principles that others cannot adopt. + (O’Neill p. 27) + +Summary: + + To summarise, game theory is avowedly Humean in orientation. [...] + The second [aspect] is that game theorists seem to assume _too much_ on behalf + of reason [even more than Hume did]. + +Giddens, Wittgenstein language games and the "organic or holistic view of the relation between action and structure" (pages 30-31): + + The question is ontological and it connects directly with the earlier + discussion of instrumental rationality. Just as instrumental rationality is not + the only ontological view of what is the essence of human rationality, there is + more than one ontological view regarding the essence of social interaction. + Game theory works with one view of social interaction, which meshes well + with the instrumental account of human rationality; but equally there are + other views (inspired by Kant, Hegel, Marx, Wittgenstein) which in turn + require different models of (rational) action. + +State (pages 32-33): + + Perhaps the most famous example of this type of + institutional creation comes from the early English philosopher Thomas + Hobbes who suggested in Leviathan that, out of fear of each other, + individuals would contract with each other to form a State. In short, they + would accept the absolute power of a sovereign because the sovereign’s + ability to enforce contracts enables each individual to transcend the dog- + eat-dog world of the state of nature, where no one could trust anyone and + life was ‘short, nasty and brutish’. + + Thus, the key individualist move is to draw attention to the way that + structures not only constrain; they also enable (at least those who are in a + position to create them). It is the fact that they enable which persuades + individuals consciously (as in State formation) or unconsciously (in the case + of those which are generated spontaneously) to build them. To bring out + this point and see how it connects with the earlier discussion of the + relation between action and structure it may be helpful to contrast Hobbes + with Rousseau. Hobbes has the State emerging from a contract between + individuals because it serves the interests of those individuals. Rousseau + also talked of a social contract between individuals, but he did not speak + this individualist language. For him, the political (democratic) process was + not a mere means of ser ving persons’ interests by satisfying their + preferences. It was also a process which changed people’s preferences. People + were socialised, if you like, and democracy helped to create a new human + being, more tolerant, less selfish, better educated and capable of cherishing + the new values of the era of Enlightenment. By contrast, Hobbes’ men and + women were the same people before and after the contract which created + the State. 4 + +Game theory as justification of individualism (pages 32-33), which reminds the +discussion made by Dany-Robert Dufour in La Cite Perverse; it is also noted +that the State is considered a "collective action agency": + + Where do structures come from when they are separate from actions? An + ambitious response which distinguishes methodological individualists of all + types is that the structures are merely the deposits of previous interactions + (potentially understood, of course, as games). This answer may seem to threaten + an infinite regress in the sense that the structures of the previous + interaction must also be explained and so on. But, the individualist will want + to claim that ultimately all social str uctures spring from interactions + between some set of asocial individuals; this is why it is ‘individualist’. + + [...] + + Returning to game theory’s potential contribution, we can see that, in so + far as individuals are modelled as Humean agents, game theory is well placed + to help assess the claims of methodological individualists. After all, game + theory purports to analyse social interaction between individuals who, as + Hume argued, have passions and a reason to serve them. Thus game theory + should enable us to examine the claim that, beginning from a situation with + no institutions (or structures), the self-interested behaviour of these + instrumentally rational agents will either bring about institutions or fuel their + evolution. An examination of the explanatory power of game theory in such + settings is one way of testing the individualist claims. + In fact, as we shall see in subsequent chapters, the recurring difficulty + + [...] + + Suppose we take the methodological individualist route and see + institutions as the deposits of previous interactions between individuals. + Individualists are not bound to find that the institutions which emerge in + this way are fair or just. Indeed, in practice, many institutions reflect the + fact that they were created by one group of people and then imposed on + other groups. All that any methodological individualist is committed to is + being able to find the origin of institutions in the acts of individuals qua + individuals. The political theory of liberal individualism goes a stage + further and tries to pass judgement on the legitimacy of particular + institutions. Institutions in this view are to be regarded as legitimate in so + far as all individuals who are governed by them would have broadly + ‘agreed’ to their creation. + + Naturally, much will turn on how ‘agreement’ is to be judged because + people in desperate situations will often ‘agree’ to the most desperate of + outcomes. Thus there are disputes over what constitutes the appropriate + reference point (the equivalent to Hobbes’s state of nature) for judging + whether people would have agreed to such and such an arrangement. We set + aside a host of further problems which emerge the moment one steps outside + liberal individualist premises and casts doubt over whether people’s + preferences have been autonomously chosen. Game theory has little to + contribute to this aspect of the dispute. However, it does make two + significant contributions to the discussions in liberal individualism with + respect to how we might judge ‘agreement’. + +Prisioner's dilemma and the hobbesian argument for the creation of a State (pages 36-37): +resolution would require a higher State in the next upper level of recursion: + + Finally there is the prisoners’ dilemma game (to which we have dedicated the + whole of Chapter 5 and much of Chapter 6). Recall the time when there were + still two superpowers each of which would like to dominate the other, if + possible. They each faced a choice between arming and disarming. When both + arm or both disarm, neither is able to dominate the other. Since arming is + costly, when both decide to arm this is plainly worse than when both decide to + disarm. However, since we have assumed each would like to dominate the + other, it is possible that the best outcome for each party is when that party + arms and the other disarms since although this is costly it allows the arming + side to dominate the other. These preferences are reflected in the ‘arbitrary’ + utility pay-offs depicted in Figure 1.4. + + Game theory makes a rather stark prediction in this game: both players will + arm (the reasons will be given later). It is a paradoxical result because each + does what is in their own interest and yet their actions are collectively self- + defeating in the sense that mutual armament is plainly worse than the + alternative of mutual disarmament which was available to them (pay-off 1 for + utility pay-offs depicted in Figure 1.4. + + Game theory makes a rather stark prediction in this game: both players will + arm (the reasons will be given later). It is a paradoxical result because each + does what is in their own interest and yet their actions are collectively self- + defeating in the sense that mutual armament is plainly worse than the + alternative of mutual disarmament which was available to them (pay-off 1 for + each rather than 2). The existence of this type of interaction together with the + inference that both will arm has provided one of the strongest arguments for + the creation of a State. This is, in effect, Thomas Hobbes’s argument in + Leviathan. And since our players here are themselves States, both countries + should agree to submit to the authority of a higher State which will enforce an + agreement to disar m (an argument for a strong, independent, United + Nations?). + +Too much trust in that type of instrumental rationality might lead to lower +outcomes in some games: + + The term rationalisable has been used to describe such strategies because a + player can defend his or her choice (i.e. rationalise it) on the basis of beliefs + about the beliefs of the opponent which are not inconsistent with the game’s + data. However, to pull this off, we need ‘more’ commonly known rationality + than in the simpler games in Figures 2.1 and 2.3. Looking at Figure 2.4 we see + that outcome (100, 90) is much more inviting than the rationalisable outcome + (1, 1). It is the deepening confidence in each other’s instrumental rationality + (fifth-order CKR, to be precise) which leads our players to (1, 1). In summary + notation, the rationalisable strategies R2, C2 are supported by the following + train of thinking (which reflects the six steps described earlier): + + -- 48 + +Nash-equilibrium: self-confirming strategy: + + A set of rationalisable strategies (one for each player) are in a Nash + equilibrium if their implementation confirms the expectations of each player + about the other’s choice. Put differently, Nash strategies are the only + rationalisable ones which, if implemented, confirm the expectations on which + they were based. This is why they are often referred to as self-confirming + strategies or why it can be said that this equilibrium concept requires that + players’ beliefs are consistently aligned (CAB). + + -- 53 + +Arguments against CAB: + + In the same spirit, it is sometimes argued (borrowing a line from John von + Neumann and Oskar Morgenstern) that the objective of any analysis of games is + the equivalent of writing a book on how to play games; and the minimum + condition which any piece of advice on how to play a game must satisfy is + simple: the advice must remain good advice once the book has been published. + In other words, it could not really be good advice if people would not want to + follow it once the advice was widely known. On this test, only (R2, C2) pass, + since when the R player follows the book’s advice, the C player would want to + follow it as well, and vice versa. The same cannot be said of the other + rationalisable strategies. For instance, suppose (R1, C1) was recommended: then + R would not want to follow the advice when C is expected to follow it by + selecting C1 and likewise, if R was expected to follow the advice, C would not + want to. + + Both versions of the argument with respect to what mutual rationality entails + seem plausible. Yet, there is something odd here. Does respect for each other’s + rationality lead each person to believe that neither will make a mistake in a + game? Anyone who has talked to good chess players (perhaps the masters of + strategic thinking) will testify that rational persons pitted against equally + rational opponents (whose rationality they respect) do not immediately assume + that their opposition will never make errors. On the contrary, the point in + chess is to engender such errors! Are chess players irrational then? One is + inclined to answer no, but why? And what is the difference as + + -- 57 + +Limits conceptualizing reason as an algorithm ("Humean approach to reason +is algorithmic"): + + Harsanyi doctrine seems to depend on a powerfully algorithmic and controversial + view of reason. Reason on this account (at least in an important part) is akin + to a set of rules of inference which can be used in moving from evidence to + expectations. That is why people using reason (because they are using the same + algorithms) should come to the same conclusion. However, there is genuine + puzzlement over whether such an algorithmic view of reason can apply to all + circumstances. Can any finite set of rules contain rules for their own + application to all possible circumstances? The answer seems to be no, since + under some sufficiently detailed level of description there will be a question of + whether the rule applies to this event and so we shall need rules for applying + the rules for applying the rules. And as there is no limit to the detail of the + description of events, we shall need rules for applying the rules for applying + the rules, and so on to infinity. In other words, every set of rules will require + creative interpretation in some circumstances and so in these cases it is + perfectly possible for two individuals who share the same rules to hold + divergent expectations. + + This puts a familiar observation from John Maynard Keynes and Frank + Knight regarding genuine uncertainty in a slightly different way, but + nevertheless it yields the same conclusion. There will be circumstances under + which individuals are unable to decide rationally what probability assessment + to attach to events because the events are uncertain and so it should not be + surprising to find that they disagree. Likewise, the admiration for + entrepreneurship found among economists of the Austrian school depends on + the existence of uncertainty. Entrepreneurship is highly valued precisely + because, as a result of uncertainty, people can hold different expectations + regarding the future. In this context, the entrepreneurs are those who back + their judgement against that of others and succeed. In other words, there + would be no job for entrepreneurs if we all held common expectations in a + world ruled by CAB! + + A similar conclusion regarding ineliminable uncertainty is shared by social + theorists who have been influenced by the philosophy of Kant. They deny that + reason should be understood algorithmically or that it always supplies answers + as to what to do. For Kantians reason supplies a critique of itself which is the + source of negative restraints on what we can believe rather than positive + instructions as to what we should believe. Thus the categorical imperative (see + section 1.2.1), which according to Kant ought to determine many of our + significant choices, is a sieve for beliefs and it rarely singles out one belief. + Instead, there are often many which pass the test and so there is plenty of + room for disagreement over what beliefs to hold. + + Perhaps somewhat surprisingly though, a part of Kant’s argument might + lend support to the Nash equilibrium concept. In particular Kant thought that + rational agents should only hold beliefs which are capable of being + universalised. This idea, taken by itself, might prove a powerful ally of Nash. + [...] Of course, a full Kantian perspective is + likely to demand rather more than this and it is not typically adopted by game + theorists. Indeed such a defence of Nash would undo much of the + foundations of game theory: for the categorical imperative would even + recommend choosing dominated strategies if this is the type of behaviour that + each wished everyone adopted. Such thoughts sit uncomfortably with the + Humean foundations of game theory and we will not dwell on them for now. + Instead, since the spirit of the Humean approach to reason is algorithmic, we + shall continue discussing the difficulties with the Harsanyi—Aumann defence + of Nash. + + -- 58-60 + +"Irrational" plays which might intend to send a message to other players: + + Indeed why should one assume in this way that players cannot (or + should not) try to make statements about themselves through patterning + their ‘trembles? The question becomes particularly sharp once it is recalled + that, on the conventional account, players must expect that there is always + some chance of a tremble. Trembles in this sense are part of normal + behaviour, and the critics argue that agents may well attempt to use them + as a medium for signalling something to each other. Of course, players will + not do so if they believe that their chosen pattern is going to be ignored + by others. But that is the point: why assume that this is what they will + believe from the beginning, especially when agents can see that the + generally accepted use of trembles as signals might secure a better + outcome for both players [...]? + + Note that this is not an argument against backward induction per se: it is an + argument against assuming CKR while working out beliefs via backward + induction (i.e. a criticism of Nash backward induction). When agents consider + patterning their ‘trembles’, they project forward about future behaviour given + that there are trembles now or in the past. What makes it ambiguous whether + they should do this, or stick to Nash backward induction instead, is that there + is no uniquely rational way of playing games like Figures 3.5 or 3.6 (unlike the + race to 20 game in which there is). In this light, the subgame perfect Nash + equilibrium offers one of many possible scenarios of how rational agents will + behave. + + -- 93 + +Why not expand this affirmation so _any_ move to signal some intention? + +## Misc + +Page 101: + + Hence these refinements (e.g. proper equilibria), likethe Nash + equilibrium project itself, seem to have to appeal to somethingother + than the traditional assumptions of game theory regarding + rationalaction in a social context. + +Page 102: + + regarding the relation betweenconvention following and instrumental + rationality. The worry here takes usback to the discussion of section + 1.2.3 where for instance it was suggested thatconventions might best be + understood in the way suggested by Wittgenstein orHegel. In short, the + acceptance of convention may actually require a radicalreassessment of + the ontological foundations of game theory. + +Page 102: + + actually require a radicalreassessment of the ontological foundations + of game theory. + +Page 103: + + Why not give up on the Nash concept altogether? This ‘giving up’ might + takeon one of two forms. Firstly, game theory could appeal to the + concept ofrationalisable strategies (recall section 2.4 of Chapter 2) + which seemuncontentiously to flow from the assumptions of instrumental + rationalityand CKR. The difficulty with such a move is that it concedes + that gametheory is unable to say much about many games (e.g. Figures + 2.6, 2.12, etc.).Naturally, modesty of this sort might be entirely + appropriate for gametheory, although it will diminish its claims as a + solid foundation for socialscience. + +Page 104: + + Unlike the instrumentally rational model, for Hegelians and Marxists + actionbased on preferences feeds back to affect preferences, and so on, + in an everunfolding chain. (See Box 3.1 for a rather feeble attempt to + blend desires andbeliefs.) Likewise some social psychologists might + argue that the key to actionlies less with preferences and more with + the cognitive processes used bypeople; and consequently we should + address ourselves to understanding theseprocesses. + +Page 105: + + 105 + +Page 106: + + Quite simply, the significant social processes which write history + cannot beunderstood through the lens of instrumental rationality. This + destines gametheory to a footnote in some future text on the history of + social theory. Welet the reader decide.3 + +Page 108: + + Thirdly, the sociology of the discipline may provide further clues. + Twoconditions would seem to be essential for the modern development of + adiscipline within the academy. Firstly the discipline must be + intellectuallydistinguishable from other disciplines. Secondly, there + must be some barriersto the amateur pursuit of the discipline. (A third + condition which goes withoutsaying is that the discipline must be able + to claim that what it does ispotentially worth while.) The first + condition reduces the competition fromwithin the academy which might + come from other disciplines (to do thisworthwhile thing) and the second + ensures that there is no effectivecompetition from outside the academy. + In this context, the rational choicemodel has served economics very + well. It is the distinguishing intellectualfeature of economics as a + discipline and it is amenable to such formalisationthat it keeps most + amateurs well at bay. Thus it is plausible to argue that thesuccess of + economics as a discipline within the social sciences has been + closelyrelated to its championing of the rational choice model. + +Page 108: + + kind of amnesia or lobotomy which thediscipline seems to have suffered + regarding most things philosophical duringthe postwar period. + +Page 108: + + It isoften more plausible to think of the academy as a battleground + betweendisciplines rather than between ideas and the disciplines which + have goodsurvival features (like the barriers to entry identified + above) + +Page 109: + + explanations willonly prosper in so far as they are both superior and + they are not institutionallyundermined by the rise of neoclassical + economics and the demise ofsociology. It is not necessary to see these + things conspiratorially to see thepoint of this argument. All academics + have fought their corner in battles overresources and they always use + the special qualities of their discipline asammunition in one way or + another. Thus one might explain in functionalist termsthe mystifying + attachment of economics and game theory to Nash. + +Page 110: + + We have no special reason to prioritise one strand of our + proposedexplanation. Yet, there is more than a hint of irony in the + last suggestionbecause Jon Elster has often championed game theory and + its use of the Nashequilibrium concept as an alternative to functional + arguments in social science.Well, if the use of Nash by game theorists + is itself to be explainedfunctionally, then… + +Page 111: + + Liberal theorists often explain the State with reference to state of + nature. Forinstance, within the Hobbesian tradition there is a stark + choice between astate of nature in which a war of all against all + prevails and a peacefulsociety where the peace is enforced by a State + which acts in the interest ofall. The legitimacy of the State derives + from the fact that people who wouldotherwise live in Hobbes’s state of + nature (in which life is ‘brutish, nasty andshort’) can clearly see the + advantages of creating a State. Even if a State had + +Page 111: + + not surfaced historically for all sorts of other reasons, it would have + to beinvented.Such a hypothesised ‘invention’ would require a + cooperative act of comingtogether to create a State whose purpose will + be to secure rights over life andproperty. Nevertheless, even if all + this were common knowledge, it wouldnot guarantee that the State will + be created. There is a tricky further issuewhich must be resolved. The + people must agree to the precise property rightswhich the State will + defend and this is tricky because there are typically avariety of + possible property rights and the manner in which the benefits ofpeace + will be distributed depends on the precise property rights which + areselected (see Box 4.1).In other words, the common interest in peace + cannot be the onlyelement in the liberal explanation of the State, as + any well-defined andpoliced property rights will secure the peace. The + missing element is anaccount of how a particular set of property rights + are selected and thiswould seem to require an analysis of how people + resolve conflicts ofinterest. This is where bargaining theory promises + to make an importantcontribution to the liberal theory of the State + because it is concernedprecisely with interactions of this sort. + +Page 112: + + State creation in Hobbes’s world provides one example (which + especiallyinterests us because it suggests that bargaining theory may + throw light onsome of the claims of liberal political theory with + respect to the State), butthere are many others. + +Page 113: + + The creation of the institutions for enforcing agreements (like the + State)which are presumed by cooperative game theory requires as we have + seenthat agents first solve the bargaining problem non-cooperatively. + +Page 113: + + Indeed for this reason, and following thepractice of most game + theorists, we have so far discussed the non-cooperative play of games + ‘as if ’ there was no communication, therebyimplicitly treating any + communication which does take place in the absenceof an enforcement + agency as so much ‘cheap talk’ + +Page 113: + + In cooperative games agents cantalk to each other and make agreements + which are binding on later play. Innon-cooperative games, no agreements + are binding. Players can say whateverthey like, but there is no + external agency which will enforce that they dowhat they have said they + will do. + +Page 114: + + Thus it will have shown not just what sort of State rational agents + mightagree to create, but also how rational agents might solve a host + of bargainingproblems in social life. Unfortunately we have reasons to + doubt therobustness of this analysis and it is not difficult to see our + grounds forscepticism. If bargaining games resemble the hawk-dove game + and thediscussion in Chapter 2 is right to point to the existence of + multipleequilibria in this game under the standard assumptions of game + theory, thenhow does bargaining theory suddenly manage to generate a + uniqueequilibrium? + +Page 114: + + 114face value, the striking result of the non-cooperative analysis of + thebargaining problem is that it yields the same solution to the + bargainingproblem as the axiomatic approach. If this result is robust, + then it seems thatgame theory will have done an extraordinary service + by showing thatbargaining problems have unique solutions (whichever + route is preferred).Thus it will have shown not just what sort of State + rational agents mightagree to create, but also how rational agents + might solve a host of bargainingproblems in social life. Unfortunately + we have reasons to doubt therobustness of this analysis and it is not + difficult to see our grounds forscepticism. If bargaining games + resemble the hawk-dove game and thediscussion in Chapter 2 is right to + point to the existence of multipleequilibria in this game under the + standard assumptions of game theory, thenhow does bargaining theory + suddenly manage to generate a uniqueequilibrium? + +Page 116: + + A threat or promise which, if carried out, costs more tothe agent who + issued it than if it is not carried out, iscalled an incredible threat + or promise. + +Page 138: + + However, this failure topredict should be welcomed by John Rawls and + Robert Nozick as it providesan opening to their contrasting views of + what counts as justice betweenrational agents. + +Page 138: + + If the Nash solution were unique, then game theory would have + answeredan important question at the heart of liberal theory over the + type of Statewhich rational agents might agree to create. In addition, + it would have solveda question in moral philosophy over what justice + might demand in this and avariety of social interactions. After all, + how to divide the benefits from socialcooperation seems at first sight + to involve a tricky question in moralphilosophy concerning what is + just, but if rational agents will only ever agreeon the Nash division + then there is only one outcome for rational agents.Whether we want to + think of this as just seems optional. But if we do or ifwe think that + justice is involved, then we will know, and for onceunambiguously, what + justice apparently demands between instrumentallyrational + agents.Unfortunately, though, it seems we cannot draw these inferences + becausethe Nash solution is not the unique outcome. Accepting this + conclusion, weare concerned in this section with what bargaining theory + then contributes tothe liberal project of examining the State as if it + were the result of rational + +Page 140: + + behind the veil of ignorance. + +Page 142: + + Torture: Another example in moral philosophy is revealed by the problem + oftorture for utilitarians. For instance, a utilitarian calculation + focuses onoutcomes by summing the individual utilities found in + society. In so doing itdoes not enquire about the fairness or otherwise + of the processes responsiblefor generating those utilities with the + result that it could sanction torture whenthe utility gain of the + torturer exceeds the loss of the person being tortured.Yet most people + would feel uncomfortable with a society which sanctionedtorture on + these grounds because it unfairly transgresses the ‘rights’ of + thetortured. + +Page 143: + + Granted that society (andthe State) are not the result of some + living-room negotiation, what kind of“axioms” would have generated the + social outcomes which we observe in agiven society?’ That is, even if + we reject the preceding fictions (i.e. of the Stateas a massive + resolution of an n-person bargaining game, or of the veil ofignorance) + as theoretically and politically misleading, we may still + pinpointcertain axioms which would have generated the observed income + distributions(or distributions of opportunities, social roles, property + rights, etc.) as a resultof an (utterly) hypothetical bargaining game. + +Page 143: + + Roemer (1988) considers a problem faced by an international + agencycharged with distributing some resources with the aim of + improving health(say lowering infant mortality rates). How should the + authority distributethose resources? This is a particularly tricky + issue because different countriesin the world doubtless subscribe to + some very different principles which theywould regard as relevant to + this problem; and so agreement on a particularrule seems unlikely. + Nevertheless, he suggests that we approach the problemby considering + the following constraints (axioms) which we might want toapply to the + decision rule because they might be the object of significantagreement. + +Page 144: + + rule which allocates resources in such a way as to raise the country + with thelowest infant survival rate to that of the second lowest, and + then if the budgethas not been exhausted, it allocates resources to + these two countries until theyreach the survival rate of the third + lowest country, and so on until the budgetis exhausted. + +Page 147: + + It is tempting to think that the problem only arises here because + theprisoners cannot communicate with one another. If they could get + togetherthey would quickly see that the best for both comes from ‘not + confessing’.But as we saw in the previous chapter, communication is not + all that isneeded. Each still faces the choice of whether to hold to an + agreement that + +Page 148: + + The recognition ofthis predicament helps explain why individuals might + rationally submit to theauthority of a State, which can enforce an + agreement for ‘peace’. Theyvoluntarily relinquish some of their freedom + that they enjoy in the(hypothesised) state of nature to the State + because it unlocks the prisoners’dilemma. (It should be added perhaps + that this is not to be taken as a literalaccount of how all States or + enforcement agencies arise. The point of theargument is to demonstrate + the conditions under which a State or enforcementagency would enjoy + legitimacy among a population even though it restrictedindividual + freedoms.) + +Page 148: + + their normal business with the result that they prosper and enjoy a + more‘commodious’ living (as Hobbes phrased it), choosing strategy + ‘peace’ is like‘not confessing’ above; when everyone behaves in this + manner it is much betterthan when they all choose ‘war’ (’confess’). + However, and in spite of wideranging recognition that peace is better + than war, the same prisoners’ dilemmaproblem surfaces and leads to war. + +Page 148: + + While Hobbes thought that the authority of the State should be absolute + soas to discourage any cheating on ‘peace’, he also thought the scope + of itsinterventions in this regard would be quite minimal. In contrast + much of themodern fascination with the prisoners’ dilemma stems from + the fact that theprisoners’ dilemma seems to be a ubiquitous feature of + social life. Forinstance, it plausibly lies at the heart of many + problems which groups + +Page 148: + + they have struck over ‘not confessing’. Is it in the interest of either + party tokeep to such an agreement? No, a quick inspection reveals that + the bestaction in terms of pay-offs is still to ‘confess’. As Thomas + Hobbes remarkedin Leviathan when studying a similar problem, ‘covenants + struck without thesword are but words’. The prisoners may trumpet the + virtue of ‘notconfessing’ but if they are only motivated instrumentally + by the pay-offs,then it is only so much hot air because each will + ‘confess’ when the timecomes for a decision. + +Page 148: + + What seems to be required to avoid this outcome is a mechanism + whichallows for joint or collective decision making, thus ensuring that + both actuallydo ‘not confess’. In other words, there is a need for a + mechanism for enforcingan agreement—Hobbes’s ‘sword’, if you like. And + it is this recognition whichlies at the heart of a traditional liberal + argument dating back to Hobbes for thecreation of the State which is + seen as the ultimate enforcement agency.(Notice, however, that such an + argument applies equally to some otherinstitutions which have the + capacity to enforce agreements, for example theMafia.) In Hobbes’s + story, each individual in the state of nature can behavepeacefully or + in a war-like fashion. Since peace allows everyone to go about + +Page 149: + + it is notuncommon to find the dilemma treated as the essential model of + social life + +Page 149: + + The following four sectionsand the next chapter, on repeated games, + discuss some of the developmentsin the social science literature which + have been concerned with how thedilemma might be unlocked without the + services of the State. In otherwords, the later sections focus on the + question of whether the widespreadnature of this type of interaction + necessarily points to the (legitimate inliberal terms) creation of an + activist State. Are there other solutions whichcan be implemented + without involving the State or any public institution?Since the scope + of the State’s activities has become one of the mostcontested issues in + contemporary politics, it will come as no surprise todiscover that the + discussions around alternative solutions to the dilemmahave assumed a + central importance in recent political (and especially inliberal and + neoliberal) theory. + +Page 149: + + It arises as a problem of trust in every elemental economic + exchangebecause it is rare for the delivery of a good to be perfectly + synchronised withthe payment for it and this affords the opportunity to + cheat on the + +Page 150: + + These are two-person examples of the dilemma, but it is probably the + ‘n-person’ version of the dilemma (usually called the free rider + problem) which hasattracted most attention. It creates a collective + action problem among groupsof individuals. Again the examples are + legion. + +Page 151: + + The instrumentally rational individual will recognise that the best + action is‘do not attach’ (i.e. defection) whatever the others do. This + means that in apopulation of like-minded individuals, all will decide + similarly with the resultthat each individual gains 2 utils. This is + plainly an inferior outcome for allbecause everyone could have attached + the device and if they all had done soeach would have enjoyed 3 + utils.In these circumstances the individuals in this economy might + agree to theState enforcing attachment of the device. Alternatively, it + is easy to see howanother popular intervention by the State would also + do the trick. The Statecould tax each individual who did not attach the + device a sum equivalent to 2utils and this would turn ‘attach’ (C) into + the dominant strategy. + +Page 151: + + There is nothinglike the State which can enforce contracts within the + household to keep akitchen clean, but interestingly within a family + household one oftenobserves the exercise of patriarchal or paternal + power instead. Of course,the potential difficulty with such an + arrangement is that the patriarch mayrule in a partial manner with the + result that the kitchen is clean but with nohelp from the hands of the + patriarch! The role of the State has in suchcases been captured, so to + speak, by an interested party determined bygender. Then gender becomes + the determinant of who bears the burdenand who has the more privileged + role. Social power which ‘solves’prisoners’ dilemmas can be thus + exercised without the direct involvementof the State (even though the + State often enshrines such power in its owninstitutions). + +Page 152: + + Hence the prisoners’ dilemma/free rider might plausibly lie atthe + distinction which is widely attributed to Marx in the discussion of + classconsciousness between a class ‘of itself’ and ‘for itself’ (see + Elster, 1986b). Onsuch a view a class transforms itself into a ‘class + for itself’, or a society avoidsdeficient demand, by unlocking the + dilemma. + +Page 153: + + Adam Smith’s account of how the self-interest of sellers combines with + thepresence of many sellers to frustrate their designs and to keep + prices lowmight also fit this model of interaction. If you are the + seller choosing from thetwo row strategies C and D, then imagine that C + and D translate into ‘charge ahigh price’ and ‘charge a low price’ + respectively. Figure 5.2 could reflect yourpreference ordering as high + prices for all might be better than low prices forall and charging a + low price when all others charge a high might be the bestoption because + you scoop market share. Presumably the same applies to yourcompetitors. + Thus even though all sellers would be happier with a high level + ofprices, their joint interest is subverted because each acting + individually quiterationally charges a low price. It is as if an + invisible hand was at work onbehalf of the consumers. + +Page 155: + + This is perhaps the most radical departure from the + conventionalinstrumental understanding of what is entailed by + rationality because, whileaccepting the pay-offs, it suggests that + agents should act in a different wayupon them. The notion of + rationality is no longer understood in the means—end framework as the + selection of the means most likely to satisfy given ends. + +Page 155: + + thus enabling‘rationality’ to solve the problem when there are + sufficient numbers ofKantian agents. + +Page 155: + + For instance, we mighthave wrongly assumed earlier that there is no + honour among thieves becauseacting honourably could be connected to + acting rationally in some fullaccount of rationality in which case the + dilemma might be unlocked withoutthe intervention of the State (or some + such agency). This general idea oflinking a richer notion of rational + agency with the spontaneous solution ofthe dilemma has been variously + pursued in the social science literature andthis section and the + following three consider four of the more prominentsuggestions. + +Page 155: + + The first connects rationality with morality and Kant provides a + readyreference. His practical reason demands that we should undertake + thoseactions which when generalised yield the best outcomes. It does + not matterwhether others perform the same calculation and actually + undertake thesame action as you. The morality is deontological and it + is rational for theagent to be guided by a categorical imperative (see + Chapter 1). Consequently,in the free rider problem, the application of + the categorical imperative willinstruct Kantian agents to follow the + cooperative action + +Page 156: + + Similarly partisans in occupied Europe during the Second World War + riskedtheir lives even when it was not clear that it was instrumentally + rational toconfront the Nazis. In such cases, it seems people act on a + sense of what isright. + +Page 156: + + Likewise, Hardin (1982) suggests thatthe existence of environmental and + other voluntary organisations usuallyentails overcoming a free rider + problem and in the USA this may beexplained in part by an American + commitment to a form ofcontractarianism whereby ‘people play fair if + enough others do’ + +Page 156: + + Instead, rationality is conceived more as an expression of what is + possible: ithas become an end in its own right. This is not only + radical, it is alsocontroversial. Deontological moral philosophy is + controversial for the obviousreason that it is not concerned with the + actual consequences of an action, aswell as for the move to connect it + with rationality. (Nevertheless, O’Neill(1989) presents a recent + argument and provides an extended discussion of thismoral psychology + and how it might be applied.)Kant’s morality may seem rather demanding + for these reasons, but thereare weaker or vaguer types of moral + motivation which also seem capableof unlocking the prisoners’ dilemma. + For example, a general altruisticconcern for the welfare of others may + provide a sufficient reason forpeople not to defect on the cooperative + arrangement. + +Page 157: + + Another departure from the strict instrumental model of rational action + comeswhen individuals make decisions in a context of norms and these + norms arecapable of overriding considerations of what is instrumentally + rational. + +Page 157: + + On the other hand, given the well-known difficultiesassociated with any + coherent system of ethics (like utilitarianism), it seemsquite likely + that a person’s ethical concerns will not be captured by a well-behaved + set of preferences (see for instance Sen (1970) on the problems ofbeing + a Paretian Liberal). Indeed rational agents may well base their actions + onreasons which are external to their preferences. + +Page 157: + + Of course, there is a tricky issue concerning whether these rather + weaker orvaguer moral motivations (like altruism, acting on what is + fair or what is right)mark a deep breach with the instrumental model of + action. It might be arguedthat such ethical concerns can be represented + in this model by introducing theconcept of ethical preferences. Thus + the influence of ethical preferencestransforms the pay-offs in the + game. + +Page 158: + + Disputeswithin Aboriginal society are neither perceived as simply + between twoindividuals nor subject to some established community + tribunal. It is for thisreason that the resolution of a major conflict + will involve a significant amountof negotiation between the parties. + Yet the informal laws which govern thecontents of the negotiations are + well entrenched in the tribal culture. Forexample, it is not uncommon + for family members of the perpetrator to beasked to accept ‘punishment’ + if the individual offender is in prison andtherefore unavailable. + +Page 159: + + First World War. This was a war of unprecedentedcarnage both at the + beginning and the end. Yet during a middle period, non-aggression + between the two opposing trenches emerged spontaneously in theform of a + ‘live and let live’ norm. Christmas fraternisation is one + well-knownexample, but the ‘live and let live’ norm was applied much + more widely.Snipers would not shoot during meal times and so both sides + could go abouttheir business ‘talking and laughing’ at these hours. + Artillery was predictablyused both at certain times and at certain + locations. So both sides couldappear to demonstrate aggression by + venturing out at certain times and tocertain locations, knowing that + the shells would fall predictably close to, butnot on, their chosen + route. Likewise, it was not considered ‘etiquette’ to fireon working + parties who had been sent out to repair a position or collect thedead + and so on. + +Page 159: + + For instance, it is sometimes argued that thenorms of Confucian + societies enable those economies to solve the prisoners’dilemma/free + rider problems within companies without costly contracting + andmonitoring activity and that this explains, in part, the economic + success ofthose economies (see Hargreaves Heap, 1991, Casson, 1991, + North, 1991).Akerlof ’s (1983) discussion of loyalty filters, where he + explains the relativesuccess of Quaker groups in North America by their + respect for the norm ofhonesty, is another example— + +Page 160: + + Wittgenstein of Philosophical Investigations1 is an obvious source for + this viewbecause he would deny that the meaning of something like a + person’sinterests or desires can be divorced from a social setting; and + this is a usefulopportunity to take that argument further. The + attribution of meaningrequires language rules and it is impossible to + have a private language. Thereis a long argument around the possibility + or otherwise of private languagesand it may be worth pursuing the point + in a slightly different way by askinghow agents have knowledge of what + action will satisfy the condition ofbeing instrumentally rational. Any + claim to knowledge involves a firstunquestioned premise: I know this + because I accept x. Otherwise an infiniteregress is inevitable: I + accept x because I accept y and I accept ybecause…and so on. + Accordingly, if each person’s knowledge of what isrational is to be + accessible to one another, then they must share the samefirst premises. + It was Wittgenstein’s point that people must share somepractices if + they are to attach meaning to words and so avoid the problem ofinfinite + redescription which comes with any attempt to specify the rules + forapplying the rules of a language. + +Page 161: + + There is another similarity and difference which might also be + usefullymarked. To make it very crudely one might draw an analogy + between thedifficulty which Wittgenstein encounters over knowledge + claims and a similardifficulty which Simon (1982) addresses. (Herbert + Simon is well known ineconomics for his claim that agents are + procedurally rational, or boundedlyrational, because they do not have + the computing capacity to work out whatis the best to do in complex + settings.) To be sure, Wittgenstein finds theproblem in an infinite + regress of first principles while Simon finds thedifficulty in the + finite computing capacity of the brain. Nevertheless, both + +Page 161: + + discussion of the Harsanyi doctrine because a similar claim seems to + underpinthat doctrine. Namely that all rational individuals must come + to the sameconclusion when faced by the same evidence. Wittgenstein + would agree to theextent that some such shared basis of interpretation + must be present ifcommunication is to be possible. But he would deny + that all societies andpeoples will share the same basis for + interpretations. The source of the sharingfor Wittgenstein is not some + universal ‘rationality’, as it is for Harsanyi; ratherit is the + practices of the community in which the people live, and these willvary + considerably across time and space. + +Page 162: + + let us make the view inspired by Wittgensteinvery concrete. The + suggestion is that what is instrumentally rational is notwell defined + unless one appeals to the prevailing norms of behaviour. Thismay seem a + little strange in the context of a prisoners’ dilemma where thedemands + of instrumental rationality seem plain for all to see: defect! But,in + reply, those radically inspired by Wittgenstein would complain that + thenorms have already been at work in the definition of the matrix and + itspay-offs because it is rare for any social setting to throw up + unvarnishedpay-offs. A social setting requires interpretation before + the pay-offs can beassigned and norms are implicated in those + interpretations. (See forexample Polanyi (1945) who argues, in his + celebrated discussion of the riseof industrial society, that the + incentives of the market system are onlyeffective when the norms of + society place value on private materialadvance.) + +Page 162: + + The last reflection on rationality comes from David Gauthier. He + remainsfirmly in the instrumental camp and ambitiously argues that its + dictates havebeen wrongly understood in the prisoners’ dilemma game. + Instrumental rationalitydemands cooperation and not defection! To make + his argument he distinguishesbetween two sorts of maximisers: a + straightforward maximiser (SM) and aconstrained maximiser (CM). A + straightforward maximiser defects (D)following the same logic that we + have used so far. The constrained maximiseruses a conditional strategy + of cooperating (C) with fellow constrainedmaximisers and defecting with + straightforward maximisers. He then asks:which disposition + (straightforward or constrained) should an instrumentallyrational + person choose to have? (The decision can be usefully compared with + asimilar one confronting Ulysses in connection with listening to the + Sirens, + +Page 164: + + The point is that if instrumental rationality is what motivates the CM + inthe prisoners’ dilemma, then a CM must want to defect + +Page 164: + + In other words, being a CM may be better than beingan SM, but the best + strategy of all is to label yourself a CM and then cheaton the deal. + And, of course, when people do this, we are back in a worldwhere + everyone defects. + +Page 164: + + Surely, this line of argument goes,it pays not to ‘zap’ a fellow CM + because your reputation as a CM is therebypreserved and this enables + you to interact more fruitfully with fellow CMs inthe future. Should + you zap a fellow CM now, then everyone will know that youare a rogue + and so in your future interactions, you will be treated as an SM. + Inshort, in a repeated setting, it pays to forgo the short run gain + from defectingbecause this ensures the benefits of cooperation over the + long run. Thusinstrumental calculation can make true CM behaviour the + best course ofaction. + +Page 165: + + Moreover, it achieved aremarkable degree of cooperation. + +Page 165: + + each program.Tit-for-Tat, submitted by Anatol Rapoport, won the + tournament. Theprogram starts with a cooperative move and then does + whatever theopponent did on the previous move. It was, as Axelrod + points out, not onlythe simplest program, it was also the best! + +Page 165: + + dilemma can be defeated without the intervention of a collective agency + likethe State—that is, provided the interaction is repeated + sufficiently often tomake the long term benefits outweigh the short + gains. + +Page 166: + + ‘Is the Prisoners’ dilemma all of sociology?’Of course, it is not, he + answers. Nevertheless, it has fascinated social scientistsand proved + extremely difficult to unlock in one-shot plays of the game—atleast, + without the creation of a coercive agency like the State which is + capableof enforcing a collective action or without the introduction of + norms or somesuitable form of moral motivation on the part of the + individuals playing thegame. Of course, many interactions are repeated + and so this stark conclusionmay be modified by the discussion of the + next chapter. + +Page 167: + + Perhaps somewhat surprisingly, mutualdefection remains the only Nash + equilibrium. The following two sectionsdiscuss, respectively, + indefinitely repeated prisoners’ dilemma and therelated free rider + games. We show (section 6.4) that mutual cooperation isa possible Nash + equilibrium outcome in these games provided there is a‘sufficient’ + degree of uncertainty over when the repetition will cease.There are + some significant implications here both for liberal politicaltheory and + for the explanatory power of game theory. We notice that thisresult + means that mutual cooperation might be achieved without theintervention + of a collective agency like the State and/or withoutappealing to some + expanded notion of rational agency + +Page 168: + + the absence of a theory of equilibriumselection. + +Page 170: + + Firstly, it provides a theoretical warrant for the belief that + cooperation in theprisoners’ dilemma can be rationally sustained + without the intervention ofsome collective agency like the State, + provided there is sufficient (to be definedlater) doubt over when the + repeated game will end. Thus the presence of aprisoners’ dilemma + interaction does not necessarily entail either a poor socialoutcome or + the institutions of formal collective decision making. The + thirdalternative is for players to adopt a tit-for-tat strategy + rationally.1 If they adoptthis third alternative the socially inferior + outcome of mutual defection will beavoided without the interfering + presence of the State or some other formal(coercive) institution. + +Page 171: + + Equally, it is probable that both prisonersin the original example may + think twice about ‘confessing’ because each knowsthat they are likely + to encounter one another again (if not in prison, at leastoutside) and + so there are likely to be opportunities for exacting ‘punishment’ ata + later date. + +Page 171: + + Folk theorem + +Page 172: + + This is an extremely important result for the social sciences because + itmeans that there are always multiple Nash equilibria in such + indefinitelyrepeated games. Hence, even if Nash is accepted as the + appropriateequilibrium concept for games with individuals who are + instrumentally rationaland who have common knowledge of that + rationality, it will not explain howindividuals select their strategies + because there are many strategy pairs whichform Nash equilibria in + these repeated games. Of course, we have encounteredthis problem in + some one-shot games before, but the importance of this resultis that it + means the problem is always there in indefinitely repeated games.Even + worse, it is amplified by repetition. In other words, game theory needs + tobe supplemented by a theory of equilibrium selection if it is to + explain actionin these indefinitely repeated games, especially if it is + to explain howcooperation actually arises spontaneously in indefinitely + repeated prisoners’dilemma games. + +Page 175: + + Now consider a tit-for-tat strategy in this group which works in + thefollowing way. The strategy partitions the group into those who are + in ‘goodstanding’ and those who are in ‘no standing’ based on whether + the individualcontributed to the collective fund in the last time + period. Those in ‘goodstanding’ are eligible for the receipt of help + from the group if they fall ‘ill’ thistime period, whereas those who + are in ‘no standing’ are not eligible for help.Thus tit-for-tat + specifies cooperation and puts you in ‘good standing’ for thereceipt of + a benefit if you fall ‘ill’ (alternatively, to connect with the + earlierdiscussion, one might think of cooperating as securing a + ‘reputation’ whichputs one in ‘good standing’ + +Page 175: + + Notice your decision now will determine whether you are in ‘good + standing’from now until the next opportunity that you get to make this + decision (whichwill be the next period if you do not fall ‘ill’ or the + period after that if you fall‘ill’). So we focus on the returns from + your choice now until you next get theopportunity to choose. + +Page 176: + + Who needs the State? + +Page 176: + + Here we pick up threads of the Hobbesianargument for the State and see + what the result holds for this argument. At firstglance, the argument + for the State seems to be weakened because it appearsthat a group can + overcome the free rider problem without recourse to theState for + contract enforcement. So long as the group can punish free riders + byexcluding them from the benefits of cooperation (as for instance the + Pygmiespunished Cephu—see Chapter 5), then there is the possibility of + ‘spontaneous’public good provision through the generalisation of the + tit-for-tat strategy.Having noted this, nevertheless, the point seems + almost immediately to beblunted since the difference between a + Hobbesian State which enforcescollective agreements and the generalised + tit-for-tat arrangement is notaltogether clear and so in proving one we + are hardly undermining the other.After all, the State merely codifies + and implements the policies of‘punishment’ on behalf of others in a + very public way (with the rituals ofpolice stations, courts and the + like). But, is this any different from the golfclub which excludes a + member from the greens when the dues have not beenpaid or the Pygmies’ + behaviour towards Cephu? Or the gang which excludespeople who have not + contributed ‘booty’ to the common fund? + +Page 176: + + Box 6.2 + +Page 178: + + contract—that the creation of the State by the individual also helps + shape asuperior individual.) Hayek, however, prefers the ‘English + tradition’ because hedoubts (a) that the formation of the State is part + of a process which liberates(and moulds) the social agent and (b) that + there is the knowledge to informsome central design so that it can + perform the task of resolving free ridingbetter than spontaneously + generated solutions (like tit-for-tat). In other words,reason should + know its limits and this is what informs Hayek’s support forEnglish + pragmatism and its suspicion of the State.Of course there is a big ‘if + in Hayek’s argument. Although Beirut stillmanaged to function without a + grand design, most of its citizens prayed forone. In short, the + spontaneous solution is not always the best. Indeed, as wehave seen, + the cooperative solution is just one among many Nash equilibria + inrepeated games, so in the absence of some machinery of collective + decisionmaking, there seems no guarantee it will be selected. Against + this, however, itis sometimes argued that evolution will favour + practices which generate thecooperative outcome since societies that + achieve cooperation in these gameswill prosper as compared with those + which are locked in mutual defection.This is the cue for a discussion + of evolutionary game theory and we shall leavefurther discussion of the + State until we turn to evolutionary game theory + +Page 178: + + Instead the result seems important because it demythologises the + State.Firstly the State qua State (that is, the State with its police + force, its courts andthe like) is not required to intrude into every + social interaction which suffersfrom a free rider problem. There are + many practices and institutions which aresurrogates for the State in + this regard. Indeed, the Mafia has plausiblydisplaced the State in + certain areas precisely because it provides the services ofa State. + Likewise, during the long civil war years inhabitants of Beirutsomehow + still managed to maintain services which required the overcoming offree + rider problems.Secondly since something like the State as contract + enforcer might well arise‘spontaneously’ through the playing of free + rider games repeatedly, it need notrequire any grand design. There need + be no constitutional conventions. In thisway the result counts strongly + for what Hayek (1962) refers to as the Englishas opposed to the + European continental Enlightenment tradition. The latterstresses the + power of reason to construct institutions that overcome problemslike + those of the free rider. (It also often presupposes—recall Rousseau’s + social + +Page 178: + + different if you pay the State in the form of taxes or the Mafia in the + form oftribute? + +Page 185: + + example comes from strategicdecisions by the legislature when the + Executive is trying to push throughParliament a series of bills that + the latter is unsympathetic towards. + +Page 185: + + President proposes legislation. The Congress is notin sympathy with the + proposal and must decide whether to make amendments.If it decides to + make an amendment, then the President must decide whetherto fight the + amendment or acquiesce. Looking at the President’s pay-offs it + isobvious that, even though he or she prefers that the Congress does + not amendthe legislation, if it does, he or she would not want to fight + +Page 186: + + the Folk theorem ensures that aninfinity of war/acquiescence patterns + are compatible with instrumentalrationality. Nevertheless, the duration + of such games is usually finite andsometimes their length is + definite—e.g. US Presidents have a fixed term andincumbents have only a + fixed number of local markets that they wish todefend. What happens + then? Would it make sense for the President or theincumbent to put on a + show of strength early on (e.g. by fighting the Congressor unleashing a + price war) in order to create a reputation for belligerence thatwould + make the Congress and the entrant think that, in future rounds, + theywill end up with pay-off -1/2 if they dare them? + +Page 186: + + In the finitely repeated version of the game Nash backward + inductionargues against this conclusion. Just as in the case of the + prisoners’ dilemmain the previous subsection, it suggests that, since + there will be no fighting atthe last play of the game, the reputation + of the President/incumbent willunravel to the first stage and no + fighting will occur (rationally). Theconclusion changes again once we + drop CKR (or allow for different types ofplayers). + +Page 190: + + Of course, there may be actions that can be takenoutside the game and + which have a similar effect on the beliefs of others. Such‘signalling’ + behaviour is considered briefly in this section to round out + thediscussion of reputations. It is of potential relevance not only to + repeated, butalso to one-shot games. + +Page 192: + + when the game isrepeated and there is a unique Nash equilibrium things + change. The Nashequilibrium is attractive because as time goes by and + agents adjust theirexpectations of what others will do in the light of + experience, then they willseem naturally drawn to the Nash equilibrium + because it is the only restingplace for beliefs. Any other set of + beliefs will upset itself. + +Page 192: + + Nevertheless, there is still no guarantee that a Nash equilibrium + willsurface even if it exists and it is unique. + +Page 193: + + The strength of the Nash equilibrium is that forward looking agents + mayrealise that (R2, C2) is the only outcome that does not engender + such thoughts.We just saw that adaptive (or backward looking) + expectations will not do thetrick. If, however, after having been + around the pay-off matrix a few timesplayers ask themselves the + question ‘How can we reach a stable outcome?’,they may very well + conclude that the only such outcome is the Nashequilibrium (R2, C2).But + why would they want to ask such a question? What is so wrong + withinstability (and disequilibrium) after all? Indeed in the case of + Figure 2.6 ourplayers have an incentive to avoid a stable outcome + (observe that on averagethe cycle which takes them from one extremity + of the pay-off matrix toanother yields a much higher pay-off than the + Nash equilibrium result). If, onthe other hand, pay-offs were as in + Figure 6.4 below, they would be stronglymotivated to reach the Nash + equilibrium. + +Page 193: + + It is easy to see that this type of adaptivelearning will never lead + the players to the Nash equilibrium outcome (R2, C2).Instead, they will + be oscillating between outcomes (R1, C1), (R1, C3), (R3, C1)and (R3, + C3).Can they break away from this never ending cycle and hit the + Nashequilibrium? They can provided they converge onto a common + forwardlooking train of thought. For + +Page 194: + + Thus we conclude that whether repetition makes the Nashequilibrium more + or less likely when it is unique must depend on thecontingencies of how + people learn and the precise pay-offs from non-Nashbehaviour. + +Page 194: + + Broadly put, this is one and the same problem. It is a problem + withspecifying how agents come to hold beliefs which are extraneous to + the game(in the sense that they cannot be generated endogenously + through theapplication of the assumptions of instrumental rationality + and commonknowledge of instrumental rationality) + +Page 195: + + the insights of evolutionary game theory arecrucial material for many + political and philosophical debates, especially thosearound the State. + +Page 195: + + The argument for suchan agency turns on the general problem of + equilibrium selection and on theparticular difficulty of overcoming the + prisoners’ dilemma. When there aremultiple equilibria, the State can, + through suitable action on its own part, guidethe outcomes towards one + equilibrium rather than another. Thus the problemof equilibrium + selection is solved by bringing it within the ambit of + consciouspolitical decision making. Likewise, with the prisoners’ + dilemma/ free riderproblem, the State can provide the services of + enforcement. Alternativelywhen the game is repeated sufficiently and + the issue again becomes one ofequilibrium selection, then the State can + guide the outcomes towards thecooperative Nash equilibrium. + +Page 195: + + intransigent Right’ + +Page 196: + + —that is, the idea that you can turn social outcomes intomatters of + social choice through the intervention of a collective action + agencylike the State. The positive argument against ‘political + rationalism’, as the quoteabove suggests, turns on the idea that these + interventions are not evennecessary. The failure to intervene does not + spell chaos, chronic indecision,fluctuations and outcomes in which + everyone is worse off than they couldhave been. Instead, a ‘spontaneous + order’ will be thrown up as a result ofevolutionary processes. + +Page 196: + + Likewise, there are problems of ‘political failure’ that subvert the + ideal ofdemocratic decision making and which can match the market + failures that theState is attempting to rectify. For example, Buchanan + and Wagner (1977) andTullock (1965) argue that special interests are + bound to skew ‘democraticdecisions’ towards excessively large + bureaucracies and high governmentexpenditures. Furthermore there are + difficulties, especially after the Arrowimpossibility theorem, with + making sense of the very idea of something likethe ‘will of the people’ + in whose name the State might be acting (see Arrow,1951, Riker, 1982, + Hayek, 1962, and Buchanan, 1954).1These, so to speak, are a shorthand + list of the negative arguments comingfrom the political right against + ‘political rationalism’ or ‘socialconstructivism’ + +Page 196: + + Forinstance, there are problems of inadequate knowledge which can mean + thateven the best intentioned and executed political decision generates + unintendedand undesirable consequences. Indeed this has always been an + importanttheme in Austrian economics, featuring strongly in the 1920s + debate over thepossibility of socialist planning as well as + contemporary doubts over thewisdom of more minor forms of State + intervention. + +Page 196: + + Hayek (1962) himself tracesthe battlelines in the dispute back to the + beginning of Enlightenmentthinking:Hayek distinguished two intellectual + lines of thought about freedom, ofradically opposite upshot. The first + was an empiricist, essentially Britishtradition descending from Hume, + Smith and Ferguson, and seconded byBurke and Tucker, which understood + political development as aninvoluntary process of gradual institutional + improvement, comparable tothe workings of a market economy or the + evolution of common law. Thesecond was a rationalist, typically French + lineage descending fromDescartes through Condorcet to Comte, with a + horde of modernsuccessors, which saw social institutions as fit for + premeditatedconstruction, in the spirit of polytechnic engineering. The + former lineled to real liberty; the latter inevitably destroyed it. + +Page 197: + + evolutionary stable strategies + +Page 197: + + In particular, wesuggest that the evolutionary approach can help + elucidate the idea that poweris mobilised through institutions and + conventions. We conclude the chapterwith a summing-up of where the + issue of equilibrium selection and the debateover the State stands + after the contribution of the evolutionary approach. + +Page 197: + + The basic idea behind this equilibrium concept is that an ESS is a + strategywhich when used among some population cannot be ‘invaded’ by + anotherstrategy because it cannot be bested. So when a population uses + a strategy I,‘mutants’ using any other strategy J cannot get a toehold + and expand amongthat population. + +Page 197: + + This is why evolutionary game theory assumes significance in the + debateover an active State. It should help assess the claims of + ‘spontaneous order’made by those in the British corner and so advance + one of the central debatesin Enlightenment political thinking. + +Page 198: + + This is, if youlike, a version of Hobbes’s nightmare where there are no + property rightsand everyone you come across will potentially claim your + goods. + +Page 202: + + Secondly, and more specifically, there is the result that although the + symmetricalplay of this game yields a unique equilibrium, it becomes + unstable the momentrole playing begins and some players start to + recognise asymmetry. Sincecreative agents seem likely to experiment + with different ways of playing thegame, it would be surprising if there + was never some deviation based on anasymmetry. Indeed it would be more + than surprising because there is muchevidence to support the idea that + people look for ‘extraneous’ reasons whichmight explain what are in + fact purely random types of behaviour (see theadjacent box on winning + streaks).Formally, this leaves us with the old problem of how the + solution to thegame comes about. However, evolutionary game theory does + at least point usin the direction of an answer. The phase diagram in + Figure 7.2 reveals that theselection of an equilibrium depends + critically on the initial set of beliefs + +Page 202: + + once animperfect form of rationality is posited. In other words, it is + not beingdeduced as an implication of the common knowledge of + rationalityassumption which has been the traditional approach of + mainstream gametheory. + +Page 203: + + Thirdly, it can be noted that the selection of one ESS rather than + anotherembodies a convention + +Page 203: + + To put these observationsrather less blandly, since rationality on this + account is only responsible for thegeneral impulse towards mimicking + profitable behaviour, the history of thegame depends in part on what + are the idiosyncratic and unpredictable (non-rational, one might say, + as opposed to irrational) features of individual beliefsand learning. + +Page 204: + + Fourthly, the selection of one equilibrium rather than another + potentiallymatters rather deeply. In effect in the hawk—dove game over + contestedproperty, what happens in the course of moving to one of the + ESSs is theestablishment of a form of property rights. Either those + playing role R get theproperty and role C players concede this right, + or those playing role C get theproperty and role R players concede this + right. This is interesting not onlybecause it contains the kernel of a + possible explanation of property rights (onwhich we shall say more + later) but also because the probability of playing roleR or role C is + unlikely to be distributed uniformly over the population. Indeed,this + distribution will depend on whatever is the source of the distinction + usedto assign people to roles. + +Page 204: + + The question, then, of how a source of differentiation gets + establishedbecomes rather important. + +Page 204: + + Thus the behaviour at one of theseESSs is conventionally determined + and, to repeat the earlier point, we can plotthe emergence of a + particular convention with the use of this phase diagram.It will depend + both on the presumption that agents learn from experience(the rational + component of the explanation) and on the particularidiosyncratic (and + non-rational) features of initial beliefs and precise learningrules. + +Page 206: + + After all, perhaps the presence of these conventions can only + beaccounted for by a move towards a Wittgensteinian ontology, in which + casemainstream game theory’s foundations look decidedly wobbly. To + prevent thisdrift a more robust response is required.The alternative + response is to deny that the appeal to shared prominenceor salience + involves either an infinite regress or an acknowledgement + thatindividuals are necessarily ontologically social + +Page 206: + + There is a further and deeper problem with the concept of salience + basedon analogy because the attribution of terms like ‘possession’ + plainly begs thequestion by presupposing the existence of some sort of + property rights in thepast. In other words, people already share a + convention in the past and this isbeing used to explain a closely + related convention in the present. Thus we havenot got to the bottom of + the question concerning how people come to holdconventions in the first + place.3 + +Page 206: + + So, of course, we cannot hope to explainhow they actually achieve a new + coordination without appealing to thosebackground conventions. In this + sense, it would be foolish for socialscientists (and game theorists, in + particular) to ignore the social context inwhich individuals play new + games. + +Page 208: + + This conclusion reinforces the earlier result that the course of + historydepends in part on what seem from the instrumental account of + rationalbehaviour to be non-rational (and perhaps idiosyncratic) and + thereforefeatures of human beliefs and action which are difficult to + predict + +Page 209: + + mechanically. One can interpret this in the spirit of + methodologicalindividualism at the expense of conceding that + individuals are, in this regard,importantly unpredictable. On the one + hand, this does not look good for theexplanatory claims of the theory. + On the other hand, to render theindividuals predictable, it seems that + they must be given a shared history andthis will only raise the + methodological concern again of whether we canaccount for this sharing + satisfactorily without a changed ontology. Insummary, if individuals + are afforded a shared history, then social context is‘behind’ no one + and ‘in’ everyone and then the question is whether it is agood idea to + analyse behaviour by assuming (as methodological individualistsdo) the + separability of context and action.4 + +Page 213: + + The underlying point here is that discrimination may be + evolutionarystable if the dominated cannot find ways of challenging the + social conventionthat supports their subjugation. This conclusion is + not necessarily rightbecause there are other potential sources of + change. The insight that we preferto draw is that individual attempts + to buck an established convention areunlikely to succeed, whereas the + same is not true when individuals takecollective action. + +Page 213: + + Stasis, status quo: Thus the introduction of a convention will benefit + the average person, butif you happen to be so placed with respect to + the convention that you onlyplay the dominant role with a probability + of less than 1/3, then you would bebetter off without the convention. + This result may seem puzzling at first: whydo the people who play a + dominant role less than 1/3 of the time not revert tothe symmetric play + of the game and so undermine the convention? The answeris that even + though the individual would be better off if everyone quit + theconvention, it does not make sense to do so individually. After all, + aconvention will tell your opponent to play either H or D, and then + instruct youto play D or H respectively; and you can do no better than + follow thisconvention since the best reply to H remains D and likewise + the best reply toD is H. It is just tough luck if you happen to get the + D instruction all thetime!We take the force of this individual + calculation to be a powerful contributorto the status quo and it might + seem to reveal that evolutionary processes yieldto stasis. + +Page 213: + + Conventions, inequality and revolt + +Page 214: + + To summarise, we should expect a convention to emerge even though itmay + not suit everyone, or indeed even if it short-changes the majority. It + maybe discriminatory, inequitable, non-rational, indeed thoroughly + disagreeable, yetsome such convention is likely to arise whenever a + social interaction like hawk-dove is repeated. Which convention emerges + will depend on the sharedsalience of extraneous features of the + interaction, initial beliefs and the waythat people learn. + +Page 214: + + Standstill: A potential weakness of evolutionary game theory has just + becomeapparent. Once the bandwagon has come to a standstill, and one + conventionhas been selected, the theory cannot account for a potential + subversion of theestablished convention. Such an account would require, + as we argued in theprevious paragraph, an understanding of political + (that is, collective) actionbased on a more active form of human agency + than the one provided byinstrumental rationality. Can evolutionary game + theory go as far? + +Page 219: + + Recall the idea of a trembling hand in section 2.7.1 and suppose + thatplayers make mistakes sometimes. In particular, when they intend + tocooperate they occasionally execute the decision wrongly and they + defect. Inthese circumstances, playing t punishes you for the mistake + endlessly becauseit means that your opponent defects next round in + response to your mistakendefection. If in the next period you + cooperate, you are bound to get zapped.If you follow your t-strategy + next time, then you will be defecting while youropponent will be + cooperating and a frustrating sequence of alternatingdefections and + cooperations will ensue. One way out of this bind is toamend t to t’ + whereby, if you defect by mistake, then you cooperate twiceafterwards: + the first time as a gesture of acknowledging your mistake and thesecond + in order to coordinate your cooperative behaviour with that of + youropponent. In other words, the amended tit-for-tat instructs you to + cooperatein response to a defection which has been provoked by an + earlier mistakendefection on your part. + +Page 219: + + Eventhough strategy C would do equally well as a reply to t’, if your + opponentmade the mistake (last period) then you know that your opponent + willcooperate in the next two rounds no matter what you do this period. + Thusyour best response in this round is to defect + +Page 221: + + Conventions as covert social power + +Page 221: + + even more covert power that comes from being able to mould the + preferencesand the beliefs of others so that a conflict of interest is + not even latentlypresent. + +Page 221: + + with the interests of another.It is common in discussions of power to + distinguish between the overt andthe covert exercise of power. Thus, + for instance, Lukes (1974) distinguishesthree dimensions of power. + There is the power that is exercised in the politicalor the economic + arena where individuals, or firms, institutions, etc., are able + tosecure decisions which favour their interests over others quite + overtly. This isthe overt exercise of power along the first dimension. + In addition, there is themore covert power that comes from keeping + certain items off the politicalagenda. Some things simply do not get + discussed in the political arena and inthis way the status quo + persists. Yet the status quo advantages some rather thanothers and so + this privileging of the status quo by keeping certain issues offthe + political agenda is the second dimension of power. Finally, there is + the + +Page 222: + + The figure of Spartacus captured imaginations over theages, not so much + because of his military antics, but because he personifiedthe + possibility of liberating the slaves from the beliefs which sustained + theirsubjugation. + +Page 222: + + this is the power which works through the mind and which dependsfor its + influence on the involvement or agreement of large numbers of + thepopulation (again connecting with the earlier observation about the + force ofcollective action). + +Page 222: + + State were consciously to select a convention in these circumstances + thenwe might observe the kind of political haggling associated with the + overtexercise of power. Naturally when a convention emerges + spontaneously, we donot observe this because there is no arena for the + haggling to occur, yet theemergence of a convention is no less decisive + than a conscious politicalresolution in resolving the conflict of + interest.6Evolutionary game theory also helps reveal the part played by + beliefs,especially the beliefs of the subordinate group, in securing + the power of thedominant group (a point, for example, which is central + to Gramsci’s notion ofhegemony and Hart’s contention that the power of + the law requires voluntarycooperation). + +Page 224: + + Theannexing of virtue can happen as a result of well-recognised + patterns ofcognition. + +Page 224: + + Of course, like all theories of cognitive dissonance removal,this story + begs the question of whether the adjustment of beliefs can do thetrick + once one knows that the beliefs have been adjusted for the + purpose.Nevertheless, there seem to be plenty of examples of dissonance + removal + +Page 225: + + Our final illustration of how evolutionary game theory might help + sharpenour understanding of debates around power in the social sciences + relates tothe question of how gender and race power distributions are + constitutedand persist. The persistence of these power imbalances is a + puzzle to some. + +Page 227: + + Once a convention isestablished in this game, a set of property + relations are also established.Hence the convention could encode a set + of class relations for this gamebecause it will, in effect, indicate + who owns what and some may end upowning rather a lot when others own + scarcely anything. However, as wehave seen a convention of this sort + will only emerge once the game isplayed asymmetrically and this + requires an appeal to some piece ofextraneous information like sex or + age or race, etc. In short, the creationof private property relations + from the repeated play of these gamesdepends on the use of some other + asymmetry and so it is actuallyimpossible to imagine a situation of + pure class relations, as they couldnever emerge from an evolutionary + historical process. Or to put thisslightly differently: asymmetries + always go in twos!This understanding of the relation has further + interesting implications.For instance, an attack on gender + stratification is in part an attack on classstratification and vice + versa. + +Page 227: + + Likewise, however, it would be wrong toimagine that the attack on + either if successful would spell the end of theother. + +Page 227: + + On this account of powerthrough the working of convention, the + ideological battle aimed atpersuading people not to think of themselves + as subordinate is half thebattle because these beliefs are part of the + way that power is mobilised. + +Page 228: + + . The feedback mechanism, however, ispresent in this analysis and it + arises because there is ‘learning’. It is theassumption that people + shift towards practices which secure better outcomes(without knowing + quite why the practice works for the best) which is thefeedback + mechanism responsible for selecting the practices. Thus in the + debateover functional explanation, the analysis of evolutionary games + lends supportto van Parijs’s (1982) argument that ‘learning’ might + supply the generalfeedback mechanism for the social sciences which will + license functionalexplanations in exactly the same way as natural + selection does in the biologicalsciences. + +Page 228: + + effect, the explanation of gender and racial inequalities using + thisevolutionary model is an example of functional argument. + +Page 228: + + The differencebetween men and women or between whites and blacks has no + merit inthe sense that it does not explain why the differentiation + persists. Thedifferentiation has the unintended consequence of helping + the populationto coordinate its decision making in settings where there + are benefitsfrom coordination. It is this function of helping the + population to selectan equilibrium in a situation which would otherwise + suffer from theconfusion of multiple equilibria which explains the + persistence of thedifferentiation. + +Page 229: + + So far, however, the difference between the two camps (H&EVGT andMarx) + is purely based on value judgements: one argues that illusory moralsare + good for all, the other that they are not. In this sense, both + canprofitably make use of the analysis in evolutionary game theory. + Indeed, aswe have already implied in section 7.3.4, a radical political + project grounded + +Page 229: + + On the side of H&EVGT, Hume thinks that suchillusions play a positive + role (in providing the ‘cement’ which keeps societytogether) in + relation to the common good. So do neo-Humeans (like Sugden)who are, of + course, less confident that invocation of the ‘common good’ is agood + idea (as we mentioned in section 7.6.2) but who are still happy to + seeconventions (because of the order they bring) become entrenched in + sociallife even if this is achieved with the help of a few moral + ‘illusions’. On theother side, however, Marx insists that moral + illusions are never a good idea(indeed he dislikes all illusions). + Especially since, as he sees it, their socialfunction is to help some + dreadful conventions survive (recall how in section7.3.4 we showed that + disagreeable conventions may become stable even ifthey are detrimental + to the majority). Marx believed that we can + +Page 229: + + which sound quite like observations that Marxists might make: + theimportance of taking collective action if one wants to change a + convention;how power can be covertly exercised; how beliefs + (particularly moral beliefs)may become endogenous to the conventions we + follow; how propertyrelations might develop functionally; and so on. + +Page 229: + + Indeedmost of the ideas developed on the basis of H&EVGT in the + precedingpages would find Marx in agreement. + +Page 229: + + People may think that their beliefson such matters go beyond material + values (i.e. self-interest, which in ourcontext means pay-offs); that + they respond to certain universal ideals aboutwhat is ‘good’ and + ‘right’, when all along their moral beliefs are a direct(even if + unpredictable) repercussion of material conditions and interests. + +Page 230: + + An analysis of hawk—dove games, along the lines of H&EVGT, helpsexplain + the evolution of property rights in primitive societies. Once + theserights are in place and social production is under way, each group + in society(e.g. the owners of productive means, or those who do not own + tools, land,machines, etc.) develops its own interest. And since (as + H&EVGT concurs)conventions evolve in response to such interests, it is + not surprising thatdifferent conventions are generated within different + social groups in responseto the different interests. The result is + conflicting sets of conventions which + +Page 230: + + Finally, the established (stable) conventions acquire moral weight and + even leadpeople to believe in something called the common good—which is + most likelyanother illusion + +Page 230: + + In summary, H&EVGTbegins with a behavioural theory based on the + individual interest and eventuallylands on its agreeable by-product: + the species interest. There is nothing inbetween the two types of + interest. By contrast, Marx posits another type ofinterest in between: + class interest.Marx’s argument is that humans are very different from + other speciesbecause we produce commodities in an organised way before + distributingthem. Whereas other species share the fruits of nature + (hawk—dove games aretherefore ‘naturally’ pertinent in their state of + nature), humans have developedcomplex social mechanisms for producing + goods. Naturally, the norms ofdistribution come to depend on the + structure of these productive mechanisms.They involve a division of + labour and lead to social divisions (classes). Whichclass a person + belongs to depends on his or her location (relative to others)within + the process of production. The moment collective production (as in + thecase of Cephu and his tribe in Chapter 5) gave its place to a + separationbetween those who owned the tools of production and those who + workedthose tools, then groups with significantly different (and often + contradictory)interests developed. + +Page 230: + + in collective action is as compatible with evolutionary game theory as + is theneo-Humeanism of Sugden (1986, 1989). But is there something more + inMarx than a left wing interpretation of evolutionary game theory? We + thinkthere is. + +Page 231: + + lead to conflicting morals. Each set of morals becomes an ideology.9 + Which setof morals (or ideology) prevails at any given time? Marx + thinks that, inevitably,the social class which is dominant in the + sphere of production and distributionwill also be the one whose set of + conventions and morals (i.e. whose ideology)will come to dominate over + society as a whole.To sum up Marx’s argument so far, prevailing moral + beliefs are illusoryproducts of a social selection process where the + driving force is not somesubjective individual interest but objective + class interest rooted in thetechnology and relations of production. + Although there are many conflictingnorms and morals, at any particular + time the morality of the ruling class isuniquely evolutionary stable. + The mélange of legislation, moral codes, norms,etc., reflects this + dominant ideology.But is there a fundamental difference between the + method of H&EVGTand Marx? Or is it just a matter of introducing classes + in the analysiswithout changing the method? + +Page 231: + + So, how would Marx respond to evolutionary game theory if he werearound + today? He would, we think, be very interested in some of the + radicalconclusions in this chapter. However, he would also speak + derisively of thematerialism of H&EVGT Marx habitually poured scorn on + those (e.g.Spinoza and Feuerbach) who transplanted models from the + natural sciencesto the social sciences with little or no modification + to allow for the fact thathuman beings are very different to atoms, + planets and molecules.12 Wemention this because at the heart of H&EVGT + lies a simple Darwinianmechanism (witness that there is no analytical + difference between the modelsin the biology of John Maynard Smith and + the models in this chapter). Marxwould probably claim that the theory + is not sufficiently evolutionary because(a) its mechanism comes to a + standstill once a stable convention has evolved,and (b) of its reliance + on instrumental rationality which reduces humanactions to passive + reflex responses to some (meta-physical) self-interest. + +Page 232: + + Especially in hisphilosophical (as opposed to economic) works, Marx + argued strongly for anevolutionary (or more precisely historical) + theory of society with a modelof human agency which retains human + activity as a positive (creative) forceat its core. In addition, Marx + often spoke out against mechanism; againstmodels borrowed directly from + the natural sciences (astronomy andbiology are two examples that he + warned against). It is helpful to preservesuch an aversion since humans + are ontologically different to atoms andgenes. Of course Marx himself + has been accused of mechanism and,indeed, in the modern (primarily + Anglo-Saxon) social theory literature he istaken to be an exemplar of + 19th century mechanism. Nevertheless hewould deny this, pointing to the + dialectical method he borrowed fromHegel and which (he would claim) + allowed him to have a scientific, yetnon-mechanistic, outlook. Do we + believe him? As authors we disagree here.SHH does not, while YV does. + +Page 232: + + Of course there is always the answer that self-interest feeds into + moral beliefsand then moral beliefs feed back into self-interest and + alter people’s desires.And so on. But that would be too circular for + Marx. It would not explainwhere the process started and where it is + going. By contrast, his version ofmaterialism (which he labelled + historical materialism) starts from thetechnology of production and the + corresponding social organisation. Thelatter entails social classes + which in turn imbue people with interests; peopleact on those interests + and, mostly without knowing it, they shape theconventions of social + life which then give rise to morals. The process,however, is grounded + on the technology of production at the beginning of thechain. And as + this changes (through technological innovations) it provides theimpetus + for the destabilisation of the (temporarily) evolutionary + stableconventions at the other end of the chain. + +Page 232: + + Ifmorals are socially manufactured, then so is self-interest. + +Page 233: + + Perhaps our disagreement needs to be understood in terms of thelack of + a shared history in relation to these debates—one of us embarkingfrom + an Anglo-Saxon, the other from a (south) European, tradition. It + was,after all, one of our important points in earlier chapters that + game theoristsshould not expect a convergence of beliefs unless agents + have a sharedhistory! + +Page 234: + + most of the population. This would seem to provide ammunition for the + socialconstructivists, but of course it depends on them believing that + collectiveaction agencies like the State will have sufficient + information to distinguish thesuperior outcomes. Perhaps all that can + be said on this matter is that, if youreally believe that evolutionary + forces will do the best that is possible, then it isbeyond dispute that + these forces have thrown up people who are predisposedto take + collective action. Thus it might be argued that our + evolutionarysuperiority as a species derives in part precisely from the + fact that we are pro-active through collective action agencies rather + than reactive as we would beunder a simple evolutionary scheme. + +Page 234: + + Turning to another dispute, that between social constructivism and + spontaneousorder within liberal political theory, two clarifications + have occurred. The first isthat there can be no presumption that a + spontaneous order will deliveroutcomes which make everyone better off, + or even outcomes which favour + +Page 234: + + Thesetheoretical moves will threaten to dissolve the distinction + between action andstructure which lies at the heart of the game + theoretical depiction of social lifebecause it will mean that the + structure begins to supply reasons for action andnot just constraints + upon action. On the optimistic side, this might be seen asjust another + example of how discussions around game theory help to dissolvesome of + the binary oppositions which have plagued some debates in + socialscience—just as it helped dissolve the opposition between gender + and classearlier in this chapter. However, our concern here is not to + point to requiredchanges in ontology of a particular sort. The point is + that some change isnecessary, and that it is likely to threaten the + basic approach of game theory tosocial life. + +Page 234: + + Secondly, on the difficult cases where equilibrium selection + involveschoices over whose interests are to be favoured (i.e. it is not + a matter ofselecting the equilibrium which is better for everyone), + then it is notobvious that a collective action agency like the State is + any better placed tomake this decision than a process of spontaneous + order. This may come asa surprise, since we have spent most of our time + here focusing on theindeterminacy of evolutionary games when agents are + only weaklyinstrumentally rational. + +Page 235: + + In other words the very debate within liberal political theory over + socialconstructivism versus spontaneous order is itself unable to come + to aresolution precisely because its shared ontological foundations are + inadequatefor the task of social explanation. In short, we conclude + that not only willgame theory have to embrace some expanded form of + individual agency, if itis to be capable of explaining many social + interactions, but also that this isnecessary if it is to be useful to + the liberal debate over the scope of theState. + +Page 237: + + sabotage + +Page 238: + + What it does mean is thatour interpretation of results must be cautious + and that, ultimately,laboratory experiments may only be telling us how + people behave inlaboratories. + +Page 241: + + becausethere are some players who are unconditionally cooperative or + ‘altruistic’ in theway that they play this game and, secondly, because + whether someone iscooperative or not seems to be determined by one’s + background, rather thanby how clever (or rational) he or she is (see + adjacent box on the curse ofeconomics). In this sense, the evidence + seems to point to a falsification of theassumption of instrumentally + rational action based on the pay-offs + +Page 242: + + divisions of an army are stationed on two hill-tops overlooking a + valley inwhich an enemy division can be clearly seen. It is known that + if both divisionsattack simultaneously they will capture the enemy with + none, or very little, lossof life. However, there were no prior plans + to launch such an attack, as it wasnot anticipated that the enemy would + be spotted in that location. How will thetwo divisions coordinate their + attack (we assume that they must maintain visualand radio silence)? + Neither commanding officer will launch an attack unless heis sure that + the other will attack at the same time. Thus a classic + coordinationproblem emerges.Imagine now that a messenger can be sent + but that it will take him about anhour to convey the message. However, + it is also possible that he will be caughtby the enemy in the meantime. + If everything goes smoothly and the messengergets safely from one + hill-top to another, is this enough for a coordinated attackto be + launched? Suppose the message sent by the first commanding officer + tothe second read: ‘Let’s attack at dawn!’ Will the second officer + attack at dawn?No, unless he is confident that the first commanding + officer (who sent the + +Page 242: + + message) knows that the message has been received. So, the + secondcommanding officer sends the messenger back to the first with the + message:‘Message received. Dawn it is!’ Will the second officer attack + now? Not untilhe knows that the messenger has delivered his message. + Paradoxically, noamount of messages will do the trick since + confirmation of receipt of the lastmessage will be necessary regardless + of how many messages have been alreadyreceived. + +Page 242: + + We see that in a coordination game like the above, even a very + highdegree of common knowledge of the plan to attack at dawn is not + enough toguarantee coordination (see Box 8.3 for an example of how + different degreesof common knowledge can be engendered in the + laboratory). What is needed(at least in theory) is a consistent + alignment of beliefs (CAB) about the plan.1And yet this does not + exclude the possibility that the two commandingofficers will both + attack at dawn with very high probability. How successfullythey + coordinate will, however, depend on more than a high degree ofcommon + knowledge. Indeed the latter may even be un-necessary providedthe time + of the attack is carefully chosen. The classic early experiments + byThomas Schelling on behaviour in coordination games have confirmed + this— + +Page 246: + + Thus in experiments, Pareto superiority does not seem to be a + generalcriterion which players use to select between Nash equilibria + (see also Chapter7). In conclusion, so far it seems that the way people + actually play these gamesis neither directly controlled by the + strategic aspects of the game (i.e. thelocation of the best response + marks (+) and (-) in the matrix) nor by the size ofthe return from + coordinating on non-Nash outcomes such as (R3, C3): it is + aso-far-unexplained mixture of the two factors that decides. + +Page 251: + + To phrase this conclusion slightly differently, but in a way which + connectswith the results in the next section, bargaining is a ‘complex + socialphenomenon’ where people take cues from aspects of their social + life whichgame theory typically overlooks. Thus players seem to base + their behaviouron aspects of the social interaction which game theory + typically treats asextraneous; and when players share these extraneous + reference points such + +Page 258: + + What we have here is an evolution ofsocial roles. Players with the R + label develop a different attitude towardsreflective cooperation to + those players with the C role in spite of the fact that theRs and the + Cs are the same people. In other words, the signal which causes + theobserved pattern of cooperation seems to be emitted by the label R + or C. Thisreminds us of the discussion in Chapter 7 about the capacity + of sex, race andother extraneous features to pin down a convention on + which the structure ofdiscrimination is grounded. + +Page 258: + + Experimentation with game theory is good, clean fun. Can it be more + thanthat? Can it offer a way out of the obtuse debates on CKR, CAB, + NEMS,Nash backward induction, out-of-equilibrium behaviour, etc.? The + answerdepends on how we interpret the results. And as interpretation + leaves plentyof room for controversy, we should not expect the data + from the laboratoryunequivocally to settle any disputes. Our suspicion + is that experiments are togame theory what the latter is to liberal + individualism: a brilliant means ofcodifying its problems and of + creating a taxonomy of time-honoureddebates.There are, however, + important benefits from experimenting. Watchingpeople play games + reminds us of their inherent unpredictability, their sense offairness, + their complex motivation—of all those things that we tend to forgetwhen + we model humans as bundles of preferences moving around some pay- + +Page 258: + + radical breakwith the exclusive reliance of instrumental rationality is + also necessary. + +Page 260: + + At root we suspect that the major problem is the one that the + experimentsin the last chapter isolate: namely, that people appear to + be more complexlymotivated than game theory’s instrumental model allows + and that a part ofthat greater complexity comes from their social + location.We do not regard this as a negative conclusion. Quite the + contrary, it standsas a challenge to the type of methodological + individualism which has had afree rein in the development of game + theory. + +Page 260: + + Along the way to this conclusion, we hope also that you have had + fun.Prisoners’ dilemmas and centipedes are great party tricks. They are + easy todemonstrate and they are amenable to solutions which are + paradoxical enoughto stimulate controversy and, with one leap of the + liberal imagination, theaudience can be astounded by the thought that + the fabric of society (even theexistence of the State) reduces to these + seemingly trivial games—Fun andGames, as the title of Binmore’s (1992) + text on game theory neatly puts it. Butthere is a serious side to all + this. Game theory is, indeed, well placed toexamine the arguments in + liberal political theory over the origin and the scopeof agencies for + social choice like the State. In this context, the problems whichwe + have identified with game theory resurface as timely warnings of + thedifficulties any society is liable to face if it thinks of itself + only in terms ofliberal individualism. + +Page 260: + + The ambitious claim that game theory will provide a unified foundation + for allsocial science seems misplaced to diff --git a/books/epistemology/metodo.md b/books/epistemology/metodo.md index 848958f..40440d6 100644 --- a/books/epistemology/metodo.md +++ b/books/epistemology/metodo.md @@ -16,7 +16,7 @@ ## Índice -[[!toc levels=4]] +[[!toc startlevel=2 levels=4]] * [Volume I](1). * [Volume II](2). diff --git a/books/epistemology/metodo/1.md b/books/epistemology/metodo/1.md index 4b00e17..95133df 100644 --- a/books/epistemology/metodo/1.md +++ b/books/epistemology/metodo/1.md @@ -1,6 +1,6 @@ [[!meta title="O Método - Volume I"]] -[[!toc levels=4]] +[[!toc startlevel=2 levels=4]] ## Geral @@ -135,7 +135,7 @@ Há também uma ligação fundamental entre simplexidade e bem viver. A complexidade não é complicação. O que é complicado pode se reduzir a um princípio simples como um emaranhado ou um nó cego. Certamente o mundo é muito complicado, mas se ele fosse apenas complicado, ou seja, emaranhado, multidependente, etc., bastaria - operar as reduçõe sbem conhecidas [...] O verdadeiro problema, portanto, não + operar as reduções bem conhecidas [...] O verdadeiro problema, portanto, não é devolver a complicação dos desenvolvimentos a regras de base simples. A complexidade está na base. diff --git a/books/epistemology/metodo/2.md b/books/epistemology/metodo/2.md index ba26fae..70b5dad 100644 --- a/books/epistemology/metodo/2.md +++ b/books/epistemology/metodo/2.md @@ -1,6 +1,6 @@ [[!meta title="O Método - Volume II"]] -[[!toc levels=4]] +[[!toc startlevel=2 levels=4]] ## Geral diff --git a/books/epistemology/metodo/3.md b/books/epistemology/metodo/3.md index 8f2960e..a9a00db 100644 --- a/books/epistemology/metodo/3.md +++ b/books/epistemology/metodo/3.md @@ -1,6 +1,6 @@ [[!meta title="O Método - Volume III"]] -[[!toc levels=4]] +[[!toc startlevel=2 levels=4]] ## Geral diff --git a/books/epistemology/metodo/4.md b/books/epistemology/metodo/4.md index df491ab..7963389 100644 --- a/books/epistemology/metodo/4.md +++ b/books/epistemology/metodo/4.md @@ -1,6 +1,6 @@ [[!meta title="O Método - Volume IV"]] -[[!toc levels=4]] +[[!toc startlevel=2 levels=4]] ## Geral diff --git a/books/epistemology/metodo/5.md b/books/epistemology/metodo/5.md index ea0835e..b154d0e 100644 --- a/books/epistemology/metodo/5.md +++ b/books/epistemology/metodo/5.md @@ -1,6 +1,6 @@ [[!meta title="O Método - Volume V"]] -[[!toc levels=4]] +[[!toc startlevel=2 levels=4]] ## Geral diff --git a/books/epistemology/metodo/6.md b/books/epistemology/metodo/6.md index 61a3ee4..2e6eac8 100644 --- a/books/epistemology/metodo/6.md +++ b/books/epistemology/metodo/6.md @@ -1,6 +1,6 @@ [[!meta title="O Método - Volume VI"]] -[[!toc levels=4]] +[[!toc startlevel=2 levels=4]] ## Geral diff --git a/books/history/death-of-nature.md b/books/history/death-of-nature.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..828215e --- /dev/null +++ b/books/history/death-of-nature.md @@ -0,0 +1,280 @@ +[[!meta title="The Death of Nature"]] + +## Topics + +* Bohm's process physics. +* Ilya Prigogine new thermodynamics. + +## Excerpts + +> Between the sixteenth andseventeenth cerfturies the image of an organic +> cosmos with a living female earth at its ceriter gave way to a mechanistic +> world view in which nature was reconstructed as dead and passive, to be +> dominated and controlled by hufuans. The Death efNature deals with the +> economic, cultural, and scientific changes through which this vast +> transformation came about. In seeking to understand how people conceptualized +> nature in the Scientific Revolution, I am asking not about unchanging +> essences, but about connections between social change and changing +> constructions of nattlre". Similarly. when women today attempt to change +> society's domination of nature, 1:\1~¥.,~e acting to overturn moder_n +> constructions of nature and women as culturally passive and subordinate. +> +> [...] +> +> Today's feminist and ecological consciousness can be used to examine the +> historical interconnections between women and nature that developed as the +> modern scientific and economic world took form in the sixteenth and +> seventeenth centuries-a transformation that shaped and pervades today's +> mainstream values and perceptions. Feminist history in the broadest sense +> requires that we look at +> +> [...] +> +> My intent is instead to examine the values associated with the images of +> women and nature as they relate to the formation of our modern world and +> their implications for 'our lives today. +> +> In investigating the roots of our current environmental dilemma and its +> connections to science, technology, and the economy, we must reexamine the +> formation of a world view and a science that, by reconceptualizing reality as +> a machine rather than a living organism, sanctioned the domination of both +> nature and women. The contributions of such founding "fathers" of modern +> science as Francis Bacon, William Harvey, Rene Descartes, Thomas Hobbes, and +> Isaac Newton must be reevaluated. The fate of other options, alternative +> philosophies, and social groups shaped by the organic world view and +> resistant to the growing exploitative mentality needs reappraisal. To +> understand why one road rather than the other was taken requires a broad +> synthesis of both the natural and cultural environments of Western society at +> the historical turning point. This book elaborates an ecological perspective +> that includes both + +### Terminology + +Nature, art, organic and mechanical: + +> A distinction was commonly made between natura naturans, or nature creating, +> and natura naturata, the natural creation. +> +> Nature was contrasted with art (techne) and with artificially created things. +> It was personified as a female-being, e.g., Dame Nature; she was alternately +> a prudent lady, an empress, a mother, etc. The course of nature and the laws +> of nature were the actualization of her force. The state of nature was the +> state of mankind prior to social organization and prior to the state of +> grace. Nature spirits, nature deities, virgin nymphs, and elementals were +> thought to reside in or be associated with natural objects. +> +> In both Western and non-Western cultures, nature was traditionally feminine. +> +> [...] +> +> In the early modern period, the term organic usually referred to the bodily +> organs, structures, and organization of living beings, while organicism was +> the doctrine that organic structure was the result of an inherent, adaptive +> property in matter. The word organical, however, was also sometimes used to +> refer to a machine or an instrument. Thus a clock was sometimes called an +> "organical body," while som~ machines were said to operate by organical, +> rather than mechanical, action if the touch of a person was involved. +> +> Mechanical referred to the machine and tool trades; the manual operations of +> the handicrafts; inanimate machines that lacked spontaneity, volition, and +> thought; and the mechanical sciences. 1 + +### Nature that nurtures and thats also uncontrollable, replaced by "the machine" + +> NATURE AS NURTURE: CONTROLLING IMAGERY. Central to the organic theory was the +> identification of nature, especially the earth, with a nurturing mother: a +> kindly beneficent female who provided for the needs of mankind in an ordered, +> planned universe. But another opposing image of nature as female was also +> prevalent: wild and uncontrollable nature that could render violence, storms, +> droughts, and general chaos. Both were identified with the female sex and +> were projections of human perceptions onto the external world. The metaphor +> of the earth as a nurturing mother was gradually to vanish as a dominant +> image as the Scientific Revolution pro- ceeded to mechanize and to +> rationalize the world view. The second image, nature as disorder, called +> forth an important modern idea, that of power over nature. Two new ideas, +> those of mechanism and of the domination and mastery of nature, became core +> concepts of the modern world. An organically oriented mentality in which +> female principles played an important role was undermined and replaced by a +> mechanically oriented mentality that either eliminated or used female +> principles in an exploitative manner. As Western culture became increasingly +> mechanized in the 1600s, the female earth and virgin earth spirit were +> subdued by the machine. 1 + +### Mining and the female body + +> The image of the earth as a living organism and nurturing mother had served +> as a cultural constraint restricting the actions of human beings. One does +> not readily slay a mother, dig into her entrails for gold or mutilate her +> body, although commercial mining would soon require that. As long as the +> earth was considered to be alive and sensitive, it could be considered a +> breach of human ethical behavior to carry out destructive acts against it. +> For most traditional cultures, minerals and metals ripened in the uterus of +> the Earth Mother, mines were compared to her vagina, and metallurgy was the +> human hastening of the birth of the living metal in the artificial womb of +> the furnace-an abortion of the metal's natural growth cycle before its time. +> Miners offered propitiation to the deities of the soil and subterranean +> world, performed ceremonial sacrifices, · and observed strict cleanliness, +> sexual abstinence, and fasting before violating the sacredness of the living +> earth by sinking a mine. Smiths assumed an awesome responsibility in +> precipitating the metal's birth through smeltin,.g, fusing, and beating it +> with hammer and anvil; they were often accorded the status of shaman in +> tribal rituals and their tools were thought to hold special powers. + +Is there a relation between torture (basanos), extraction of "truth" and +mining gold out of a mine? See discussions both on "The Counterrevolution" +and "Torture and Truth". + +### Hidden norms: controlling images + +> Controlling images operate as ethical restraints or as ethical sanctions-as +> subtle "oughts" or "ought-nots." Thus as the descriptive metaphors and images +> of nature change, a behavioral restraint can be changed into a sanction. Such +> a change in the image and description of nature was occurring during the +> course of the Scientific Revolution. +> +> It is important to recognize the normative import of descriptive statements +> about nature. Contemporary philosophers of language have critically +> reassessed the earlier positivist distinction between the "is" of science and +> the "ought" of society, arguing that descriptions and norms are not opposed +> to one another by linguistic sepa- ration into separate "is" and "ought" +> statements, but are contained within each other. Descriptive statements about +> the world can presuppose the normative; they are then ethic-laden. +> +> [...] +> +> The writer or culture may not be conscious of the ethical import yet may act +> in accordance with its dictates. The hidden norms may become conscious or +> explicit when an alternative or contradiction presents it- self. Because +> language contains a culture within itself, when language changes, a culture +> is also changing in important way~~ By examining changes in descriptions of +> nature, we can then perceive something of the changes in cultural values. + +### Renaissance: hierarchical order + +> The Renaissance view of nature and society was based on the organic analogy +> between the human body, or microcosm, and the larger world, or macrocosm. +> +> [...] +> +> But while the pastoral tradition symbolized nature as a benevolent female, it +> contained the implication that nature when plowed and cultivated could be +> used as a commodity and manipulated as a resource. Nature, tamed and subdued, +> could be transformed into a garden to provide both material and spiritual +> food to enhance the comfort and soothe the anxieties of men distraught by the +> demands of the urban world and the stresses of the marketplace. It depended +> on a masculine perception of nature as a mother and bride whose primary +> function was to comfort; nurture, and provide for the wellbeing of the male. +> In pastoral imagery, both nature and women are subordinate and essentially +> passive. They nurture but do not control or exhibit disruptive passion. The +> pastoral mode, although it viewed nature as benevolent, was a model created +> as an antidote to the pressures of urbanization and mechanization. It +> represented a fulfillment of human needs for nurture, but by conceiving of +> nature as passive, it nevertheless allowed for the possibility of its use and +> manipulation. Unlike the dialectical image of nature as the active uni- ty of +> opposites in tension, the Arcadian image rendered nature passive and +> manageable. + +### Undressing + +> An allegory (1160) by Alain of Lille, of the School of Chartres, portrays +> Natura, God's powerful but humble servant, as stricken with grief at the +> failure of man (in contrast to other species) to obey her laws. Owing to +> faulty supervision by Venus, human beings engage in adulterous sensual love. +> In aggressively penetrating the secrets of heaven, they tear Natura's +> undergarments, exposing her to the view of the vulgar. She complains that "by +> the unlawful assaults of man alone the garments of my modesty suffer disgrace +> and division." +> +> [...] +> +> Such basic attitudes toward ·male-female roles in biological generation where +> the female and the earth are both passive receptors could easily become +> sanctions for exploitation as the organic context was transformed by the rise +> of commercial capitalism. +> +> [...] +> +> The macrocosm theory, as we have seen, likened the cosmos to the human body, +> soul, and spirit with male and female reproductive components. Similarly, the +> geocosm theory compared the earth to the living human body, with breath, +> blood, sweat, and elimination systems. +> +> [...] +> +> The earth's springs were akin to the human blood system; its other various +> fluids were likened to the mucus, saliva, sweat, and other forins of +> lubrication in the human body, the earth being organized "'. .. much after +> the plan of our bodies, in which there are both veins and arteries, the +> former blood vessels, the latter air vessels .... So exactly alike is the +> resemblance to our bodies in nature's formation of the earth, that our +> ancestors have spoken of veins [springs] of water." Just as the human body +> contained blood, marrow, mucus, saliva, tears, and lubricating fluids, so in +> the earth there were various fluids. Liquids that turned hard became metals, +> such as gold and silver; other fluids turned into stones, bitumens, and veins +> of sulfur. Like the human body, the earth gave forth sweat: "There is often a +> gathering of thin, scattered moisture like dew, which from many points flows +> into one spot. The dowsers call it sweat, because a kind of drop is either +> squeezed out by the pressure of the ground or raised by the heat." +> +> Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519) enlarged the Greek analogy between the waters +> of the earth and the ebb and flow of human blood through the veins and heart +> +> [...] +> +> A widely held alchemical belief was the growth of the baser metals into gold +> in womblike matrices in the earth. The appearance of silver in lead ores or +> gold in silvery assays was evidence that this transformation was under way. +> Just as the child grew in the warmth of the female womb, so the growth of +> metals was fostered + +### Matrix + +> The earth in the Paracelsian philosophy was the mother or matrix +> giving birth to plants, animals, and men. + +### Renaissance was diverse + +> In general, the Renaissance view was that all things were permeated by life, +> there being no adequate method by which to designate the inanimate from the +> animate. [...] but criteria by which to differentiate the living from the +> nonliving could not successfully be formulated. This was due not only to the +> vitalistic framework of the period but to striking similarities between them. +> +> [...] +> +> Popular Renaissance literature was filled with hundreds of images associating +> nature, matter, and the earth with the female sex. +> +> [...] +> +> In the 1960s, the Native-American became a symbol in the ecology movement's +> search for alternatives to Western exploitative attitudes. The Indian +> animistic belief-system and reverence for the earth as a · mother were +> contrasted with the Judeo-Christian heritage of dominion over nature and with +> capitalist practices resulting in the "tragedy of the commons" (exploitation +> of resources available for any person's or nation's use). But as will be +> seen, European culture was more complex and varied than this judgment allows. +> It ignores the Renaissance philosophy of the nurturing earth as well as those +> philosophies and social movements resistant to mainstream economic change. + +### Mining as revealing the hidden secrets + +> In his defense, the miner argued that the earth was not a real mother, but a +> wicked stepmother who hides and conceals the metals in her inner parts +> instead of making them available for human use. +> +> [...] +> +> In the old hermit's tale, we have a fascina,ting example·of the re:· +> lationship between images and values. The older view of nature as a kindly +> mother is challenged by the growing interests of the mining industry in +> Saxony, Bohemia, and the Harz Mountains, regions of newly found prosperity +> (Fig. 6). The miner, representing these newer commercial activities, +> transforms the irnage of the nurturing mother into that of a stepmother who +> wickedly conceals her bounty from the deserving and needy children. In the +> seventeenth century, the image will be seen to undergo yet another +> transformation, as natural philosopher Francis Bacon (1561-1626) sets forth +> the need for prying into nature's nooks and crannies in searching out her +> secrets for human improvement. +> +> -- 33 diff --git a/books/history/ibm-holocaust.md b/books/history/ibm-holocaust.md index 6205c17..f9e08ef 100644 --- a/books/history/ibm-holocaust.md +++ b/books/history/ibm-holocaust.md @@ -1917,4 +1917,22 @@ That was before the US entering the war. recent genocides. The Holocaust kill rate is some 10 times higher than estimates suggested by authorities on comparative genocide. +* Unsorted: + * [IBM Archives: 1933](https://www.ibm.com/ibm/history/history/year_1933.html) + * [IBM100 - A Culture of Think](https://www.ibm.com/ibm/history/ibm100/us/en/icons/think_culture/transform/) + * [Dehomag (Deutsche Hollerith Maschinen) D11 tabulator - Collections Search - United States Holocaust Memorial Museum](https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn521586) + * [Dehomag D11 sorter - Collections Search - United States Holocaust Memorial Museum](https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn521587) + * [How IBM Technology Jump Started the Holocaust](https://gizmodo.com/how-ibm-technology-jump-started-the-holocaust-5812025) + * [IBM, Hitler and the Holocaust: A Terrible Tale of Capitalism Without Conscience | Corporate Greed & Corruption Chronicles](https://corporategreedchronicles.wordpress.com/2011/11/15/ibm-hitler-and-the-holocaust-a-terrible-tale-of-capitalism-without-conscience/) + * [IBM & "Death's Calculator"](https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/ibm-and-quot-death-s-calculator-quot) + * [Computing at Columbia Timeline](http://www.columbia.edu/cu/computinghistory/index.html#1939) + * [ibm carbine For Sale – Buy ibm carbine at GunBroker.com](https://www.gunbroker.com/All/search?Keywords=ibm%20carbine) + * [Hollerith Census Machine dials | Marcin Wichary | Flickr](https://www.flickr.com/photos/mwichary/2632673143/in/photostream/) + * [Henri Georges Trainson: Annexe III - Le réseau Marco-Polo](https://hgtrainson.blogspot.com/2011/08/annexe-iii-le-reseau-marco-polo.html) + * [Réseau Marco Polo : définition de Réseau Marco Polo et synonymes de Réseau Marco Polo (français)](http://dictionnaire.sensagent.leparisien.fr/R%C3%A9seau%20Marco%20Polo/fr-fr/) + * [Klaus Barbie - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Klaus_Barbie) + * [Nikolaus “Klaus” Barbie: The Butcher of Lyon | Holocaust Encyclopedia](https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/nikolaus-klaus-barbie-the-butcher-of-lyon) + * [Klaus Barbie: women testify of torture at his hands](http://www.writing.upenn.edu/~afilreis/Holocaust/barbie.html) + * [PBS Frontline: Klaus Barbie The American Connection (1983) - YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=58FVOCktU5U) + [[!tag tecnology history sociology]] diff --git a/books/philosophy/cidade-perversa.md b/books/philosophy/cidade-perversa.md index b9c389f..d725442 100644 --- a/books/philosophy/cidade-perversa.md +++ b/books/philosophy/cidade-perversa.md @@ -339,7 +339,7 @@ do nosso nascimento prematuro: 229 Três respostas básicas seriam possíveis: do neurótico, do perverso e do psicótico: - + Dessa estrutura circular em que o um (s) supõe o Outro (S) que “sub-põe” o um, é possível sair de três maneiras: pela neurose, pela perversão ou pela psicose. O que retoma em novas condições a intuição de Freud, que havia distinguido três @@ -348,43 +348,43 @@ Três respostas básicas seriam possíveis: do neurótico, do perverso e do psic 1. Neurose: "dívida simbólica contraída em relação ao Outro", lembando que "sujeito" vem de "sujeição", de se sujeitar: - Se a histeria constitui o protótipo da neurose, é porque o(a) histérico(a) é - aquele(a) que venera o Outro por lhe ter tudo dado e ao mesmo tempo o detesta - por tê-lo(a) posto na situação de tanto e tudo lhe dever. Ele/ela amará o Outro - detestando-o ou o detestará amando-o. É o lugar de um nó psíquico importante, - no qual constantemente se remotiva o conflito neurótico em todas as suas formas - possíveis. Por exemplo, esta, que faz as delícias do histérico: seduzir o Outro - — sob a figura de Deus, de um mestre, de um grande homem, etc. — ao mesmo tempo - escapando-lhe. + Se a histeria constitui o protótipo da neurose, é porque o(a) histérico(a) é + aquele(a) que venera o Outro por lhe ter tudo dado e ao mesmo tempo o detesta + por tê-lo(a) posto na situação de tanto e tudo lhe dever. Ele/ela amará o Outro + detestando-o ou o detestará amando-o. É o lugar de um nó psíquico importante, + no qual constantemente se remotiva o conflito neurótico em todas as suas formas + possíveis. Por exemplo, esta, que faz as delícias do histérico: seduzir o Outro + — sob a figura de Deus, de um mestre, de um grande homem, etc. — ao mesmo tempo + escapando-lhe. 2. Psicose: o caso-limite, "mais onerosa. Ela diz que se Deus é, então eu não sou": - Um combate que pode assumir duas formas opostas e complementares. Uma forma - paranoica, como tal perseguida: existe um Deus que está constantemente querendo - roubar meu ser, que me espiona e me persegue. E uma forma esquizofrênica e - triunfante: Deus, na verdade, sou eu. Nos dois casos, essa potência - manifesta-se como sobrenatural, o mais das vezes através de uma voz imperiosa - que ocupa o sujeito, no sentido de tomar posse dele, de se apoderar dele. + Um combate que pode assumir duas formas opostas e complementares. Uma forma + paranoica, como tal perseguida: existe um Deus que está constantemente querendo + roubar meu ser, que me espiona e me persegue. E uma forma esquizofrênica e + triunfante: Deus, na verdade, sou eu. Nos dois casos, essa potência + manifesta-se como sobrenatural, o mais das vezes através de uma voz imperiosa + que ocupa o sujeito, no sentido de tomar posse dele, de se apoderar dele. 3. Perversão: - Quanto à enunciação perversa, ela se esclarece nesse esquema. Ela permite - entender que o que está em jogo no grande circuito enunciativo (com o “Ele”) - vem a atuar no pequeno, de tal maneira que o “eu” ocupe, diante do “tu”, a - posição eminente que o “Ele” ocupa em relação a todo sujeito falante (“eu” e - “tu”). Em suma, o perverso coloca-se, diante de todo outro, na posição do - Outro. A definição poderá ser estranhada. Mas seria um equívoco, pois ela - encontra e confere sentido à maneira como Lacan definia o perverso: “O perverso - imagina ser o Outro para garantir seu gozo.”302 De fato, essa proposição só - pode ser realmente entendida mobilizando-se as teorias da enunciação baseadas - na análise da relação de lugar entre as três pessoas verbais: “eu” (o um), “tu” - (o outro) e “Ele” (o Outro). A perversão surge então como uma negação da grande - estrutura, compensada por um inchaço da pequena, como se essa estrutura - secundária pudesse e devesse suportar sozinha o que está em jogo na grande. - Poderíamos falar aqui de uma translação do que está em jogo na estrutura - principal para a estrutura secundária. O que, provavelmente, explica a - seriedade com que o perverso maquina suas encenações, às vezes deploráveis, - como se ele ocupasse diante de seu alter ego o lugar do Outro. + Quanto à enunciação perversa, ela se esclarece nesse esquema. Ela permite + entender que o que está em jogo no grande circuito enunciativo (com o “Ele”) + vem a atuar no pequeno, de tal maneira que o “eu” ocupe, diante do “tu”, a + posição eminente que o “Ele” ocupa em relação a todo sujeito falante (“eu” e + “tu”). Em suma, o perverso coloca-se, diante de todo outro, na posição do + Outro. A definição poderá ser estranhada. Mas seria um equívoco, pois ela + encontra e confere sentido à maneira como Lacan definia o perverso: “O perverso + imagina ser o Outro para garantir seu gozo.”302 De fato, essa proposição só + pode ser realmente entendida mobilizando-se as teorias da enunciação baseadas + na análise da relação de lugar entre as três pessoas verbais: “eu” (o um), “tu” + (o outro) e “Ele” (o Outro). A perversão surge então como uma negação da grande + estrutura, compensada por um inchaço da pequena, como se essa estrutura + secundária pudesse e devesse suportar sozinha o que está em jogo na grande. + Poderíamos falar aqui de uma translação do que está em jogo na estrutura + principal para a estrutura secundária. O que, provavelmente, explica a + seriedade com que o perverso maquina suas encenações, às vezes deploráveis, + como se ele ocupasse diante de seu alter ego o lugar do Outro. Os modos de operação individuais variariam de acordo com a ênfase dos caminhos do circuito de enunciação subjetiva. @@ -398,7 +398,7 @@ produção e o consumo capitalistas. Resumiria o livro com o trocadilho: "Sade, Smith e Lacan: um laço realmente estranho, mas não eterno". E poderíamos pensar em outros tipos de diagramas e máquinas possíveis para a constituição -da relação sujeito/objeto/outro, com Sujeito-Deus, Sujeito-Leviatã, e até de Sujeito como composto +da relação sujeito/objeto/outro, com Sujeito-Deus, Sujeito-Leviatã, e até de Sujeito como composto por redes de `eu <-> tu`, incluindo também outros seres. Teríamos assim a possibilidade de inúmeras montagens e configurações de redes relacionais, hierárquicas, anárquicas, poliárquicas... uma modelagem desse tipo poderia ajudar na análise de dinâmicas sociais. diff --git a/books/philosophy/stasis-before-the-state.md b/books/philosophy/stasis-before-the-state.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..57a0e92 --- /dev/null +++ b/books/philosophy/stasis-before-the-state.md @@ -0,0 +1,338 @@ +[[!meta title="Stasis Before the State: Nine Theses on Agonistic Democracy"]] + +* Athor: Dimitris Vardoulakis +* References: + * https://www.worldcat.org/title/stasis-before-the-state-nine-theses-on-agonistic-democracy/oclc/1000452218 + * https://muse.jhu.edu/chapter/2009359 + * https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt1xhr6vd + * https://www.academia.edu/35908382/Vardoulakis_Stasis_Before_the_State_--_Introduction + * https://www.fordhampress.com/9780823277414/stasis-before-the-state/ +* Topics: + * Ruse of sovereignty. + * Diference between justification and judgement. + +## Excerpts + + This question would be trivial if sovereignty is under + stood simply as the sovereignty of specific states. The + question is pertinent when we consider the violence + functioning as the structural principle of sovereignty. + Sovereignty can only persist and the state that it sup + ports can only ever reproduce its structures—political, + economic, legal, and so on—through recourse to certain + forms of violence. Such violence is at its most effective + the less visible and hence the less bloody it is. This in + sight has been developed brilliantly by thinkers such + as Gramsci, u + nder the rubric of hegemony; Althusser, + through the concept of ideology; and Foucault, as the + notion of power. It is in this context that we should also + consider Carl Schmitt’s definition of the political as the + identification of the e nemy. They all agree on the essen + tial or structural violence defining sovereignty—their + divergent accounts of that violence notwithstanding. + The problem of a space outside sovereignty is com + + [...] + + Posing the question of an outside to sovereignty + within the context of the mechanism of exclusion turns + the spotlight to what I call the ruse of sovereignty. This + essentially consists in the paradox that the assertion of + a space outside sovereignty is nothing other than the as + sertion of an excluded space and consequently signals + the mobilization of the logic of sovereignty. + + [...] + + To put this in the vocabulary used h + ere, the at- + tempt to exclude exclusion is itself exclusory and thus + reproduces the logic of exclusion. + + [...] + + Turning to Solon’s first democratic constitution, + I will suggest in this book that it is possible by identify + ing the conflictual nature of democracy—or what the + ancient Greeks called stasis. Agonistic monism holds + that stasis is the definitional characteristic of democ + racy and of any other possible constitutional form. Sta + sis or conflict as the basis of all political arrangements + then becomes another way of saying that democracy is + the form of e very constitution. Hence, stasis comes be- + fore any conception of the state that relies on the ruse of + sovereignty. + + The obvious objection to this position would be about + the nature of this conflict. Hobbes makes the state of + nature — which he explicitly identifies with democracy — + also the precondition of the commonwealth. Schmitt + defines the political as the identification of the enemy. + + [...] + + ent power. Is t here a way out of this entangled knot? + Antonio Negri’s most significant contribution to po + litical philosophy is, in my opinion, precisely at this + juncture. His intervention starts with his book on Spi + noza, The Savage Anomaly, in which he distinguishes + between potentia (constituent power) and potestas (con + stituted power). 20 It is most explicitly treated in Insur- + gencies, which provides an account of the development + of constituent power in philosophical texts from early + modernity onward and examines the function of con + stituent power in significant historical events. 21 The + starting premise of this investigation is the rejection of + ent power. Is t here a way out of this entangled knot? + Antonio Negri’s most significant contribution to po + litical philosophy is, in my opinion, precisely at this + juncture. His intervention starts with his book on Spi + noza, The Savage Anomaly, in which he distinguishes + between potentia (constituent power) and potestas (con + stituted power). 20 It is most explicitly treated in Insur- + gencies, which provides an account of the development + of constituent power in philosophical texts from early + modernity onward and examines the function of con + stituent power in significant historical events. 21 The + starting premise of this investigation is the rejection of + and avoiding the ruse of sovereignty. 23 + The appeal to constituent power gives Negri the means + to provide an account of democracy as creative activity. + This has a wide spectrum of aspects and implications + that I can only gesture t oward here. For instance, this + approach shows how democracy requires a convergence + of the ontological, the ethical, and the political—which + is also a position central to my own project (see Thesis + 6). Consequently, democracy is not reducible to a con + stituted form, and thus Negri can provide a nonrepre + sentational account of democracy. This is important + because it enables Marx’s own distaste for representative + democracy to resonate with contemporary sociology + and political economy—a project that starts with Negri’s + involvement in Italian workerism and culminates in his + collaborations with Michael Hardt. Besides the details, + which Negri has been developing for four decades, the + important point is that this description of democracy + and constituent power is consistently juxtaposed to the + political tradition that privileges constituted power and + sovereignty. 24 + + There is, however, a significant drawback in Negri’s + approach. It concerns the lack of a consistent account of + violence in his work. + + [...] + + Without a + consideration of violence, radical democracy w ill never + discover its agonistic aspect, namely, that conflict or + stasis is the precondition of the political and that, as + such, all political forms are effects of the democratic. In + other words, Negri’s obfuscation of the question of vio + lence can never lead to agonistic monism. + +Production of the real: + + Second, the state of emergency leading to justification + does not have to be “real”—it simply needs to be credi + ble. Truth or falsity are not properties of power—as Fou + cault very well recognized—and the reason for this, I + would add, is that power’s justifications are rhetorical + strategies and hence unconcerned with validity. This is + the point where my account significantly diverges from + + [...] + + If we are to understand better sovereign violence, we + need to investigate further the ways in which violence is + justified. Sovereignty uses justification rhetorically. In + stead of being concerned with w + hether the justifications + of actions are true or false, sovereignty is concerned + with whether its justifications are believed by those it af + fects. + +Torture: + + Greek political philosophy. 4 Hannah Arendt also pays + particular attention to this metaphor. According to Ar + endt, Plato needs the metaphor of the politician as a + craftsman in order to compensate for the lack of the no + tion of authority in Greek thought. These Platonic meta + phorics include the metaphor of the statesman as a + physician who heals an ailing polis. 5 The metaphor of + craftsmanship is used as a justification of political power. + craftsmanship is used as a justification of political power. + The metaphor persists in modernity, and we can find + examples much closer to home. Mao Zedong justifies + the purges of the Cultural Revolution on the following + grounds: “Our object in exposing errors and criticizing + shortcomings is like that of curing a disease. The entire + purpose is to save the person.” 6 Whoever does not con + form to the Maoist ideal is “ill” and needs to be “cured.” + Similarly, George Papadopoulos, the colonel who headed + the Greek junta from 1967 to 1974, repeatedly described + Greece as an ill patient requiring an operation. The dic + tatorial regime justified its violence by drawing an anal + ogy of its exceptional powers to the powers of the head + surgeon in a hospital emergency room. Th + ese operations + on “patients” took place not in hospitals but in dark po + lice cells or in various forms of prisons or concentration + camps. And the instruments of the “operations” were + not t hose of the surgeon but rather of the torturer and + in many cases also of the executioner. The analogy be + tween the surgeon and the torturer is mobilized to pro + vide reasons for the exercise of violence. An emergency + mobilizes rhetorical strategies that justify violence, ir + respective of the fact that such a justification may be + completely fabulatory. + + -- 32-33 + +Razão instrumental: + + Let us return to consider more carefully how sover + eign violence always strives for justification. This means + that we can characterize the acts of sovereignty as con + forming to a rationalized instrumentalism. Sovereign + violence is instrumental in the sense that it always aims + toward something—it is not vio + + lence for vio + lence’s + sake. This means that the desired outcome of sover + eign violence is calculated with the help of reason. The + extrapolation of violence in instrumental terms is noth + ing new. For instance, Hannah Arendt presents instru + mentalism as the defining feature of violence. 7 Yet the + instrumentalism of sovereign violence is not as self- + evident as it may at first appear. For instance, as Fran + çois Jullien shows, the conception of an instrumental + thinking as appropriate to the political arises in ancient + Greece, and it does not characterize the Chinese cul + ture, including even the ways in which warfare is con + ceived. 8 The important point, then, is to remember that + the instrumentality of reason in the serv ice of a justifi + cation of violence is a characteristic of sovereignty as it + is developed in the Western political and philosophical + tradition. + The “invention” of the instrumentality of reason is + an important moment in the history of thought, and + its “inventors,” the ancient Greeks, amply recognized its + importance. In fact, their tragedies are concerned pre + cisely with the clash between the older forms of thinking + and new forms exemplified by instrumental reason. The + best example of this is perhaps the Oresteia. In the first + play of the trilogy, Agamemnon is murdered by his wife, + Clytemnestra. In the second play, Orestes, Agamem + non’s son, responds by killing his mother. In the third + play, the Eumenides, the court of Athens is called to de + cide w + hether Orestes’s murder was justified. The alter + natives are that he is e ither guilty of matricide pure and + simple or that his act was a political one aiming to free + Argos of a tyrant. Th + ere is, then, a standstill or stasis— + and I draw again attention to this word, to which I w + ill + return later—between the two different l egal frame + works: one legality privileging kinship, the other privi + leging instrumental rationality whereby the murder of + Clytemnestra is justified by the end of saving the city + from a tyrant. The judges’ vote is a tie, at which point + the goddess Athena, who presides over the proceedings, + casts the vote to f ree Orestes of the charge of matricide. + Calculative reason prevails as the mode of the political. + But at the same time, it should not be forgotten that the + vote was equally split. For the ancient Athenians, it is + impossible to reconcile the two different legalities—the + politics of kinship and the politics of instrumental + reason. Justice persists in this irreconcilability, despite + its tragic consequences. + + -- 33-35 + +Soberania como persuasão e interpretação: + + In other words, the absoluteness of + sovereignty has nothing to do with the power of sover + eignty as it is exercised through its institutions—the + police, the army, the judiciary, and so on. Rather, the + absoluteness of sovereignty is an expression of the rhe + torical and logical mechanisms whereby sovereignty + uses the justification of violence to dominate public de + bate and to persuade the citizens. The exercise of sover + eignty is the effect of an interpretative process. Differently + put, this entails that the justification of violence is more + primary than the legitimate forms assumed by constituded power. + Without an effective justification, any government loses its + mandate to govern, even though its + decisions and political actions, its policies, and its legis + lative agenda may perfectly conform to the law of the + state. + + -- 52-53 + +Democracia: + + How can democracy as the other of sovereignty be + mobilized to respond to sovereignty’s justification of + violence? This final question is, I believe, the most fun + damental political question. It essentially asks about + the relation of sovereignty and democracy. What is re + quired at this juncture in order to broach the relation + between democracy and sovereignty further is a better + determination of democracy. + + -- 53 + +> The first ever democracy was instituted through the Solonian reforms that were +> introduced to counteract a chronical political no less than social crisis in +> Athens. The crisis was the result of a protracted animosity between the rich +> and the poor parties. The confrontation was largely because of material +> inequalities, such as the requirement to hold property in order to be a +> citizen, and the economic inequalities that were threatening to turn into +> slaves a large portion of the poor population who had defaulted on their +> payments. Unsurprisingly, given the sensitivity of these issues, tensions +> ran high, and the city often found itself in conflict or stasis, with the two +> sides taking arms against each other. The situation had reached an acute +> crisis, at which point the Athenians re solved that they had to take decisive +> action. They turned to Solon, who was largely viewed as impartial and wise, to +> write a new constitution for the city. He responded by compiling the first ever +> democratic constitution. +> +> [...] +> +> The crisis is the condition of citizenship and residency within +> Athens and even of the possibility of the operation of the state. Solon's law +> does not describe measures whereby the crisis can be avoided. Instead, it +> describes how everyone is required to participate in it -- as if the aim is to +> accentuate the crisis. Those who avoid conflict will be punished. The +> democratic overcoming of crisis consists in the institutionalization of +> crisis within the constitution. According to Solon, his fellow Athenians need +> to recognize the illusion that the implementation of measures can always +> prevent crisis. According to Solon, democracy consists in the dispelling of +> that illusion. This does not mean that certain measures or policies cannot and +> should not be devised to ameliorate or evade predictable crises. Rather, it +> highlights that such measures are never adequate. Or, to put it the other +> way around, Solon sees crisis as a way of being, as a condition of existence, +> and he is determined that his democratic constitution aknowledges this. +> +> -- 57-58 + +> Democracy does not seek to be charitable to the other but instead affords the +> other the respect to give them a voice to express their opinions as well as to +> debate and rebuke these opinions. +> +> -- 73 + +> These insights amount to saying that a democratic being is conflictual +> -- which is to say that it cannot find certainty in any political regime +> promising unity or in a state characterized by order, peace, and stability. +> Rather, democracy in this sense is a regime that is inherently open to the +> possibility of conflict without any underlying structure to regulate this +> conflict or to resolve it to some thing posited as higher. +> +> -- 76 diff --git a/books/philosophy/torture-and-truth.md b/books/philosophy/torture-and-truth.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..4dcb3a6 --- /dev/null +++ b/books/philosophy/torture-and-truth.md @@ -0,0 +1,956 @@ +[[!meta title="Torture and Truth"]] + +* [Torture and Truth](https://www.worldcat.org/title/torture-and-truth/oclc/20823386). +* By Page duBois. + +## About + + First published in 1991, this book — through the examination of ancient + Greek literary, philosophical and legal texts — analyses how the Athenian + torture of slaves emerged from and reinforced the concept of truth as something + hidden in the human body. It discusses the tradition of understanding truth as + something that is generally concealed and the ideas of ‘secret space’ in both + the female body and the Greek temple. This philosophy and practice is related + to Greek views of the ‘Other’ (women and outsiders) and considers the role of + torture in distinguishing slave and free in ancient Athens. A wide range of + perspectives — from Plato to Sartre — are employed to examine the subject. + +## Topics + +* Example of actual tortures that took place: see defense of Andokides. Footnote 6. + +## Excerpts + +### Machine atroci + + Inside sat other devices. The iron maiden of Frankfurt, a + larger-than-life-size female body, cast in iron, strangely reminiscent of one + of those Russian dolls, a rounded maternal peasant body that opens horizontally + to reveal another identical doll inside, that opens again and again until one + reaches a baby, perhaps, I can’t recall, in its deepest inside. This body, + propped open, had been cast with a vertical split, its interior consisting of + two sets of sharp iron spikes that, when the maiden was closed on a captive + human body, penetrated that body, trapping it upright as it killed in a + grotesque parody of pregnancy made a coffin. + + [...] + + For me, the pear was not the most compelling “machine” on display. There + sat, on one of the tables inside the Quirinale Palace, a simple modern device, + looking something like a microphone, with electrodes dangling from it. The + catalogue acknowledged that critics had objected to the inclusion of this + instrument in the exhibit. + + [...] + + As I recognized what it must be, pieced together an idea of its functions from + recently read accounts of refugees from the Argentinian junta and from Central + America, recalled films of the Algerian war, news stories of the reign of the + colonels in Greece, this instrument composed of the only too familiar elements + of modern technology defamiliarized the devices on exhibit; removing them from + the universe of the museum, it identified them with the calculated infliction + of human agony. It recontextualized all the other objects, prevented them from + being an aesthetic series, snatched them from the realm of the commodified + antique, recalled suffering. + + The ancient Greeks and Romans routinely tortured slaves as part of their legal + systems. So what? Is the recollection of this fact merely a curiosity, a memory + of the “antique” which allows us to marvel at our progress from the past of + Western culture, our abolition of slavery? Some of us congratulate ourselves on + our evolution from a barbaric pagan past, from the world of slave galleys and + crucifixions, of vomitoria and gladiatorial contests, of pederasty and + polytheism. But there is another, supplementary or contestatory narrative told + about ancient Greek culture—a narrative about the noble origins of Western + civilization. This narrative has analogies with the Quirinale exhibit—it + represents the past as a set of detached objects, redolent with antique + atmosphere. This alternate and prejudicially selective gaze at the high culture + of antiquity, the achievement of those ancient Greeks and Romans to whom we + point when we discuss our golden age, produces an ideological text for the + whole world now, mythologies about democracy versus communist totalitarianism, + about progress, civilized values, human rights. Because we are descended from + this noble ancient culture, from the inventors of philosophy and democracy, we + see ourselves as privileged, as nobly obliged to guide the whole benighted + world toward Western culture’s version of democracy and enlightenment. But even + as we gaze at high culture, at its origins in antiquity, at its present + manifestations in the developed nations, the “base” practices of torturers + throughout the world, many of them trained by North Americans, support this + narrative by forcing it on others, by making it the hegemonic discourse about + history. So-called high culture—philosophical, forensic, civic discourses and + practices—is of a piece from the very beginning, from classical antiquity, with + the deliberate infliction of human suffering. It is my argument in this book + that more is at stake in our recognition of this history than antiquarianism, + than complacency about our advances from barbarism to civilization. That truth + is unitary, that truth may finally be extracted by torture, is part of our + legacy from the Greeks and, therefore, part of our idea of “truth.” + +### Sartre + + "Torture is senseless violence, born in fear. The purpose of it is to force + from one tongue, amid its screams and its vomiting up of blood, the secret of + everything. Senseless violence: whether the victim talks or whether he dies + under his agony, the secret that he cannot tell is always somewhere else and + out of reach. It is the executioner who becomes Sisyphus. If he puts the + question at all, he will have to continue forever." + +### Tradition, secrets, truth and torture + + The Gestapo taught the French, who taught the Americans in Indo-China, and + they passed on some of their expertise to the Argentinian, Chilean, El + Salvadoran torturers. But this essay is not meant to be a genealogy of modern + torture. Rather I am concerned with what Sartre calls “the secret of + everything” with the relationship between torture and the truth, which “is + always somewhere else and out of reach.” + +A crucial point (an "crucial" also in the sense of the crucified, tortured body): + + I want to show how the logic of our philosophical tradition, of some of our + inherited beliefs about truth, leads almost inevitably to conceiving of the + body of the other as the site from which truth can be produced, and to using + violence if necessary to extract that truth. + + [...] + + I want to work out how the Greek philosophical idea of truth was produced + in history and what role the social practice of judicial torture played in its + production. + + I don’t want to suggest that the ancient Greeks invented torture, or that it + belongs exclusively to the Western philosophical tradition, or that abhorrence + of torture is not also part of that tradition. But I also refuse to adopt the + moral stance of those who pretend that torture is the work of “others,” that it + belongs to the third world, that we can condemn it from afar. To stand thus is + to eradicate history, to participate both in the exportation of torture as a + product of Western civilization, and in the concealment of its ancient and + perhaps necessary coexistence with much that we hold dear. The very idea of + truth we receive from the Greeks, those ancestors whom Allan Bloom names for + us,3 is inextricably linked with the practice of torture, which has almost + always been the ultimate attempt to discover a secret “always out of reach.” + + [...] + + The ancient Greek word for torture is basanos. It means first of all the + touchstone used to test gold for purity; the Greeks extended its meaning to + denote a test or trial to determine whether something or someone is real or + genuine. It then comes to mean also inquiry by torture, “the question,” + torture.4 In the following pages I will discuss the semantic field of the word + basanos, its uses in various contexts, both literal and metaphorical. [...] + This analysis will lead me to consideration of the idea of truth as secret in + ancient Greek thought, in literary, ritual, and philosophical practices + + [...] + + The desire for a reliable test to determine the fidelity of a suspect + intimate recurs in Greek poetry, and later poets often employ the metaphor of + the testing of metal to describe the necessity and unreliability of testing for + the fidelity of friends. + + The Lydians of Asia Minor had invented the use of metal currency, of money, in + the seventh century B.C.E. The polis or city-state of Aegina was reputed to be + the first Greek city to establish a silver coinage; in the classical period + several different coinages circulated. By the fifth century B.C.E. coins of + small enough denominations existed to enter into the economic transactions of + daily life. In Euripides’ Hippolytus the Athenian king Theseus, bewildered by + contradictory accounts of an alleged seduction attempt by his son against his + wife, uses monetary language to convey his confusion about the mysteries of + domestic intimacy: + + [...] + + Theseus employs the language of the banker, of the money-lender, to suggest + that one of his friends, that is, of those dear to him, either his son or his + wife, is false and counterfeit. + + [...] + + pollution is a religious term, connected with the impurity of blood shed, + of unclean sacrificial practices or murder.10 + In the archaic period, the state of freedom from pollution is sometimes + connected with notions of inherited purity, of uncontaminated descent from the + generations of heroes, from the gods, ideas of inherited excellence through + which the aristocrats justified their dominance in the archaic cities. + +### Governing, the steering of a ship in the hands of the aristocracy + + The very last lines of the poem echo the concerns of Theognis, a recognition of + the political disturbances of the ancient city, and the desire of the + aristocratic poet for a steady hand, sanctioned by blood and tradition, at the + city’s helm: + + Let us praise + his brave brothers too, because + they bear on high the ways of Thessaly + and bring them glory. + In their hands + belongs the piloting of cities, their fathers’ heritage. + (68-72) [poet Pindar, in Pythian 10] + + This last phrase might be rendered: “in the care of the good men [Theognis’s + agathoi, a political term] lie the inherited, paternal pilotings, governings + [following the metaphor of the ship of state] of cities.” The city is a ship + that must be guided by those who are capable by birth of piloting it, that is + to say, the agathoi, the good, the aristocrats. The basanos reveals the good, + separates base metal from pure gold, aristocrat from commoner. + +### A change of meaning + + The Sophoclean language, and its ambiguity, reveal the gradual transition of + the meaning of the word basanos from “test” to “torture.” The literal meaning, + “touchstone,” gives way to a figurative meaning, “test,” then over time changes + to “torture,” as the analogy is extended to the testing of human bodies in + juridical procedures for the Athenian courts. Is the history of basanos itself + in ancient Athens a process of refiguration, the alienation of the test from a + metal to the slave, the other? Such a transfer is literally catachresis, the + improper use of words, the application of a term to a thing which it does not + properly denote, abuse or perversion of a trope or metaphor (OED); George + Puttenham, the Elizabethan rhetorician, calls catachresis “the figure of + abuse.” The modern English word touchstone is similarly employed by people who + have no idea of the archaic reference to the lapis Lydius, also called in + English basanite . The figurative use of the word touchstone has taken the + place of the literal meaning. + + [...] + + The forensic language of Oedipus Rex fuses heroic legend with the poetic + representation of the city’s institutions. The mythic narrative of Oedipus’s + encounter with the Sphinx, set in the most remote past, and the struggle + between Kreon and Oedipus over the investigation of an ancient and mythic + homicide, here meet the daily life of the democratic polis. The language of + Sophokles’ tragedy might be said to exemplify not only the contradictions + between the tyranny of the fictional past and the “secret ballots,” alluded to + disparagingly by Pindar, of the audience’s present, but also to represent + dramatically, in an almost Utopian manner, a synthesis of the Greeks’ legendary + origins and their political processes. The chorus’s attempt to judge Oedipus + resembles the aristocratic reveler’s testing of his fellow symposiasts, using + as it does archaic, lyric language; it is also like the democratic jury’s + testing of a citizen on trial, alluding obliquely at the same time to the + juridical torture of slaves in the Athenian legal system, a process which by + this time was referred to as the basanos. + + Some of the semantic processes that transformed basanos as touchstone into the + term for legal torture can be seen in the use of the term in the Oedipus + Coloneus. This tragedy is only obliquely concerned with the process of + democracy, with the new institutions of the mid-fifth century which mediated + between the city’s aristocratic past and its democratic present. It speaks + instead of the exhaustion of the political, of disillusionment with parties and + with war, of metaphysical solutions to problems too bitter to be resolved in + mortal agones. + + [...] + + The basanos, no longer an autonomous, inert, inanimate tool for assaying + metal, has become a struggle between two forces, a contest that assumes + physical violence, a reconcretizing of the “touchstone,” which is neither the + literal stone nor a metaphorical ordeal. Hands, pitted one against the other, + rematerialize the test. The touchstone sets stone against metal; the test of + friends sets one against another; here the agon, the contest implicit in the + notion of basanos, takes on a new connotation, one of combat between enemies. + + Some historians of the ancient city believe that the word basanos refers not to + physical torture, but to a legal interrogation that does not involve violence. + Others claim that the threat of torture may have been present in the word, but + that there is no evidence that torture was actually ever practiced.16 It seems + to me very unlikely , even though the ancient evidence does not describe + directly any single case of torture, that the frequent mentions of basanos in + contexts of physical intimidation can refer to anything but the practice of + torture. The accidents of survival of ancient material may mean that we have no + single documented instance of torture having been applied, but the many uses of + the term, not only in the context of the law court, suggest a cultural + acceptance of the meaning “torture” for basanos, and an assumption that torture + occurred. For example, the historian Herodotos, in recounting an incident that + took place during the Persian Wars, in the early years of the fifth century + B.C.E., describes the Athenian hero Themistokles’ secret negotiations with the + Persian emperor Xerxes after the battle of Salamis: + + Themistocles lost no time in getting a message through to Xerxes. The men he + chose for this purpose were all people he could trust to keep his instructions + secret [sigan], even under torture [es pasan basanon]. + + [...] + + This passage suggests not only that basanos was not merely interrogation, but + that with the meaning torture it formed part of the vocabulary of daily life, + and that torture figured in the relations between ancient states as well as in + the legal processes of the democratic city. Themistokles had to take into + account the ability of his emissaries to resist physical torture, pasan + basanon, “any, all torture,” when deciding whom to send to the Persian emperor. + He required silence under extreme interrogation, since he was claiming falsely + to have protected Xerxes from the pursuit of the Greeks after the Persians’ + defeat. And Herodotos uses the word basanos as if the meaning “torture” were + common currency. + + As do Sophokles’ Oedipus plays, Herodotos’s text offers a double vision, + providing further evidence about the place of torture in the democracy and in + its prehis-tory. Sophokles writes from within the democracy about episodes from + the archaic, legendary past of the city. Herodotos writes from the world of the + mid-fifth century, the time of Sophokles and the great imperial age of Athens, + looking back half a century. The victories of Athens in the Persian Wars had + enabled and produced the great flowering of Athenian culture and ambition in + the middle of the fifth century. Herodotos’s retrospective gaze at the origins + of the democracy and its empire paints the portrait of Themistokles, one of the + great aristocrats whose power and vision shaped the evolution of the democratic + city. His encouragement, for example, of the policy of spending the city’s + mining wealth on its fleet, rather than distributing of monies to the citizens, + meant that the poorest citizens in Athens, who manned the fleet, participated + actively and powerfully in the political and military decisions of the + following years. In the incident Herodotos describes, Themistokles takes care + to ensure that his self-interested machinations not be known by the Athenians + he led. Themistokles, like Oedipus, has become a creature of legend. + + [...] + + Silence under torture may be coded as an aristocratic virtue. [...] it + indicates the degree to which silence under pain is ideologically associated + with nobility. The slave has no resources through which to resist submitting to + pain and telling all. In contrast the aristocratic soldier, noble by both birth + and training, maintains laconic silence in the face of physical abuse. + +### Comedy and inversion + + We find a comic parody of the use of basanos for the courtroom in Aristophanes’ + Frogs.20 The comedy is devoted to themes of judgment, discrimination, and + evaluation . Dionysos and his slave Xanthias have set off on a journey to Hades + to retrieve the tragic poet Euripides, but end by choosing Aeschylus to bring + back with them, claiming him over Euripides as the superior poet. Dionysos had + dressed for the trip as Herakles, who had once successfully entered and, more + importantly, departed the realm of the dead, but when he learns that Herakles + is persona non grata in Hades, he forces his slave to trade costumes with him. + When Xanthias is mistaken for Herakles and about to be arrested as a + dog-napper, for the stealing of Kerberos, the slave offers to give up his own + supposed slave, really the god Dionysos, to torture + + [...] + + The result is a beating contest in which Xanthias seems sure to win, accustomed + as he, a real slave, is to such beatings. The beatings constitute not + punishment but torture, and the language of the comedy reflects this fact. The + torture will reveal the truth, show which of the two is a god, which a slave. + The comedy works on the reversal of slave and god; Xanthias claims a god would + not be hurt by a beating, but the slave, the lowest of mortal beings, might in + fact be thought, because of experience, most easily to endure a whipping. + Dionysos begins to weep under the beating, but claims it’s due to onions. + Aiakos is finally unable to decide which of the two is divine. + + In the parabasis, the address to the audience, that follows, the theme of noble + and base currency emerges once again, as if connected by free association with + this scene of torture, of the basanos or touchstone. The chorus appeals to the + Athenian populace, complaining that Athenians who had committed one fault in a + battle at sea were to be put to death, while slaves who had fought alongside + their masters had been given their freedom. This seems to the chorus to be a + perversion of traditional hierarchical thinking: + + [...] + + The comic beating is quite hilarious, of course. But it does not put into + question the reality of torture. The exchange has a carnival quality, Dionysos + masquerading as slave, slave masquerading as Dionysos masquerading as Herakles, + the god beaten like a common slave. The slave remains uppity and insolent, the + god cowardly and ridiculous. Comedy permits this representation of the + quotidian reality of the polis, the exposure of what cannot be alluded to + directly in tragedy, the violence and domination implicit in the situation of + bondage. Comedy allows the fictional depiction of the unspeakable, the + representation of the lowly slave, the allusion to ordinary cruelty, a + commentary on the difficulty of perceiving the essential difference between + divine and enslaved beings. + [...] If Aristophanes is so iconoclastic as to mock the gods, and to treat + the slave as if he were a human character, he does not go so far as to question + the institution of the basanos. + +### Testing + + The slave on the rack waits like the metal, pure or alloyed, to be tested. + [...] The test assumes that its result will be truth; [...] The truth is + generated by torture from the speech of the slave; the sounds of the slave on + the rack must by definition contain truth, which the torture produces. And when + set against other testimony in a court case, that necessary truth, like a + touchstone itself, will show up the truth or falsity of the testimony. The + process of testing has been spun out from the simple metallurgist’s experiment, + to a new figuration of the work of interrogating matter. It is the slave’s + body, not metal, which receives the test; but how can that body be demonstrated + to be true or false, pure or alloyed, loyal or disloyal? The basanos assumes + first that the slave always lies, then that torture makes him or her always + tell the truth, then that the truth produced through torture will always expose + the truth or falsehood of the free man’s evidence. + +### Athenian democracy and torture + + Yet the Athenian democracy was at best a sort of oligarchy, one that denied + legal and political rights to all women, even daughters of citizens, and to + foreigners and slaves residing in Attica. The practice of slave torture is + consistent with the democracy’s policies of exclusion, scapegoating, ostracism, + and physical cruelty and violence; to overlook or justify torture is to + misrecognize and idealize the Athenian state. + + MacDowell describes the place of torture in the Athenian legal system: + + A special rule governed the testimony of slaves: they could not appear in + court, but a statement which a slave, male or female, had made under torture + (basanos) could be produced in court as evidence.3 + + The party in a trial who wished a slave to be tortured would put his questions + in writing, specifying which slaves he wished to have tortured and the + questions they were to be asked, and also agreeing to pay the slave’s owner for + any permanent damage inflicted on the slave. Athenian citizens could not be + tortured. + + MacDowell reasons as follows about the rule that slave’s testimony could + be received in the courtroom only if the slave had been tortured: + + The reason for this rule must have been that a slave who knew anything material + would frequently belong to one of the litigants, and so would be afraid to say + anything contrary to his owner’s interests, unless the pressure put on him to + reveal the truth was even greater than the punishment for revealing it which he + could expect from his master.4 + + A. R. W. Harrison believes that the right to testify freely in court may have + been seen as a privilege, perhaps because witnesses who appeared in court were + once thought of as “compurgators,” witnesses who swore to the credibility of a + party in a law suit. “Torture must therefore be applied to the slave as a mark + of the fact that he was not in himself a free agent entitled to support one + side or the other.”5 Since the slave was a valuable piece of property, liable + to damage from torture, she or he could not be tortured without permission of + the owner.6 If that permission were denied, the opponent often claimed that the + evidence which would have been obtained under torture would of certainty have + been damning to the slave’s owner. + +### Slavery and freedom + + Jean-Paul Sartre’s [...] says: “Algeria cannot contain two human species, but + requires a choice between them”.1 The soldiers who practiced torture on + Algerian revolutionaries attempted to reduce their opponents to pure + materiality, to the status of animals. + + [...] + + Free men and women could be enslaved at any time, although in Athens the + Solonian reforms of the sixth century B.C.E. + + [...] + + In the Politics Aristotle claims that some people are slaves “by nature” + + [...] + + The discourse on the use of torture in ancient Athenian law forms part of an + attempt to manage the opposition between slave and free, and it betrays both + need and anxiety: need to have a clear boundary between servile and free, + anxiety about the impossibility of maintaining this difference. + +### Tendency of suspend democracy protections (coup) during crisis + + [The] incident of the mutilation of the herms shook the stability of the + Athenian state, but also points to the future tendencies among the aristocratic + and oligarchic parties to suspend democratic protections in a moment of crisis. + The logical tendency would seem to be either to extend torture to all who could + give evidence, or to forbid torture of any human being. The instability of the + distinctions between slave and free, citizen and noncitizen, Greek and + foreigner, becomes apparent in these debates on the possibility of state + torture of citizens. Athenian citizens treasured the freedom from torture as a + privilege of their elevated status; Peisander’s eagerness to abrogate this + right is a premonition of the violence and illegality of the oligarchic coup of + 411 and of the bloody rule of the Thirty after the defeat of the Athenians by + the Spartans in 404.5 + +### Truth-making and the secret of everything + + Another kind of truth, what Sartre calls “the secret of everything,” is named + by many Greek writers as the explicit aim of judicial torture. [,,,] + In the Greek legal system, the torture of slaves figured as a guarantor of + truth, as a process of truth-making. + +### Secret ballots and lawyers + + Jurors received pay for their service in the courts [...] A case was required + to be completed within a day at most; several private cases would be tried + within a single day. The time alloted for arguments by the opponents in a trial + was measured by a water-clock; the amount of water allowed for each side was + determined by the seriousness of the charges. After each of the litigants + spoke, brought forward witnesses, and had evidence read, the jurors placed + disks or pebbles into urns to determine the winner of the suit. + [...] At the end of the fifth century it became customary to employ professional + writers to compose one’s speech for the court. + + Thus the scene in the court resembled the great assemblies of the democratic + city, with up to six thousand men adjudicating disputes. [...] + In this context, the evidence from the torture of slaves is evidence from + elsewhere, from another place, another body. It is evidence from outside the + community of citizens, of free men. Produced by the basanistês, the torturer, + or by the litigant in another scene, at the time of torture, such evidence + differs radically from the testimony of free witnesses in the court. It is + temporally estranged, institutionally, conventionally marked as evidence of + another order; what is curious is that speakers again and again privilege it as + belonging to a higher order of truth than that evidence freely offered in the + presence of the jurors by present witnesses. + + [...] + + There are many such passages. The slave body has become, in the democratic + city, the site of torture and of the production of truth. + + The argument concerning the greater value of slave evidence frequently occurs + in accusations against an opponent who has refused to allow his slaves to be + tortured. The speaker claims then that this failure to produce slave witnesses + proves indirectly that their testimony would condemn their owner. + +### Slaves are bodies; citizens possess logos + + Lykourgos argues against Leokrates [...]: + + Every one of you knows that in matters of dispute it is considered by far the + just and most democratic [dêmotikôtatori] course, when there are male or female + slaves, who possess the necessary information, to examine these by torture and + so have facts to go upon instead of hearsay, particularly when the case + concerns the public and is of vital interest to the state. + + He argues that by nature the tortured slaves would have told the truth; does + this mean that any human being, when tortured, will produce the truth, or that + it is the nature of slaves to tell the truth under torture? Free citizen men + will be deceived by clever arguments; slaves by nature will not be misled + because they think with their bodies. Slaves are bodies; citizens possess + logos, reason. [...] This appeal to the practice of torture as an integral + and valued part of the legal machinery of the democracy points up the + contradictory nature of Athenian democracy, and the ways in which the + application of the democratic reforms of Athens were carefully limited to the + lives of male citizens, and intrinsic to the production and justification of + this notion of male citizenship. + +### Notions of truth and the real of the untorturable, the dead + + In another speech attributed to Antiphon, this one part of a case presumably + actually tried, torture again plays an important role in the defense of a man + accused of murder, Euxitheos [...] + + Probably both of these considerations induced him to make the false charges + against me which he did; he hoped to gain his freedom, and his one immediate + wish was to end the torture. I need not remind you, I think, that witnesses + under torture are biased in favour of those who do most of the torturing; they + will say anything likely to gratify them. It is their one chance of salvation, + especially when the victims of their lies happen not to be present. Had I + myself proceeded to give orders that the slave should be racked [strebloun] for + not telling the truth, that step in itself would doubtless have been enough to + make him stop incriminating me falsely. (5.31-32) + + The speaker, because for once forced to confront the evidence of a tortured + slave, rather than bemoaning the lack of slave evidence, here points out the + absolute unreliability of slave evidence, based as it is on the will of the + torturer. Bizarrely, however, he ends by claiming that the true truth would + have emerged, another truth truer than the first, if he himself had been the + torturer. If so, it is interesting that the defendant distinguishes between + an essentialist notion of truth and a pragmatic notion of truth in the case of + the slave, but not in the case of the free foreigner, where a reversion to the + essentialist notion appears to occur. And the logic he exposes, that the slave + will say anything to gratify his torturer, is dropped as soon as he himself + becomes the torturer. We can imagine the body of the slave ripped apart in a + tug-of-war between two litigants, in a law case in which he was implicated only + by proximity. + + This very slave, who had been purchased by the prosecution, in fact later + changed his testimony, according to the speaker because he recognized his + imminent doom. Nonetheless the prosecution put him to death. The defendant + continues: + + Clearly, it was not his person, but his evidence, which they required; had the + man remained alive, he would have been tortured by me in the same way, and the + prosecution would be confronted with their plot: but once he was dead, not only + did the loss of his person mean that I was deprived of my opportunity of + establishing the truth, but his false statements are assumed to be true. + (5.35) + + All of the prosecution’s case rests on the testimony of the tortured and now + dead slave; the defendant claims to be completely frustrated, since now the + truth lies in a realm inaccessible to him. He cannot torture the dead man and + discover the “real” truth. Even though the slave had at first insisted on the + defendant’s innocence, he had under torture called him guilty: + + At the start, before being placed on the wheel [trokhon], in fact, until + extreme pressure was brought to bear, the man adhered to the truth [alêtheia] + and declared me innocent. It was only when on the wheel, and when driven to it, + that he falsely incriminated me, in order to put an end to the torture. + (5.40-41) + + The persistence of the defendant’s desire himself to torture this slave claims + our attention; even after the inevitability of false testimony under torture + stands exposed, he bemoans the retreat of the slave into the realm of the + untorturable, of the dead. + + I repeat, let no one cause you to forget that the prosecution put the informer + to death, that they used every effort to prevent his appearance in court and to + make it impossible for me to take him and examine him under torture on my + return.… Instead, they bought the slave and put him to death, entirely on their + own initiative [idia], (5.46-47) + +### Reasoning attributed to a free man, but foreigner + + The free man knew that the torture would end; he also could not be bribed by + promises of freedom for giving the answers the torturers desired to hear. In + this case, the defendant gives priority to the free man’s unfree testimony; + unlike the free testimony of an Athenian in a courtroom, this evidence was + derived from torture, but the defendant seeks to give it the added authority of + the free man in spite of its origin in this procedure tainted with unfreedom, + because it supports his view of the case. + +### Truth even if it cost lives + + You do not need to be reminded, gentlemen, that the one occasion when + compulsion [anagkai] is as absolute and as effective as is humanly possible, + and when the rights of a case are ascertained thereby most surely and most + certainly, arises when there is an abundance of witnesses, both slave and free, + and it is possible to put pressure [anagkazein] upon the free men by exacting + an oath or word of honour, the most solemn and the most awful form of + compulsion known to free men, and upon the slaves by other devices [heterais + anagkais], which will force them to tell the truth even if their revelations + are bound to cost them their lives, as the compulsion of the moment [he gar + parousa anagkê] has a stronger influence over each than the fate which he will + suffer by compulsion afterwards. (6.25) + + That is, the free man is compelled by oaths; he might lose his rights as a + citizen if he lied under oath. The slave, even though he will certainly be put + to death as a consequence of what he reveals under torture, will nonetheless, + under torture, reveal the truth. The two kinds of compulsion are equated, one + appropriate for the free man, one for the slave. + +### Torturability + + Torture serves not only to exact a truth, some truth or other, which will + benefit one side of the case or the other. It also functions as a gambit in the + exchange between defendant and prosecution; if for any reason one of them + refuses to give up slaves to torture, the other can claim that the missing + testimony would of a certainty support his view of things. And as I argued + earlier, torture also serves to mark the boundary between slave and free + beings. Torture can be enacted against free, non-Greek beings as well as + slaves; all “barbarians” are assimilated to slaves. Slaves are barbarians, + barbarians are slaves; all are susceptible to torture. Torturability creates a + difference which is naturalized. And even the sophistry of the First Tetralogy, + which wants to create a category of virtually free in the case of the slave who + would have been freed had he lived, seeks to support this division of human + beings into free, truth-telling creatures, and torturable slave/barbarians, who + will only produce truth on the wheel. + +### The Slave's Truth + + Torture performs at least two functions in the Athenian state. As an instrument + of demarcation, it delineates the boundary between slave and free, between the + untouchable bodies of free citizens and the torturable bodies of slaves. The + ambiguity of slave status, the difficulty of sustaining an absolute sense of + differences, is addressed through this practice of the state, which carves the + line between slave and free on the bodies of the unfree. In the work of the + wheel, the rack, and the whip, the torturer carries out the work of the polis; + citizen is made distinct from noncitizen, Greek from barbarian, slave from + free. The practice of basanos administers to the anxiety about enslavement, + hauntingly evoked in the texts of Athenian tragedy that recall the fall of + cities, particularly the fall of Troy, evoked as well in the histories that + recount Athenian destruction of subject allies. + + [...] + + But the desire to clarify the respective status of slave and free is not the + motive, never the explicit motive, of torture. Rather, again and again, even in + the face of arguments discounting evidence derived from torture, speakers in + the courts describe the basanos as a search for truth. How is this possible? + And how are the two desires related? The claim is made that truth resides in + the slave body. + + [...] + + That is, the master possesses reason, logos. When giving evidence in court, he + knows the difference between truth and falsehood, he can reason and produce + true speech, logos, and he can reason about the consequences of falsehood , the + deprivation of his rights as a citizen. The slave, on the other hand, + possessing not reason, but rather a body strong for service (iskhura pros ten + anagkaian khrêsin), must be forced to utter the truth, which he can apprehend, + although not possessing reason as such. Unlike an animal, a being that + possesses only feelings, and therefore can neither apprehend reason, logos, nor + speak, legein, the slave can testify when his body is tortured because he + recognizes reason without possessing it himself. + + [...] + + Thus, according to Aristotle’s logic, representative or not, the slave’s truth + is the master’s truth; it is in the body of the slave that the master’s truth + lies, and it is in torture that his truth is revealed. The torturer reaches + through the master to the slave’s body, and extracts the truth from it. The + master can conceal the truth, since he possesses reason and can choose between + truth and lie, can choose the penalty associated with false testimony. His own + point of vulnerability is the body of his slave, which can be compelled not to + lie, can be forced to produce the truth. If he decides to deny the body of his + slave to the torturer, assumptions Will be made that condemn him. + + [...] + + Aristotle advocates the pragmatic approach; one can argue either side concerning + the truth of torture. + + [...] + + As Gernet says, “Proof is institutional.” Proof, and therefore truth, are + constituted by the Greeks as best found in the evidence derived from torture. + Truth, alêtheia, comes from elsewhere, from another place, from the place of + the other. + +### Torture and Writing + + The tortured body retains scars, marks that recall the violence inflicted upon + it by the torturer. In part because slaves were often tattooed in the ancient + world, such marks of torture resonate in the Greek mind with tattoos, and with + other forms of metaphorical inscription, in Greek thinking considered analogous + to writing on the body.1 I have discussed the topos of corporeal inscription + elsewhere. The woman’s body was in ancient Greece sometimes likened to a + writing tablet, a surface to be ”ploughed,” inscribed by the hand, the plough, + the penis of her husband and master.2 + +The famous case of the tatooed head: + + One especially intriguing mention of slave tattooing occurs in Herodotos’s + Histories, in a narrative in which the possibility of torture remains implicit. + Although I have discussed this episode elsewhere, I want here to draw out its + implications for a consideration of the relationship between torture and truth. + Histiaios of Miletus sends a message urging revolt to a distant ally by shaving + the head of his most trusted slave, tattooing the message on the slave’s head, + then waiting for the slave’s hair to grow back. He sends the slave on his + journey, ordering him to say at the journey’s end only that the “destinataire,” + the receiver of the message, should shave off his hair and look at his head. + The message reaches its goal, and Aristagoras the receiver revolts (Herodotos, + Histories 5.35). + + The tattooed head is a protection against torture. If the slave were captured + and tortured, he would not himself know the message of revolt. He could not + betray his master if questioned and interrogated specifically about his + master’s intentions to rise up against those who have enslaved him. He did not + know the content of Histiaios’ communication with Aristagoras. But he did know + the instructions he bore to Aristagoras, to shave his head and read the message + inscribed there. The ruse only displaces the discovery of the message’s truth + by a single step, but in this case it succeeds in protecting the message. Here + the tattooing, the inscription on the slave’s body, subverts the intention of + torture to expose the truth. + +"Branding": + + In other contexts in ancient Greece, slave tattooing serves as a sort of label. + It is as if writing on the slave body indicated the contents of that body. Such + a function of writing recalls the work of Denise Schmandt-Besserat, who argues + that writing originates in the markings on the outside of packages recording + their contents.3 Aristotle points out in the Politics, as we have seen, that + the slave body ought to reveal its truth, ought to be immediately perceptible + as a servile body to the eye, but in fact sometimes it is not. A tattoo on a + slave reveals his or her true status. In Aristophanes’ Babylonians, of which + only fragments remain, we learn that prisoners of war were sometimes branded or + inscribed with a mark indicating the city they served.4 + + [...] + + though he is a human being, he does not know himself, soon he will know, having + this inscription on his forehead. (74_79)6 + + Herodes invokes the inscription at Delphi, also cited by Plato: gnôthi seauton, + “Know yourself.”7 + + [...] + + This placement of the “epigram,” whatever it is, if it is that, on the metope, + the forehead of the slave, makes the inscription a sign. The message of + Herodotos’s slave was concealed by his hair, directed to a specified other, the + recipient who received the slave as a vehicle for his master’s words. The + communication was not directed to the slave himself. In the case of Herodes’ + slave, the man named “Belly” would bear a sign meant to remind him of his + humble status. + +### Buried Truth + + If torture helped to manage the troublesome differentiation between slave and + free in the ancient city, it also served as a redundant practice reinforcing + the dominant notion of the Greeks that truth was an inaccessible, buried + secret. In his valuable book Les maîtres de vérité dans la Grèce archaïque, + Marcel Detienne describes a historical shift in the Greeks’ ideas about truth + that corresponds to the historical shift from mythic to rational thought.1 + According to Detienne, Alêtheia is at first conceived of by the Greeks in an + ambiguous relationship with Lethe, forgetting; truth is the possession of the + poet and the just king, who has access to this truth through memory. Alêtheia + is caught up in a relationship of ambiguity with Lêthê because, for example, + the poet who speaks truth by using memory also confers truth’s other, + forgetfulness, oblivion of pain and sorrow, on his listeners. His + “magico-religious” speech, as Detienne calls it, which exists in an ambiguous + relationship with truth, persists as the dominant form in the Greek world until + the speech of warriors, the citizens who form the city’s phalanxes, a speech of + dialogue, comes to dominate the social world in the time of the polis. Detienne + associates a resultant secularization of poetic Alêtheia with the name of the + poet Simonides. Doxa, seeming, becomes the rival province of sophistic and + rhetorical speech, while Alêtheia comes to belong to an unambiguously + “philosophico-religious” domain. In this field of discourse the logic of + ambiguity typical of the Alêtheia-Lêthê relationship is replaced by a logic of + contradiction, in which Alêtheia is opposed to Apatê, deception, as its other. + The common use of memory provides a link between these two stages of thinking + truth; the secularization of speech marks a break between a mythic and a + rationalist semantic field in which the term Alêtheia persists. + +### The modern word Tortura + + A word used in addition to alêthês in the Odyssey is atrekês, real, genuine, + with a connotation perhaps of that which does not distort or deviate. The Latin + word torqueo means “to twist tightly, to wind or wrap, to subject to torture, + especially by the use of the rack.” This word may come from the root trek-, + also occurring in Greek, which may give us atraktos, “spindle,” and also + “arrow.”6 (Tortor is used as a cult title of Apollo, “perhaps”, according to + the Oxford Latin Dictionary, “from the quarter at Rome occupied by the + torturers.”)7 Our English word “torture” is taken from this Latin root. The + Oxford English Dictionary defines “torture,” an adaptation of the Latin + tortura, in the following way: + + The infliction of excruciating pain, as practised by cruel tyrants, savages, + brigands, etc., from the delight in watching the agony of a victim, in hatred + or revenge, or as a means of extortion; spec. judicial torture, inflicted by a + judicial or quasi-judicial authority, for the purpose of forcing an accused or + suspected person to confess, or an unwilling witness to give evidence or + information.8 Although the writers of the dictionary list first tyrants, + savages, and brigands as the agents of torture, the first entry in their + citations of the use of the word in English refers to the Acts of the Privy + Council of 1551. This set of connotations, to return to the point, links the + English word torture with the twisted, the distorted, and suggests that the + truth gained as a confession is in English not conceived of as a straight line, + but is rather bent, extorted from time on the rack. + + In Greek, however, not passing through Latin into English for our etymology + (etumos is another word used for “true” in Greek), we have, parallel to + atrekês, the word alêtheia with its suggestion of hiddenness and forgetting. + The connotations of the alternative words nêmertês and atrekês are respectively + “not missing the mark”, and “not deviating from an existing model”; the weight + of alêthês rests instead on the trace of something not forgotten, not slipping + by unnoticed.9 + + [...] + + Even in the texts of the Hippocratic tradition, the body is seen to contain + secrets that must be interpreted, elicited by signs that emerge onto the body’s + surface, as the emanation from the earth arises to possess the Pythia. + + [...] + + Each of these sites of meaning in ancient culture—the epic, oracles, sacred + buildings, the medicalized body—lay out a pattern of obscure, hidden truth that + must be interpreted. + +### Heraclitian truth differs + + The works of the pre-Socratic philosophers (even to presume to call them + philosophers may be to presume too much) present problems of reading for the + historian of philosophy, for the literary and cultural critic. Even the problem + of who is disciplinarily responsible for these texts is insoluble. And the + incompleteness of many pre-Socratic texts causes unease. How can one speak of + philosophical development when only one line, one metaphor, one aphorism + remains, torn out of context, lines repeated to illustrate a well-known point? + The ellipses in the published pre-Socratic fragments recall stopped mouths, + messages gone astray, the utter failure of communication across a distance of + centuries. + + [...] + + The very search for integrity and indivisibility in all things has been called + into question by the heirs of Nietzsche, among them those feminists who see the + emphasis on wholeness and integrity, on the full body, as a strategy of + scholarship that has traditionally excluded the female, who has been identified + as different, heterogeneous, disturbing the integrity of the scholarly body, + incomplete in herself. Aristotle describes the female as a “deformed” + (pepêrômenon) male (Generation of Animals 737a), and argues further that her + contribution to reproduction lacks a crucial ingredient, the principle of soul + (psukhe). The project of scientific textual studies has been to supply the + text’s lack, to reduce the fragmented, partial quality of embodied, material + texts, to reject the defective text as it rejects the defective female. Like + the slave body that needs the supplement of the basanos to produce truth, the + female body and the fragmentary text are both constructed as lacking. + + [...] + + Elsewhere Herakleitos seems to argue against an innate hierarchy of mortal + beings: “War is father of all, and king of all. He renders some gods, others + men; he makes some slaves, others free” (fr. 53). Mortal and immortal status + depends on human history, on events. There is no essence, no absolute truth in + the differences among beings. Circumstances, history, time affect relations of + difference and power.2 This relativism establishes a ground for the vision of + equality among citizens in ancient democratic ideology, and even further, a + point from which to examine the commonly held view that some human beings are + slaves by nature. + + Herakleitos represents an alternative to the essentializing concept of truth as + a buried, hidden substance; he offers a temporal notion of truth, that the + basanos of the physician is good at one time, at another time bad, that war + creates slaves and free, a relative notion of truth. [...] + Herakleitos’s relationship to time, change and process prefigures values of the + democracy and of the pre-Socratic sophists whom the aristocratic philosophical + tradition despised: “As they step into the same rivers, different and (still) + different waters flow upon them” (fr. 12); “we step and do not step into the + same rivers; we are and are not” (fr. 49a). His is not a doctrine of + superficial appearance and deep truth, but rather a celebration of the + mutability and interdependence of all things. The Heraclitean truth, read + within his words, fragmentary as they are, celebrating flux, time, difference, + allows for an alternative model to a hidden truth. [...] + for him truth is process and becoming, obtained through + observation, rather than a fixed, divine and immutable truth of eternity. + +### Truth and memory + + The word anagkê, “constraint,” is associated with the yoke of slavery.10 All of + human experience suffers from its subjection to necessity; the slave offers an + extreme example of the general human condition. In one of her many forms the + goddess who instructs the youth, the Kouros, is mistress of “brute force,” or + of the bonds associated with enslavement, and is therefore binding the + “what-is,” the “true,” in captivity. Like the slave who yields the truth to the + torturer, the “what-is” is bound in domination, and delivers up its truth under + necessity. + + [...] + + Does truth as eternally located elsewhere, either hidden in the body, or hidden + in the earth, or hidden inside or beyond human existence, in some realm + inaccessible to ordinary consciousness, lead by some tortuous path to the + necessity for torture? Can we posit a truth of process and becoming, and + another truth of eternity? If so, the word a-lêtheia seems to carry buried + within it support for the view of hidden truth, of truth brought up from the + depths. The possibility of forgetting leads to the imagination of a buried + realm, the realm of forgetting, of Lethe, which can be represented either + positively or negatively. It is good to forget suffering and pain, regrettable + to forget a message, to forget crucial information that must be transmitted to + a listener; in either case Lethe—or, to coin a word, “letheia”—remains a domain + beyond consciousness. + + [...] + + The dominance of a notion of truth as alêtheia, not forgetting, he attributes + in part to the gradual shift to literacy taking place in the fifth and fourth + centuries.14 The legal corpus reflects the state of the problem of truth in the + fifth and fourth centuries B.C.E. Charles Segal has discussed eloquently the + ways in which growing literacy affects concepts of the self and truth in Greek + tragedy.15 + + [...] + + In the dominant literary and philosophical paradigm, the truth is seen to be + forgettable, slipping away from notice, buried, inaccessible, then retrieved + through an effort of memory, through the invocation of divine possession, + through the interrogation by a privileged seeker of some enlightened source; + seeking the truth may involve a journey, a passage through a spatial narrative + of some sort, a request, a sinking down into the past, into the interiority of + memory. This model of truth seeking is consistent with other such paradigms + already suggested earlier, in the law courts, where, as we saw, the violence of + the torturer is thought to be necessary to enforce the production of truth from + the slave, either to force him or her to recall the truth, or to force him or + her to speak the truth for the benefit of the court. + + The slave’s body is thus construed as one of these sites of truth, like the + adyton, the underworld, the interiority of the woman’s body, the elsewhere + toward which truth is always slipping, a Utopian space allowing a less + mediated, more direct access to truth, where the truth is no longer forgotten, + slipping away. The basanos gives the torturer the power to exact from the + other, seen as like an oracular space, like the woman’s hystera, like the + inside of the earth, the realm of Hades, as other and as therefore in + possession of the truth. The truth is thus always elsewhere, always outside the + realm of ordinary human experience, of everyday life, secreted in the earth, in + the gods, in the woman, in the slave. To recall it from this other place + sometimes requires patience, sometimes payment of gifts, sometimes seduction, + sometimes violence. + +### Torture and commodification + + Does it have to do with the invention of coinage, with the idea of abstract + exchange value, and the slave as an exchangeable body, a thing to be tested + like a coin, like a marker for exchange? In the Laws the Athenian says men are + like puppets with strings, and that they should follow the soft, golden string, + the “golden and hallowed drawing of judgment which goes by the name of the + public law of the city” (644-45). diff --git a/books/scifi/machine-stops.md b/books/scifi/machine-stops.md index 1da0e36..8dd3484 100644 --- a/books/scifi/machine-stops.md +++ b/books/scifi/machine-stops.md @@ -11,7 +11,7 @@ [...] Few travelled in these days, for, thanks to the advance of science, the earth - was exactly alike all over. + was exactly alike all over. [...] @@ -23,7 +23,7 @@ Beneath those corridors of shining tiles were rooms, tier below tier, reaching far into the earth, and in each room there sat a human being, eating, or - sleeping, or producing ideas. And buried deep in the hive was her own room. + sleeping, or producing ideas. And buried deep in the hive was her own room. [...] diff --git a/books/sociology/anarchist-cybernetics.md b/books/sociology/anarchist-cybernetics.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..cdc9f0c --- /dev/null +++ b/books/sociology/anarchist-cybernetics.md @@ -0,0 +1,301 @@ +[[!meta title="Anarchist Cybernetics"]] + +* https://lra.le.ac.uk/bitstream/2381/37597/1/2016swanntrphd.pdf +* https://www.lboro.ac.uk/departments/phir/staff/thomas-swann/ +* https://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.686573 +* https://lra.le.ac.uk/handle/2381/37597 +* https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2017/3/12/1642612/-Anti-Capitalist-Meetup-Swann-s-Way-anarchist-cybernetics-amp-organizational-dynamics-in-politics + +## Excerpts + + goals. The metaphor of a dance with complexity echoes the way Ashby describes the + process of control as being similar to a fencer facing an opponent. ‘(I)f a fencer faces an + opponent who has various modes of attack available,’ he writes, ‘the fencer must be + provided with at least an equal number of modes of defence’ ([1958] 2003, p. 356; see + also Ashby, 1962)). Control and regulation are processes of responding to the + unpredictable moves of another dancer (again, the complexity can be threatening or, in + the case of a dance or in fencing, it can be more of a friendly game or a negotiation). 11 + Control is not something enacted by an entity, be it an individual or a group, over an + + [...] + + Self-organisation is a sticky concept for cybernetics. Ashby, for example, argues that it + cannot exist. He bases his argument on the second-order cybernetic position that + viability or effectiveness is always determined as such by an observer of a system. Self- + organisation suggests that a system responds effectively by itself to complexity. Along + these lines, self-organisation is not a property of the system itself but of the observation + (1962; see also von Foerster, [1960] 2003; Duda, 2012, p. 89). While this may apply to + mathematical, biological and engineering applications of cybernetics, it is + fundamentally at odds with organisational cybernetics and the cybernetics of social and + political organisation more generally. A more fitting account of self-organisation, one + that is applicable to both the cybernetic need for control and the specific nature of social + and political organisations, is the more common one of a group of people deciding + amongst themselves, to achieve some goal(s). Stewart Umpleby (1987) highlights this + simple definition by contrasting two situations: + A teacher can organize a class into groups by assigning each child to a specific group and + + [...] + + One of the core ideas in cybernetic thought when it comes to communication is that of + feedback. Beer in fact highlights feedback as ‘the most important concept of all’ ([1981] + 1994, p. 32). Feedback explains how information, 12 from the environment but also the + internal workings of the organisation itself, plays a role in how the various parts of the + organisation operate autonomously. Beer is keen to stress that feedback does not mean + what it is commonly thought to mean, i.e. a response to something. Instead, feedback + refers to the way in which information about the changes a part of an organisation or + system faces are used to help that part maintain an agreed level of operation or to work + towards an agreed goal. Information coming into an operating unit of an organisation or + system about what is happening, both internally and externally, allows it to direct its + + [...] + + account of the free market as a tool for allowing order to emerge from chaos (Cooper, + 2011; see also Gilbert, 2005). Hayek was of course one of the key architects of the + theories that supported neoliberalism and, in a sad irony, was involved in advising the + dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet that had toppled the government of Salvador Allende + in Chile that Beer had become so invested in (Harvey, 2005). While complexity has + been discussed thus far in relation to the potential for self-organisation in a way that + may well run parallel to radically political accounts (see also Maeckelbergh, 2009, pp. + 203-210; Purkis, 2004, pp. 51-52), it is important to note that there is a competing + narrative around complexity theory, one that takes it in a dramatically different + direction. + Autonomy and ideas of self-organisation and horizontality, too, have been subject to + + [...] + + This initial affinity between anarchism and organisational cybernetics comes through in + how Kropotkin characterises centralised, top-down forms of government as being not + only politically and morally objectionable but at the same time ineffectual. Kropotkin + writes (1927, pp. 76-7) that ‘in all production there arise daily thousands of difficulties + which no government can solve or foresee.’ Against the plans of those socialists who + wish to use the state to manage this complexity, ‘the governmentalists’ to use + McEwan’s term, he argues that ‘production and exchange represented an undertaking so + complicated that the plans of the state socialists, which lead inevitably to a party + directorship, would prove to be absolutely ineffective as soon as they were applied to + life.’ 21 As an alternative to centralised attempts at attenuating variety in society (which + would lead to an oppression of individuals’ right to live their lives as they see fit) and + amplifying variety in the state as an organising body (resulting in a massive + bureaucracy), Kropotkin proposes that the workers themselves and their unions + administer production in an autonomous manner. 22 As political science scholar Marius + + [...] + + 22 + An alternative approach to anarchism and cybernetics that focuses on feedback loops can be found in + Roel van Duijn’s Message of a Wise Kabouter (1972). In a conversation I had with van Duijn in 2013 he + suggested that he had come to cybernetics as a result of discussions between himself and Murray + Bookchin in the 1960s. Bookchin does use the term ‘cybernetics’ but does so to refer to high-technology + and links it to a centralised, authoritarian corporate state (e.g. 1985), so it seems that he had not engaged + with the cybernetics of Wiener and Beer. Van Duijn may have been put onto cybernetics through reading + + [...] + + John Duda (2013, p. 64) describes the approach to anarchism of McEwan as ‘a shift + away from a moral vision of anarchism, outraged at the scandal of domination’ towards + a paradigm focussed on the ‘superior productivity of anarchist organisational + methodology’, but I would suggest that it in fact tries to show that anarchism trumps + top-down government on both counts, without prioritising one over the other. Indeed, + the fact that it is present in Kropotkin’s work supports the view that it is not a shift that + took place in light of anarchist engagements with cybernetics but is a dual-perspective + that is present in at least some forms of anarchism from relatively early in the canon. + This could be thought of as ‘the two sides of the anarchist coin’. On the one hand there + is the ethical and political concern for autonomy, while on the other there is the + functional concern for effective organisation. + The connections between anarchism and cybernetics were also picked up on by one of + + [...] + + While this is framed within a typically-hierarchical organisational structure with an + executive and a receptionist, the point Pask is getting at is that the hierarchy is also one + of levels of language. The highest level in the hierarchy involves a metalanguage that is + used to talk about lower levels, which too have a metalanguage to talk about levels + lower than them. Although this is clearly a hierarchy such that a level thrice removed + from the top, for example, would have difficulty communicating directly with the top + and vice versa given the difference in languages, Pask is very clear that this describes a + + [...] + + She goes so far as to point out that System Five in the VSM, the part of the organisation + involved in defining the identity and overall goals of the organisation, can be ‘just a + routine or an activity’ and ‘does not necessarily need to be an extra set of people’ (2013, + p. 12; see also 1999). + McEwan follows Pask’s account by making explicit the distinction between the two + + [...] + + command such that each level is subordinate to the levels above it and where the top + level has overall control over decision making in the organisation. Functional + hierarchy, however, applies to an organisation where ‘there are two or more levels of + information structure operating in the system’ (McEwan, [1963] 1987, p. 44). + + [...] + + the working groups consider their activities and adjust them if necessary in line with the + decided-upon goals of the organisation. Crucially, for an anarchist cybernetics and + VSM, everyone involved in the working groups can, potentially, be involved in the + General Assemblies and so in these System Three discussions. The same individuals + step out of their functional role as working group members and into that of reflecting on + their practice within working groups. System Four involves the same individuals again, + and also in the General Assemblies, reflecting on the activities of the working groups + and the organisation as a whole as well as its overall strategy in relation to events in the + outside world. Adjustments to both tactics and strategy can be made in light of changes + + [...] + + Elsewhere, Bakunin similarly argues that ‘all organizations must proceed by way of + federation from the base to the summit, from the commune to the coordinating + association of the country or nation’ (1971b: 82-83, italics in original). Here we have a + picture of a federated form of organisation in which smaller local organisations, free + associations or cooperatives, link up with one another at the level of the commune. + Communes then link up in a regional council and so on to the level of an international + council. This too is reflective of the recursivity that is essential to the VSM: any viable + system is itself a part of another viable system and has within it multiple viable systems. + Not only does the decision-making structure of an anarchist federation relate favourably + to that of organisational cybernetics, but so too does the very principle of federated + organisation, something Wiener in fact hints at (1961, p. 155) and of which Beer is + sometimes quite explicit in his support (see Medina, 2011, pp. 159-160). + McEwan, in his Anarchy article, makes this link between this syndicalist model of + + [...] + + Importantly, this is not enough for an anarchist version of cybernetics. A more explicitly + ethical and political autonomy, which values autonomy as an individual and collective + good over-and-above its role within organisational structure, needs to be introduced. + This brings into play a crucial distinction between the firm, as Beer conceives of it, and + radical left and anarchist organisation. While the firm may be viable on cybernetic + terms by including a functional autonomy, whereby individual operating units have + some scope for self-organisation and independent decision making, it will be shown that + radical left and anarchist organisation must combine this cybernetic demand with the + ethical and political demand that values individual and collective autonomy in and of + itself. The two sides of the anarchist coin, as I have described them above, must be + brought together. For now it is enough to note that while Beer’s work focusses on the + firm and, one can argue, takes that as a model of social organisation in general, an + anarchist cybernetics highlights a distinction that must be made between the firm, which + takes as a necessary condition autonomy as a function, and radical left and anarchist + + [...] + + Thinking about cybernetics and organisation along these lines, the work of science and + technology studies scholar Andrew Pickering (2010) becomes extremely important. + Rather than being focussed on representing an external reality with accuracy, + Pickering’s cybernetics is instead involved in performance. Performance is understood + as the actions we undertake in the world that demand a pragmatic and constructed + knowledge as opposed to a detailed representation of reality. 24 He describes this as a + ‘performative epistemology’: ‘a vision of knowledge as part of performance rather than + 24 + This owes something of a debt to the American Pragmatism of Pierce, Dewey and others, although this + + [...] + + as an external control of it’ (ibid., p. 25, italics in original). The cybernetician, therefore, + is not engaged in unpacking and describing a reality (be it a machine, an animal, a + human being or a social phenomenon) but in facilitating performances or practices that + he or she is a part of. Cybernetics, in this regard, is committed to action and not simply + theorising about the nature of knowledge. This is evident in the work of Beer who, as I + have shown in the second chapter, was throughout his life heavily involved in practicing + cybernetics. Pickering highlights the fact that the very definition of cybernetics as + steering shows this connection with performance and practice (ibid., p. 30). It is a + science not of representing the objective mechanisms of control and communication but + of doing control and communication. + Interestingly, this turn towards science as performance in fact brings to the fore another + + + [...] + + He also speaks of the importance of ‘radical transformation and listening’ (2010, pp. 42- + 43). While many more could be added, these seven goals (mutual respect, cooperation, + egalitarian decision-making, promotion of radical democratic vision, deconstruction of + borders, radical transformation and listening) will serve to demonstrate how a virtuous + anarchist mode of research can be conceived. In order to act virtuously as an anarchist, a + researcher must act so as to embody these goals. The researcher should aim to: (1) be + respectful of participants in research; (2) encourage cooperation in the research on the + part of the participants; (3) engage in egalitarian relationships with the participants; (4) + promote the radical democratic ideal of anarchism; (5) conduct the research in a + borderless fashion; (6) be radically transformative (i.e. live as radically transformed); + and (7) listen to participants. It should be noted that according to the prefigurative virtue + ethics outlined by Franks, these virtues and goals are negotiable and specific to + + [...] + + While it is not the focus of cybernetics, such an ethical approach can also be seen in the + work of von Foerster. In line with the second-order cybernetic concern for the + researcher as ‘a person who considers oneself to be a participant actor in the drama of + mutual interaction of the give and take in the circularity of human relations’ ([1991] + 2003, p. 289), von Foerster frames ethics as an understanding of the norms that govern + the practices we engage in. Rather than seeing scientific research as a practice involving + truth, von Foerster recasts it as involving trust, understanding, responsibility, reaching + out for the other and ‘a conspiracy, whose customs, rules, and regulations we are now + inventing’ (ibid., p. 294). 27 On this understanding, an ethics of research is + fundamentally an ethics of co-producing knowledge and von Foerster’s account of + second-order cybernetics links up well with the anarchist research ethics defined by + + [...] + + who wish to hinder and frustrate the movement with invaluable information about how + practices are organised. Franks (1992) warns that ‘the social sciences are the third + section of the intelligence gathering services. […] The state's liberal surveillance wing, + sociology, informs on what working class people are thinking and doing.’ He goes on to + say that sociologists aim to show ‘when working class people's actions and attitudes are + showing signs of becoming a threat to the stability of [the ruling] class’s dominant + position.’ This is a rather dramatic and perhaps unfair characterisation, but in general + concerns related to research as surveillance are warranted. There is a serious risk + + [...] + + associated with anarchist research that detailed information about successful anarchist + organising would be at the same time a guide to countering such organising. This is + perhaps especially true in the case of the research carried out here as this could provide + detailed information on the organisational dynamics of radical left groups and their + communication practices, and would allow security services to disrupt organisation and + communications at key points. In writing this thesis, care has therefore been taken to + reduce the risk of it being useful to those wishing to disrupt the movement. I have + allowed activists to review the transcripts of their interviews and highlight any details + that they would prefer to not be included or that they would prefer not attributed to + them. + This anarchist, prefigurative research ethics has much in common with ethics of care in + + [...] + + levels of an organisation is through the notions of tactics and strategy. Beer does just + this when he suggests that Systems One and Two are involved in tactics while System + Three is involved in strategy (ibid., p. 360; see also, e.g. Pickering, 2010, p. 245). This + is, I would argue, misleading as for Beer Systems Three and Four operate along similar + lines but with System Three focused on the internal environment and what happens at + Systems One and Two while System Four is focused on the external environment and + the potential future of the organisation. I want to think, therefore, of Systems Three and + + [...] + + important tactically to what radical left groups and activists do. In a social centre I used + to frequent there was a small model of a kitchen sink with written on it: ‘First the + washing up, then the revolution’. 41 The tactical repertoire of radical left groups includes + all this and more. + How does this distinction between tactics and strategy operate in anarchist organisation, + + [...] + + As an extension of the tactics-strategy dichotomy presented above, this suggests the role + of a third element of the politics of radical left groups and movements, what I want here + to refer to as ‘grand strategy’. The term ‘grand strategy’ was coined by American + military theorist John Boyd during the Cold War. 45 Boyd defines grand strategy as + pursuing ‘the national goal’ and amplifying ‘our spirit and strength (while undermining + and isolating our adversaries)’ (2005, slide 140). The notion of a ‘national goal’ is of + course very specific to a state-centred geo-political project such as a war and is certainly + at extreme odds with anarchism’s anti-militarism and anti-nationalism. Indeed, even the + idea of competition contained in Boyd’s definition of grand strategy is antithetical to the + relationships of mutual aid and cooperation. While ideas such as these are common in + some business and management accounts of strategy (see, e.g. Carter, Clegg and + + [...] + + Hopefully, I have shown that the answer to both of these has to be negative. For Beer, + organisational cybernetics is about defining the necessary and sufficient conditions, + based on the need to handle complexity, for viable organisation. This does not need to + result in a centralised, bureaucratic and authoritarian structure but can be grounded in + one that relies on autonomy. By formulating an anarchist cybernetics, I want to show + that while Beer maintains the basic structure of capitalist enterprise, with a middle + management layer and a senior executive level at the top, these are not necessary for + viability. This is the core difference between Beer’s cybernetics and the anarchist + cybernetics I am arguing for here. To give Beer the credit he is due, his account of how + organisations should determine goals does touch on non-hierarchical processes, as + Pickering argues (2010: 272). Anarchist cybernetics shows how tactics, strategy and diff --git a/books/sociology/counterrevolution.md b/books/sociology/counterrevolution.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..86934fa --- /dev/null +++ b/books/sociology/counterrevolution.md @@ -0,0 +1,1875 @@ +[[!meta title="The Counterrevolution"]] + +* [The Counterrevolution](http://bernardharcourt.com/the-counterrevolution/). +* By Bernard E. Harcourt. + +## Index + +[[!toc startlevel=2 levels=4]] + +## Genealogy + +### Mass-scale warfare + +* MAD +* Massive retaliation +* Game theory +* Systems analisys +* Nuclear war + +### Counterinsurgency + +* Modern warfare +* Unconventional, counter-guerrila +* Special Ops +* Surgical operations + +### Mao's “Eight Points of Attention” plus two principles + +1. Talk to people politely. +2. Observe fair dealing in all business transactions. +3. Return everything borrowed from the people. +4. Pay for anything damaged. +5. Do not beat or scold the people. +6. Do not damage crops. +7. Do not molest women. +8. Do not ill-treat prisoners-of-war. + + Two other principles were central to Mao’s revolutionary doctrine: first, the + importance of having a unified political and military power structure that + consolidated, in the same hands, political and military considerations; and + second, the importance of psychological warfare. More specifically, as Paret + explained, “proper psychological measures could create and maintain ideological + cohesion among fighters and their civilian supporters.” 7 + +### Paret's (1960) tasks of “counterguerrilla action” + +1. The military defeat of the guerrilla forces. +2. The separation of the guerrilla from the population. +3. The reestablishment of governmental authority and the development of a viable social order. + +### Petraeus: 3 key pillars + +1. "The first is that the most important struggle is over the population." + +2. "Allegiance of the masses can only be secured + by separating the small revolutionary minority from the passive majority, and by + isolating, containing, and ultimately eliminating the active minority. In his + accompanying guidelines," + +3. "Success turns on collecting information on + everyone in the population. Total information is essential to properly distinguish + friend from foe and then extract the revolutionary minority. It is intelligence— + total information awareness—that renders the counterinsurgency possible." + +## Excerpts + +### Torture + + In Modern Warfare, Trinquier quietly but resolutely condoned torture. The + interrogations and related tasks were considered police work, as opposed to + military operations, but they had the exact same mission: the complete + destruction of the insurgent group. Discussing the typical interrogation of a + detainee, captured and suspected of belonging to a terrorist organization, + Trinquier wrote: “No lawyer is present for such an interrogation. If the prisoner + gives the information requested, the examination is quickly terminated; if not, + specialists must force his secret from him. Then, as a soldier, he must face the + suffering, and perhaps the death, he has heretofore managed to avoid.” Trinquier + described specialists forcing secrets out of suspects using scientific methods that + did not injure the “integrity of individuals,” but it was clear what those + “scientific” methods entailed. 4 As the war correspondent Bernard Fall suggests, + the political situation in Algeria offered Trinquier the opportunity to develop “a + Cartesian rationale” to justify the use of torture in modern warfare. 5 + Similarly minded commanders championed the use of torture, indefinite + detention, and summary executions. They made no bones about it. + + [...] + + In his autobiographical account published in 2001, Services Spéciaux. Algérie + 1955–1957, General Paul Aussaresses admits to the brutal methods that were the + cornerstone of his military strategy. 6 He makes clear that his approach to + counterinsurgency rested on a three-pronged strategy, which included first, + intelligence work; second, torture; and third, summary executions. The + intelligence function was primordial because the insurgents’ strategy in Algeria + was to infiltrate and integrate the population, to blend in perfectly, and then + gradually to involve the population in the struggle. To combat this insurgent + strategy required intelligence—the only way to sort the dangerous + revolutionaries from the passive masses—and then, violent repression. “The first + step was to dispatch the clean-up teams, of which I was a part,” Aussaresses + writes. “Rebel leaders had to be identified, neutralized, and eliminated discreetly. + By seeking information on FLN leaders I would automatically be able to capture + the rebels and make them talk.” 7 + The rebels were made to talk by means of torture. Aussaresses firmly + believed that torture was the best way to extract information. It also served to + terrorize the radical minority and, in the process, to reduce it. The practice of + torture was “widely used in Algeria,” Aussaresses acknowledges. Not on every + prisoner, though; many spoke freely. “It was only when a prisoner refused to talk + or denied the obvious that torture was used.” 8 + Aussaresses claims he was introduced to torture in Algeria by the policemen + there, who used it regularly. But it quickly became routine to him. “Without any + hesitation,” he writes, “the policemen showed me the technique used for + ‘extreme’ interrogations: first, a beating, which in most cases was enough; then + other means, such as electric shocks, known as the famous ‘gégène’; and finally + water.” Aussaresses explains: “Torture by electric shock was made possible by + generators used to power field radio transmitters, which were extremely + common in Algeria. Electrodes were attached to the prisoner’s ears or testicles, + then electric charges of varying intensity were turned on. This was apparently a + well-known procedure and I assumed that the policemen at Philippeville [in + Algeria] had not invented it.” 9 (Similar methods had, in fact, been used earlier in + Indochina.) + + Aussaresses could not have been more clear: + + The methods I used were always the same: beatings, electric shocks, and, in particular, water + torture, which was the most dangerous technique for the prisoner. It never lasted for more than one + hour and the suspects would speak in the hope of saving their own lives. They would therefore + either talk quickly or never. + + The French historian Benjamin Stora confirms the generalized use of torture. + He reports that in the Battle of Algiers, under the commanding officer, General + Jacques Massu, the paratroopers conducted massive arrests and “practiced + torture” using “electrodes […] dunking in bathtubs, beatings.” General Massu + himself would later acknowledge the use of torture. In a rebuttal he wrote in + 1971 to the film The Battle of Algiers, Massu described torture as “a cruel + necessity.” 10 According to Aussaresses, torture was condoned at the highest + levels of the French government. “Regarding the use of torture,” Aussaresses + + [...] + + For Aussaresses, as for Roger Trinquier, torture and disappearances were + simply an inevitable byproduct of an insurgency—inevitable on both sides of the + struggle. Because terrorism was inscribed in revolutionary strategy, it had to be + used in its repression as well. In a fascinating televised debate in 1970 with the + FLN leader and producer of The Battle of Algiers, Saadi Yacef, Trinquier + confidently asserted that torture was simply a necessary and inevitable part of + modern warfare. Torture will take place. Insurgents know it. In fact, they + anticipate it. The passage is striking: + + I have to tell you. Whether you’re for or against torture, it makes no difference. Torture is a + weapon that will be used in every insurgent war. One has to know that… One has to know that in + an insurgency, you are going to be tortured. + And you have to mount a subversive organization in light of that and in function of torture. It is + not a question of being for or against torture. You have to know that all arrested prisoners in an + insurgency will speak—unless they commit suicide. Their confession will always be obtained. So a + subversive organization must be mounted in function of that, so that a prisoner who speaks does + not give away the whole organization.16 + + “Torture?” asks the lieutenant aide de camp in Henri Alleg’s 1958 exposé + The Question. “You don’t make war with choirboys.” 18 Alleg, a French + journalist and director of the Alger républicain newspaper, was himself detained + and tortured by French paratroopers in Algiers. His book describes the + experience in detail, and in his account, torture was the inevitable product of + colonization and the anticolonial struggle. As Jean-Paul Sartre writes in his + + [...] + + In an arresting part of The Battle of Algiers it becomes clear that many of the + French officers who tortured suspected FLN members had themselves, as + members of the French Resistance, been victims of torture at the hands of the + Gestapo. It is a shocking moment. We know, of course, that abuse often begets + abuse; but nevertheless, one would have hoped that a victim of torture would + recoil from administering it to others. Instead, as Trinquier suggests, torture + became normalized in Algeria. This is, as Sartre describes it, the “terrible truth”: + “If fifteen years are enough to transform victims into executioners, then this + behavior is not more than a matter of opportunity and occasion. Anybody, at any + time, may equally find himself victim or executioner.” 20 + +### Misc + + The central tenet of counterinsurgency theory is that populations—originally + colonial populations, but now all populations, including our own—are made up + of a small active minority of insurgents, a small group of those opposed to the + insurgency, and a large passive majority that can be swayed one way or the other. + The principal objective of counterinsurgency is to gain the allegiance of that + passive majority. And its defining feature is that counterinsurgency is not just a + military strategy, but more importantly a political technique. Warfare, it turns + out, is political. + + On the basis of these tenets, counterinsurgency theorists developed and + refined over several decades three core strategies. First, obtain total information: + every communication, all personal data, all metadata of everyone in the + population must be collected and analyzed. Not just the active minority, but + everyone in the population. Total information awareness is necessary to + distinguish between friend and foe, and then to cull the dangerous minority from + the docile majority. Second, eradicate the active minority: once the dangerous + minority has been identified, it must be separated from the general population + + [...] + + and eliminated by any means possible—it must be isolated, contained, and + ultimately eradicated. Third, gain the allegiance of the general population: + everything must be done to win the hearts and minds of the passive majority. It is + their allegiance and loyalty, and passivity in the end, that matter most. + Counterinsurgency warfare has become our new governing paradigm in the + + [...] + + imagination. It drives our foreign affairs and now our domestic policy as well. + But it was not always that way. For most of the twentieth century, we + governed ourselves differently in the United States: our political imagination + was dominated by the massive battlefields of the Marne, of Verdun, by the + Blitzkrieg and the fire-bombing of Dresden—and by the use of the atomic bomb. + + [...] + + warfare. + Yet the transition from large-scale battlefield warfare to anticolonial struggles + and the Cold War in the 1950s, and to the war against terrorism since 9/11, has + brought about a historic transformation in our political imagination and in the + way that we govern ourselves. In contrast to the earlier sweeping military + paradigm, we now engage in surgical microstrategies of counterinsurgency + abroad and at home. This style of warfare—the very opposite of large-scale + battlefield wars like World War I or II—involves total surveillance, surgical + operations, targeted strikes to eliminate small enclaves, psychological tactics, + and political techniques to gain the trust of the people. The primary target is no + longer a regular army, so much as it is the entire population. It involves a new + + [...] + + The result is radical. We are now witnessing the triumph of a counterinsurgency + model of government on American soil in the absence of an insurgency, or + uprising, or revolution. The perfected logic of counterinsurgency now applies + regardless of whether there is a domestic insurrection. We now face a + counterinsurgency without insurgency. A counterrevolution without revolution. + The pure form of counterrevolution, without a revolution, as a simple modality + of governing at home—what could be called “The Counterrevolution.” + Counterinsurgency practices were already being deployed domestically in the + + [...] + + new internal enemies. It is vital that we come to grips with this new mode of + governing and recognize its unique dangers, that we see the increasingly + widespread domestication of counterinsurgency strategies and the new + technologies of digital surveillance, drones, and hypermilitarized police for what + they are: a counterrevolution without a revolution. We are facing something + radical, new, and dangerous. It has been long in the making, historically. It is + time to identify and expose it. + + + [...] + + so on. I argued that we have become an “expository society” where we + increasingly exhibit ourselves online, and in the process, freely give away our + most personal and private data. No longer an Orwellian or a panoptic society + characterized by a powerful central government forcibly surveilling its citizens + from on high, ours is fueled by our own pleasures, proclivities, joys, and + narcissism. And even when we try to resist these temptations, we have + practically no choice but to use the Internet and shed our digital traces. + I had not fully grasped, though, the relation of our new expository society to + + [...] + + strikes, indefinite detention, or our new hypermilitarized police force at home. + But as the fog lifts from 9/11, the full picture becomes clear. The expository + society is merely the first prong of The Counterrevolution. And only by tying + together our digital exposure with our new mode of counterinsurgency + governance can we begin to grasp the whole architecture of our contemporary + political condition. And only by grasping the full implications of this new mode + of governing—The Counterrevolution—will we be able to effectively resist it + and overcome. + + [...] + + approach targeting small revolutionary insurgencies and what were mostly + Communist uprisings. Variously called “unconventional,” “antiguerrilla” or + “counterguerrilla,” “irregular,” “sublimited,” “counterrevolutionary,” or simply + “modern” warfare, this burgeoning domain of military strategy flourished during + France’s wars in Indochina and Algeria, Britain’s wars in Malaya and Palestine, + and America’s war in Vietnam. It too was nourished by the RAND Corporation, + which was one of the first to see the potential of what the French commander + Roger Trinquier called “modern warfare” or the “French view of + counterinsurgency.” It offered, in the words of one of its leading students, the + historian Peter Paret, a vital counterweight “at the opposite end of the spectrum + from rockets and the hydrogen bomb.” 2 + Like nuclear-weapon strategy, the counterinsurgency model grew out of a + + + [...] + + from rockets and the hydrogen bomb.” 2 + Like nuclear-weapon strategy, the counterinsurgency model grew out of a + combination of strategic game theory and systems theorizing; but unlike nuclear + strategy, which was primarily a response to the Soviet Union, it developed more + in response to another formidable game theorist, Mao Zedong. The formative + moment for counterinsurgency theory was not the nuclear confrontation that + characterized the Cuban Missile Crisis, but the earlier Chinese Civil War that led + to Mao’s victory in 1949—essentially, when Mao turned guerrilla tactics into a + revolutionary war that overthrew a political regime. The central methods and + practices of counterinsurgency warfare were honed in response to Mao’s + strategies and the ensuing anticolonial struggles in Southeast Asia, the Middle + East, and North Africa that imitated Mao’s approach. 3 Those struggles for + independence were the breeding soil for the development and perfection of + unconventional warfare. + By the turn of the twentieth century, when President George W. Bush would + + [...] + + T HE COUNTERINSURGENCY MODEL CAN BE TRACED BACK through several different + genealogies. One leads to British colonial rule in India and Southeast Asia, to the + insurgencies there, and to the eventual British redeployment and modernization + of counterinsurgency strategies in Northern Ireland and Britain at the height of + the Irish Republican Army’s independence struggles. This first genealogy draws + heavily on the writings of the British counterinsurgency theorist Sir Robert + Thompson, the chief architect of Great Britain’s antiguerrilla strategies in + Malaya from 1948 to 1959. Another genealogy traces back to the American + colonial experience in the Philippines at the beginning of the twentieth century. + Others lead back to Trotsky and Lenin in Russia, to Lawrence of Arabia during + the Arab Revolt, or even to the Spanish uprising against Napoleon—all + mentioned, at least briefly, in General Petraeus’s counterinsurgency field + manual. Alternative genealogies reach back to the political theories of + Montesquieu or John Stuart Mill, while some go even further to antiquity and to + the works of Polybius, Herodotus, and Tacitus. 1 + But the most direct antecedent of counterinsurgency warfare as embraced by + the United States after 9/11 was the French military response in the late 1950s + and 1960s to the anticolonial wars in Indochina and Algeria. This genealogy + passes through three important figures—the historian Peter Paret and the French + commanders David Galula and Roger Trinquier—and, through them, it traces + back to Mao Zedong. It is Mao’s idea of the political nature of + counterinsurgency that would prove so influential in the United States. Mao + politicized warfare in a manner that would come back to haunt us today. The + French connection also laid the seeds of a tension between brutality and legality + that would plague counterinsurgency practices to the present—at least, until the + United States discovered, or rediscovered, a way to resolve the tension by + legalizing the brutality. + + + [...] + + A founding principle of revolutionary insurgency—what Paret referred to as + “the principal lesson” that Mao taught—was that “an inferior force could + outpoint a modern army so long as it succeeded in gaining at least the tacit + support of the population in the contested area.” 4 The core idea was that the + military battle was less decisive than the political struggle over the loyalty and + allegiance of the masses: the war is fought over the population or, in Mao’s + words, “The army cannot exist without the people.” 5 + As a result of this interdependence, the insurgents had to treat the general + population well to gain its support. On this basis Mao formulated early on, in + 1928, his “Eight Points of Attention” for army personnel: + + 1. Talk to people politely. + 2. Observe fair dealing in all business transactions. + 3. Return everything borrowed from the people. + 4. Pay for anything damaged. + 5. Do not beat or scold the people. + 6. Do not damage crops. + 7. Do not molest women. + 8. Do not ill-treat prisoners-of-war. 6 + + Two other principles were central to Mao’s revolutionary doctrine: first, the + importance of having a unified political and military power structure that + consolidated, in the same hands, political and military considerations; and + second, the importance of psychological warfare. More specifically, as Paret + explained, “proper psychological measures could create and maintain ideological + cohesion among fighters and their civilian supporters.” 7 + Revolutionary warfare, in Paret’s view, boiled down to a simple equation: + + [...] + + the population.” 10 + Of course, neither Paret nor other strategists were so naïve as to think that + Mao invented guerrilla warfare. Paret spent much of his research tracing the + antecedents and earlier experiments with insurgent and counterinsurgency + warfare. “Civilians taking up arms and fighting as irregulars are as old as war,” + Paret emphasized. Caesar had to deal with them in Gaul and Germania, the + British in the American colonies or in South Africa with the Boers, Napoleon in + Spain, and on and on. In fact, as Paret stressed, the very term “guerrilla” + originated in the Spanish peasant resistance to Napoleon after the Spanish + monarchy had fallen between 1808 and 1813. Paret developed case studies of the + + [...] + + But for purposes of describing the “guerre révolutionnaire” of the 1960s, the + most pertinent and timely objects of study were Mao Zedong and the Chinese + revolution. And on the basis of that particular conception of revolutionary war, + Paret set forth a model of counterrevolutionary warfare. Drawing principally on + French military practitioners and theorists, Paret delineated a three-pronged + strategy focused on a mixture of intelligence gathering, psychological warfare on + both the population and the subversives, and severe treatment of the rebels. In + Guerrillas in the 1960’s, Paret reduced the tasks of “counterguerrilla action” to + the following: + 1. The military defeat of the guerrilla forces. + 2. The separation of the guerrilla from the population. + 3. The reestablishment of governmental authority and the development of a + viable social order. 12 + + [...] + + interact.” 13 + So the central task, according to Paret, was to attack the rebel’s popular + support so that he would “lose his hold over the people, and be isolated from + them.” There were different ways to accomplish this, from widely publicized + military defeats and sophisticated psychological warfare to the resettlement of + populations—in addition to other more coercive measures. But one rose above + the others for Paret: to encourage the people to form progovernment militias and + fight against the guerrillas. This approach had the most potential, Paret observes: + “Once a substantial number of members of a community commit violence on + + + [...] + + In sum, the French model of + counterrevolutionary warfare, in Paret’s view, had to be understood as the + inverse of revolutionary warfare. + + + [...] + + The main sources for Paret’s synthesis were the writings and practices of French + commanders on the ground, especially Roger Trinquier and David Galula, + though there were others as well. 15 Trinquier, one of the first French + commanders to theorize modern warfare based on his firsthand experience, had a + + + [...] + + persisting in repeating its efforts.” Trinquier argues that this new form of modern + warfare called for “an interlocking system of actions—political, economic, + psychological, military,” grounded on “Countrywide Intelligence.” As Trinquier + emphasizes, “since modern warfare asserts its presence on the totality of the + population, we have to be everywhere informed.” Informed, in order to know and + target the population and wipe out the insurgency. 17 + The other leading counterinsurgency theorist, also with deep firsthand + + + [...] + + time.’” 19 + From Mao, Galula drew the central lesson that societies were divided into + three groups and that the key to victory was to isolate and eradicate the active + minority in order to gain the allegiance of the masses. Galula emphasizes in + Counterinsurgency Warfare that the central strategy of counterinsurgency theory + “simply expresses the basic tenet of the exercise of political power”: + In any situation, whatever the cause, there will be an active minority for the cause, a neutral + majority, and an active minority against the cause. + + [...] + + time.’” 19 + From Mao, Galula drew the central lesson that societies were divided into + three groups and that the key to victory was to isolate and eradicate the active + minority in order to gain the allegiance of the masses. Galula emphasizes in + Counterinsurgency Warfare that the central strategy of counterinsurgency theory + “simply expresses the basic tenet of the exercise of political power”: + In any situation, whatever the cause, there will be an active minority for the cause, a neutral + majority, and an active minority against the cause. + + The technique of power consists in relying on the favorable minority in order to rally the neutral + majority and to neutralize or eliminate the hostile minority.20 + The battle was over the general population, Galula emphasized in his + Counterinsurgency Warfare, and this tenet represented the key political + dimension of a new warfare strategy. + + [...] + + US general David Petraeus picked up right where David Galula and Peter Paret + left off. Widely recognized as the leading American thinker and practitioner of + counterinsurgency theory—eventually responsible for all coalition troops in Iraq + and the architect of the troop surge of 2007—General Petraeus would refine + + [...] + + On this political foundation, General Petraeus’s manual establishes three key + pillars—what might be called counterinsurgency’s core principles. + The first is that the most important struggle is over the population. In a short + set of guidelines that accompanies his field manual, General Petraeus + emphasizes: “The decisive terrain is the human terrain. The people are the center + + [...] + + The main battle, then, is over the populace. + The second principle is that the allegiance of the masses can only be secured + by separating the small revolutionary minority from the passive majority, and by + isolating, containing, and ultimately eliminating the active minority. In his + accompanying guidelines, General Petraeus emphasizes: “Seek out and eliminate + those who threaten the population. Don’t let them intimidate the innocent. Target + the whole network, not just individuals.” 25 + The third core principle is that success turns on collecting information on + everyone in the population. Total information is essential to properly distinguish + friend from foe and then extract the revolutionary minority. It is intelligence— + total information awareness—that renders the counterinsurgency possible. It is + + [...] + + paraphrasing the French commander, underscores the primacy of political factors + in counterinsurgency. “General Chang Ting-chen of Mao Zedong’s central + committee once stated that revolutionary war was 80 percent political action and + only 20 percent military,” the manual reads. Then it warns: “At the beginning of + a COIN operation, military actions may appear predominant as security forces + conduct operations to secure the populace and kill or capture insurgents; + however, political objectives must guide the military’s approach.” 27 + Chapter Two opens with an epigraph from David Galula’s book: “Essential + + [...] + + General David Petraeus learned, but more importantly popularized, Mao + Zedong’s central lesson: counterinsurgency warfare is political. It is a strategy + for winning over the people. It is a strategy for governing. And it is quite telling + that a work so indebted to Mao and midcentury French colonial thinkers would + become so influential post-9/11. Petraeus’s manual contained a roadmap for a + new paradigm of governing. As the fog lifts from 9/11, it is becoming + increasingly clear what lasting impact Mao had on our government of self and + others today. + + [...] + + D eveloped by military commanders and strategists over decades of anticolonial + wars, counterinsurgency warfare was refined, deployed, and tested in the years + following 9/11. Since then, the modern warfare paradigm has been distilled into + a concise three-pronged strategy: + 1. Bulk-collect all intelligence about everyone in the population—every + piece of data and metadata available. (total information awareness) + + [...] + + 2. Identify and eradicate the revolutionary minority. Total information about + everyone makes it possible to discriminate between friend and foe. Once + suspicion attaches, individuals must be treated severely to extract all + possible information, with enhanced interrogation techniques if + necessary; and if they are revealed to belong to the active minority, they + must be disposed of through detention, rendition, deportation, or drone + strike—in other words, targeted assassination. Unlike conventional + soldiers from the past, these insurgents are dangerous because of their + + [...] + + 3. Pacify the masses. The population must be distracted, entertained, + satisfied, occupied, and most importantly, neutralized, or deradicalized if + necessary, in order to ensure that the vast preponderance of ordinary + individuals remain just that—ordinary. This third prong reflects the + “population-centric” dimension of counterinsurgency theory. Remember, + in this new way of seeing, the population is the battlefield. Its hearts and + minds must be assured. In the digital age, this can be achieved, first, by + targeting enhanced content (such as sermons by moderate imams) to + deradicalize susceptible persons—in other words, by deploying new + digital techniques of psychological warfare and propaganda. Second, by + providing just the bare minimum in terms of welfare and humanitarian + assistance—like rebuilding schools, distributing some cash, and + bolstering certain government institutions. As General Petraeus’s field + +### Torture and surveilance + + T HE ATTACK ON THE W ORLD T RADE C ENTER SHOWED THE weakness of American + intelligence gathering. Top secret information obtained by one agency was + silo’ed from others, making it impossible to aggregate intelligence and obtain a + full picture of the security threats. The CIA knew that two of the 9/11 hijackers + were on American soil in San Diego, but didn’t share the information with the + FBI, who were actively trying to track them down. 1 September 11 was a + crippling intelligence failure, and in the immediacy of that failure many in + President George W. Bush’s administration felt the need to do something radical. + Greater sharing of intelligence, naturally. But much more as well. Two main + solutions were devised, or revived: total surveillance and tortured interrogations. + They represent the first prong of the counterinsurgency approach. + In effect, 9/11 set the stage both for total NSA surveillance and torture as + forms of total information awareness. The former functioned at the most virtual + or ethereal, or “digital” level, by creating the material for data-mining and + analysis. The latter operated at the most bodily or physical, or “analog” level, + obtaining information directly from suspects and detainees in Iraq, Pakistan, + Afghanistan, and elsewhere. But both satisfied the same goal: total information + awareness, the first tactic of counterinsurgency warfare. + +Census + + What is clear, though—as I document in Exposed—is that the myriad NSA, + FBI, CIA, and allied intelligence agencies produce total information, the first + and most important prong of the counterinsurgency paradigm. Most important, + because both of the other prongs depend on it. As the RAND Corporation notes + in its lengthy 519-page report on the current state of counterinsurgency theory + and practice, “Effective governance depends on knowing the population, + demographically and individually.” The RAND report reminds us that this + insight is not novel or new. The report then returns, pointedly for us, to Algeria + and the French commander, David Galula: “Galula, in Counterinsurgency + Warfare, argued that ‘control of the population begins with a thorough census. + Every inhabitant must be registered and given a foolproof identity card.’” 5 + + [...] + + Today, that identity card is an IP address, a mobile phone, a digital device, facial + recognition, and all our digital stamps. These new digital technologies have + made everyone virtually transparent. And with our new ethos of selfies, tweets, + Facebook, and Internet surfing, everyone is now exposed. + +Enhanced interrogation: + + Second, tortured interrogation. The dual personality of counterinsurgency + warfare is nowhere more evident than in the intensive use of torture for + information gathering by the United States immediately after 9/11. Fulfilling the + first task of counterinsurgency theory—total surveillance—this practice married + the most extreme form of brutality associated with modern warfare to the + formality of legal process and the rule of law. The combination of inhumanity + and legality was spectacular. + In the days following 9/11, many in the Bush administration felt there was + only one immediate way to address the information shortfall, namely, to engage + in “enhanced interrogation” of captured suspected terrorists—another + euphemism for torture. Of course, torture of captured suspects would not fix the + problem of silo’ed information, but they thought it would at least provide + immediate information of any pending attacks. One could say that the United + States turned to torture because many in the administration believed the country + did not have adequate intelligence capabilities, lacking the spy network or even + the language abilities to infiltrate and conduct regular espionage on + organizations like Al Qaeda. 6 + The tortured interrogations combined the extremes of brutality with the + +Getting information or "truth" was not the only, perhaps not the main point +of torture sessions, and maybe not as well the main point for mass surveillance: + + Even the more ordinary instances of “enhanced interrogation” were + harrowing—and so often administered, according to the Senate report, after the + interrogators believed there was no more information to be had, sometimes even + before the detainee had the opportunity to speak. + +Torture template: + + Ramzi bin al-Shibh was subjected to this type of treatment immediately upon + arrival in detention, even before being interrogated or given an opportunity to + cooperate—in what would become a “template” for other detainees. Bin al- + Shibh was subjected first to “sensory dislocation” including “shaving bin al- + Shibh’s head and face, exposing him to loud noise in a white room with white + lights, keeping him ‘unclothed and subjected to uncomfortably cool + temperatures,’ and shackling him ‘hand and foot with arms outstretched over his + head (with his feet firmly on the floor and not allowed to support his weight with + his arms).’” Following that, the interrogation would include “attention grasp, + walling, the facial hold, the facial slap… the abdominal slap, cramped + confinement, wall standing, stress positions, sleep deprivation beyond 72 hours, + and the waterboard, as appropriate to [bin al-Shibh’s] level of resistance.” 8 This + template would be used on others—and served as a warning to all. + The more extreme forms of torture were also accompanied by the promise of + +"Bigeard shrimp": + + The more extreme forms of torture were also accompanied by the promise of + life-long solitary confinement or, in the case of death, cremation. + Counterinsurgency torture in the past had often been linked to summary + disappearances and executions. Under the Bush administration, it was tied to + what one might call virtual disappearances. + During the Algerian war, as noted already, the widespread use of brutal + interrogation techniques meant that those who had been victimized—both the + guilty and innocent—became dangerous in the eyes of the French military + leadership. FLN members needed to be silenced, forever; but so did others who + might be radicalized by the waterboarding or gégène. In Algeria, a simple + solution was devised: the tortured would be thrown out from helicopters into the + Mediterranean. They became les crevettes de Bigeard, after the notorious French + general in Algeria, Marcel Bigeard: “Bigeard’s shrimp,” dumped into the sea, + their feet in poured concrete—a technique the French military had apparently + experimented with earlier in Indochina. + + [...] + + The CIA would devise a different solution in 2002: either torture the suspect + accidentally to death and then cremate his body to avoid detection, or torture the + suspect to the extreme and then ensure that he would never again talk to another + human being. Abu Zubaydah received the latter treatment. Zubaydah had first + been seized and interrogated at length by the FBI, had provided useful + information, and was placed in isolation for forty-seven days, the FBI believing + that he had no more valuable information. Then the CIA took over, believing he + might still be a source. 10 The CIA turned to its more extreme forms of torture— + utilizing all ten of its most brutal techniques—but, as a CIA cable from the + interrogation team, dated July 15, 2002, records, they realized beforehand that it + would either have to cover up the torture if death ensued or ensure that + Zubaydah would never talk to another human being again in his lifetime. + According to the Senate report, “the cable stated that if Abu Zubaydah were to + die during the interrogation, he would be cremated. The interrogation team + closed the cable by stating: ‘regardless which [disposition] option we follow + however, and especially in light of the planned psychological pressure + techniques to be implemented, we need to get reasonable assurances that [Abu + Zubaydah] will remain in isolation and incommunicado for the remainder of his + life.’” 11 In response to this request for assurance, a cable from the CIA station + gave the interrogation team those assurances, noting that “it was correct in its + ‘understanding that the interrogation process takes precedence over preventative + medical procedures,’” and then adding in the cable: + +KUBARK + + routines were approved at the uppermost level of the US government, by the + president of the United States and his closest advisers. These practices were put + in place, designed carefully and legally—very legalistically, in fact—to be used + on suspected enemies. They were not an aberration. There are, to be sure, long + histories written of rogue intelligence services using unauthorized techniques; + there is a lengthy record, as well, of CIA ingenuity and creativity in this domain, + including, among other examples, the 1963 KUBARK Counterintelligence + Interrogation manual. 13 But after 9/11, the blueprint was drawn at the White + House and the Pentagon, and it became official US policy—deliberate, debated, + well-thought-out, and adopted as legal measures. + + + [...] + + The Janus face of torture was its formal legality amidst its shocking brutality. + Many of the country’s best lawyers and legal scholars, professors at top-ranked + law schools, top government attorneys, and later federal judges would pore over + statutes and case law to find legal maneuvers to permit torture. The felt need to + legitimate and legalize the brutality—and of course, to protect the officials and + operatives from later litigation—was remarkable. + The documents known collectively as the “torture memos” fell into two + categories: first, those legal memos regarding whether the Guantánamo detainees + were entitled to POW status under the Geneva Conventions (GPW), written + between September 25, 2001, and August 1, 2002; and second, starting in + August 2002, the legal memos regarding whether the “enhanced interrogation + techniques” envisaged by the CIA amounted to torture prohibited under + international law. + +How torture was defined to allow torture to happen: + + As Jay Bybee, then at the Office of Legal Counsel and now a + federal judge, wrote in his August 1, 2002, memo: + + We conclude that torture as defined in and proscribed by [18 US Code] Sections 2340-2340A, + covers only extreme acts. Severe pain is generally of the kind difficult for the victim to endure. + Where the pain is physical, it must be of an intensity akin to that which accompanies serious + physical injury such as death or organ failure. Severe mental pain requires suffering not just at the + moment of infliction but also requires lasting psychological harm, such as seen in mental disorders + like post-traumatic stress disorder. […] Because the acts inflicting torture are extreme, there is + significant range of acts that though they might constitute cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment + or punishment fail to rise to the level of torture.22 + + This definition of torture was so demanding that it excluded the brutal + practices that the United States was using. It set the federal legal standard, + essentially, at death or organ failure. + + [...] + + them 26 —and then, effectively, judicial opinions. The executive branch became a + minijudiciary, with no effective oversight or judicial review. And in the end, it + worked. The men who wrote these memos have never been prosecuted nor + seriously taken to task, as a legal matter, for their actions. The American people + allowed a quasi-judiciary to function autonomously, during and after. These self- + appointed judges wrote the legal briefs, rendered judgment, and wrote the + judicial opinions that legitimized these brutal counterinsurgency practices. In the + process, they rendered the counterinsurgency fully legal. They inscribed torture + within the fabric of law. + + One could go further. The torture memos accomplished a new resolution of + the tension between brutality and legality, one that we had not witnessed + previously in history. It was an audacious quasi-judicial legality that had rarely + been seen before. And by legalizing torture in that way, the Bush administration + provided a legal infrastructure for counterinsurgency-as-governance more + broadly. + + [...] + + And through this process of legalization, these broader torturous practices + spilled over into the second prong of counterinsurgency: the eradication of an + active minority. Torture began to function as a way to isolate, punish, and + eliminate those suspected of being insurgents. + +Bare existence, indefinite detention, incommunication: + + The indefinite detention and brutal ordinary measures served as a way to + eliminate these men—captured in the field or traded for reward monies, almost + like slaves from yonder. The incommunicado confinement itself satisfied the + second prong of counterinsurgency theory. 5 But somehow it also reached further + than mere detention, approximating a form of disappearance or virtual death. + The conditions these men found themselves in were so extreme, it is almost as if + they were as good as dead. + Reading Slahi’s numbing descriptions, one cannot help but agree with the + philosopher Giorgio Agamben that these men at Guantánamo were, in his words, + no more than “bare life.” 6 Agamben’s concept of bare existence captures well + the dimensions of dehumanization and degradation that characterized their lives: + the camp inmates were reduced to nothing more than bare animal existence. + They were no longer human, but things that lived. The indefinite detention and + torture at Guantánamo achieved an utter denial of their humanity. + Every aspect of their treatment at black sites and detention facilities + +### Drone strikes + + This debate between more population-centric proponents and more enemy- + centric advocates of counterinsurgency should sound familiar. It replays the + controversy over the use of torture or other contested methods within the + counterinsurgency paradigm. It replicates the strategic debates between the + ruthless and the more decent. It rehearses the tensions between Roger Trinquier + and David Galula. + + Yet just as torture is central to certain versions of modern warfare, the drone + strike too is just as important to certain variations of the counterinsurgency + approach. Drone strikes, in effect, can serve practically all the functions of the + second prong of counterinsurgency warfare. Drone strikes eliminate the + identified active minority. They instill terror among everyone living near the + active minority, dissuading them and anyone else who might contemplate joining + the revolutionaries. They project power and infinite capability. They show who + has technological superiority. As one Air Force officer says, “The real advantage + of unmanned aerial systems is that they allow you to project power without + projecting vulnerability.” 18 By terrifying and projecting power, drones dissuade + the population from joining the insurgents. + + [...] + + Covered extensively by the news media, + drone attacks are popularly believed to have caused even more civilian casualties + than is actually the case. The persistence of these attacks on Pakistani territory + offends people’s deepest sensibilities, alienates them from their government, and + contributes to Pakistan’s instability.” 19 + In July 2016, the Obama administration released a report estimating the + + + [...] + + Those in the affected countries typically receive far higher casualty reports. + The Pakistan press, for instance, reported that there are about 50 civilians killed + for every militant assassinated, resulting in a hit rate of about 2 percent. As + Kilcullen and Exum argue, regardless of the exact number, “every one of these + dead noncombatants represents an alienated family, a new desire for revenge, + and more recruits for a militant movement that has grown exponentially even as + drone strikes have increased.” 25 + To those living in Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen, and + neighboring countries, the Predator drones are terrifying. But again—and this is + precisely the central tension at the heart of counterinsurgency theory—the terror + may be a productive tool for modern warfare. It may dissuade people from + joining the active minority. It may convince some insurgents to abandon their + efforts. Terror, as we have seen, is by no means antithetical to the + counterinsurgency paradigm. Some would argue it is a necessary means. + Drones are by no means a flawless weapons system even for their proponents. + + [...] + + Regarding the first question, a drone should be understood as a blended + weapons system, one that ultimately functions at several levels. It shares + characteristics of the German V-2 missile, to be sure, but also the French + guillotine and American lethal injection. It combines safety for the attacker, with + relatively precise but rapid death, and a certain anesthetizing effect—as well as, + of course, utter terror. For the country administering the drone attack, it is + perfectly secure. There is no risk of domestic casualties. In its rapid and + apparently surgical death, it can be portrayed, like the guillotine, as almost + humane. And drones have had a numbing effect on popular opinion precisely + because of their purported precision and hygiene—like lethal injection has done, + for the most part, in the death-penalty context. Plus, drones are practically + invisible and out of sight—again, for the country using them—though, again, + terrifying for the targeted communities. + + [...] + + Chamayou’s second question is, perhaps, the most important. This new + weapons system has changed the US government’s relationship to its own + citizens. There is no better evidence of this than the deliberate, targeted drone + killing of US and allied nation citizens abroad—as we will see. 32 + + [...] + + An analogy from the death penalty may be helpful. There too, the means + employed affect the ethical dimensions of the practice itself. The gas chamber + and the electric chair—both used in the United States even after the Holocaust— + became fraught with meaning. Their symbolism soured public opinion on the + death penalty. By contrast, the clinical or medical nature of lethal injection at + first reduced the political controversy surrounding executions. Only over time, + with botched lethal injections and questions surrounding the drug cocktails and + their true effects, have there been more questions raised. But it has taken time for + the negative publicity to catch up with lethal injection. Drones, at this point, + remain far less fraught than conventional targeted assassinations. + +### Winning hearts and minds + + THE THIRD PRONG OF COUNTERINSURGENCY THEORY CONSISTS in winning the + hearts and minds of the general population to stem the flow of new recruits to + the active minority and to seize the upper hand in the struggle. This goal can be + achieved by actively winning the allegiance of the population, or by pacifying an + already passive population, or even simply by distracting the masses. The bar, + ultimately, is low since, on the counterinsurgency view, the people are mostly + passive. As Roger Trinquier noted in 1961, “Experience has demonstrated that it + is by no means necessary to enjoy the sympathy of the majority of the people to + obtain their backing; most are amorphous, indifferent.” Or, as General Petraeus’s + manual states, the vast majority is “neutral” and “passive”; it represents an + “uncommitted middle” with “passive supporters of both sides.” 1 The third prong, + then, is aimed mostly at assuaging, pacifying perhaps, or merely distracting the + indifferent masses. + + [...] the third prong has translated, principally, into three tactics: investments in + infrastructure, new forms of digital propaganda, and generalized terror. [...] + Undergirding them both, though, is the third tactic, the threat of + generalized terror, that serves as a foundational method and looming constant. + + [...] + + In How Everything Became War and the Military Became Everything, Rosa + Brooks writes that since 9/11 we have witnessed the expansion of the military + and its encroachment on civilian affairs. “We’ve seen,” in her words, “the steady + militarization of US foreign policy as our military has been assigned many of the + tasks once given to civilian institutions.” Brooks warns us of a new world where + “the boundaries between war and nonwar, military and nonmilitary have + eroded.” + + [...] + + We are indeed facing, as Brooks powerfully demonstrates, a new world of an + ever-encroaching military. But what this reveals, more than anything, is the rise + of the counterinsurgency paradigm of government. It is the model of + counterinsurgency warfare—of Galula’s early turn to building schools and health + facilities, to focusing on the hearts and minds of the general population—that + has pushed the military into these traditionally civilian domains, including total + surveillance, rule-of-law projects, artificial intelligence, entertainment, etc. In + effect, it is the counterinsurgency paradigm of government that has become + everything, and everything that has become counterinsurgency. The blurring of + boundaries between war and peaceful governance is not merely the contingent + result of 9/11, it is instead the culmination of a long and deliberate process of + modernizing warfare. + +Providing the basic needs: + + Providing basic necessities, labeled “essential services” in the field manual, is + a key counterinsurgency practice. It consists primarily of ensuring that there is + “food, water, clothing, shelter, and medical treatment” for the general + population. General Petraeus’s manual explains the rationale in very simple + terms: “People pursue essential needs until they are met, at any cost and from + any source. People support the source that meets their needs. If it is an insurgent + source, the population is likely to support the insurgency. If the [host nation] + government provides reliable essential services, the population is more likely to + support it. Commanders therefore identify who provides essential services to + each group within the population.” 5 + +That, in most cases, involve funneling american taxpayer's money to enrich corporations +with "insane profit margins" for rebuilding countries along with US guidelines. See +Naomi Klein's Shock Doctrine for more details. + + A second approach to securing the neutrality of the majority is more + psychological. In the early days of modern warfare, examples of this approach + included measures such as the resettlement of populations, in the words of + counterinsurgency experts, “to control them better and to block the insurgents’ + support.” This is what the British did in Malaya, and the French in Algeria. + Other examples included basic propaganda campaigns. 16 + + As time has gone by, new digital technologies have enabled new forms of + psychological counterinsurgency warfare. One of the newest involves digital + propaganda, reflected most recently in the Center for Global Engagement set up + under the Obama administration in early 2016. Created with the objective to + prevent the radicalization of vulnerable youth, the center adopted strategies + pioneered by the giants of Silicon Valley—Google, Amazon, Netflix—and was + originally funded at the level of about $20 million. It targeted susceptible + persons suspected of easier radicalization and sent them enhanced and improved + third-party content in order to try to dissuade them, subliminally, from + radicalizing or joining ISIS. In the words of an investigative journalist, “The + Obama administration is launching a stealth anti-Islamic State messaging + campaign, delivered by proxies and targeted to individual would-be extremists, + the same way Amazon or Google sends you shopping suggestions based on your + online browsing history.” 17 + +Terror e tortura: + + The third set of measures was even more basic: terror. The most formidable way + to win hearts and minds is to terrorize the local population to make sure they do + not sympathize with or aid the active minority. + + [...] + + The brutality of counterinsurgency serves, of course, to gather information + and eradicate the revolutionary minority. But it also aims higher and reaches + further: its ambition, as General Aussaresses recognized well, is to terrorize the + insurgents, to scare them to death, and to frighten the local population in order to + prevent them from joining the insurgent faction. Today, the use of unusually + brutal torture, the targeted drone assassination of high-value suspects, and the + indefinite detention under solitary conditions aim not only to eviscerate the + enemy, but also to warn others, strike fear, and win their submission and + obedience. Drones and indefinite detention crush those they touch, and strike + [...] Terror, in the end, is a key component of the third core strategy of + counterinsurgency. + +Torture and civilization: + + Since antiquity, terror has served to demarcate the civilized from the + barbarian, to distinguish the free citizen from the enslaved. The free male in + ancient Greece had the privilege of swearing an oath to the gods, of testifying on + his word. The slave, by contrast, could only give testimony under torture. + Torture, in this sense, defined freedom and citizenship by demeaning and + marking—by imposing stigmata—on those who could be tortured. It served to + demarcate the weak. It marked the vulnerable. And it also, paradoxically, served + to delineate the “more civilized.” This is perhaps the greatest paradox of the + brutality of counterinsurgency: to be civilized is to torture judiciously. This + paradox was born in antiquity, but it journeys on. + + [...] + + The judicious administration of terror is the hallmark of civilization. To be + civilized is to terrorize properly, judiciously, with restraint, according to the + rules. Only the barbarians tortured savagely, viciously, unrestrainedly. The + civilized, by contrast, knew how and when to tame torture, how to rein it terror, + to apply it with judgment and discretion. Compared to the barbarians—the + beheadings of ISIS is a modern case on point—we are tame and judicious, even + when we torture, not like those barbarians. And since 9/11, the judicious use of + terror has been a key US strategy. In the end, terror functions in myriad ways to + win the hearts and minds of the masses under the counterinsurgency paradigm of + governing. + +Terror in many levels of governing: + + Now, terror is not an unprecedented component of governing, even if its role + in the counterinsurgency model may be uniquely constitutive. It has been with us + since slavery in antiquity, through the many inquisitions, to the internment and + concentration camps of modern history. And there too, in each of its + manifestations, it functioned at multiple levels to bolster different modes of + governing. Looking back through history, terror has done a lot of work. Today as + well. And to see all that terror achieves today—above and beyond the three + prongs of counterinsurgency theory—it is useful to look back through history + and recall its different functions and the work it has done. The reflections today + are stunning. + +Torture and truth: + + The first episode reaches back to antiquity, but represents a recurring theme + throughout history: terror has often served to manufacture its own truth— + especially in terms of its efficacy. “They all talk.” [...] + + [...] + + Trying to convince a suspect that he will talk, telling him that he will—this is, + of course, a psychological technique, but it is more than that. It is also a firm + belief of counterinsurgency theorists outside the interrogation room. Roger + + [...] + + Manufacturing truth: that is, perhaps, the first major function of terror. It is + the power of terror, especially in the face of ordinary men and women, of + humans, all too human. It has been that way since the inquisitions of the Middle + Ages, and before, since antiquity. On this score, little has changed. + In her book on slavery in Greek antiquity, Torture and Truth, Page duBois + argues that the idea of truth dominant today in Western thought is indissolubly + tied to the practice of torture, while torture itself is deeply connected to the will + to discover something that is always beyond our grasp. As a result, society after + society returns to torture, in almost an eternal recurrence, to seek out the truth + that is always beyond our reach. In ancient times, duBois shows, torture + functioned as the metaphorical touchstone of truth and as a means to establish a + social hierarchy. In duBois’s words, “the desire to create an other and the desire + to extract truth are inseparable, in that the other, because she or he is an other, is + constituted as a source of truth.” Truth, in sum, is always “inextricably linked + with the practice of torture.” 4 + + [...] + + Truth, duBois argues, “resides in the slave body.” 5 + + [...] + + Even more, terror produced social difference and hierarchy. The limits on + torture in ancient societies served to define what it meant to be among those who + could be tortured—what it meant to be a slave or to be free. In ancient times, the + testimony of a slave could only be elicited, and only became admissible in + litigation, under torture. Only free male citizens could take an oath or resolve a + controversy by sermon. The rules about who could be tortured in ancient times + did not just regulate the victims of torture, the rules themselves were constitutive + of what it meant to be a slave. The laws demarcated and defined freedom itself + —what it looked like, what it entailed. + Sophocles’s tragedy Oedipus Rex has captured our imagination for centuries + on questions of fate and power. But it is perhaps on the question of terror and + truth that the play turns. At the climax of Sophocles’s tragedy—at the pivotal + moment when truth finally emerges for all to see and to recognize—there is a + scene of terror. The shepherd slave who held the knowledge of Oedipus’s + ancestry is threatened with torture. And that threat of torture alone—at the + culmination of a whole series of unsuccessful inquiries—produces the truth: + torture provokes the shepherd’s confession and that allows Oedipus to recognize + his fate. But more than that, torture reaffirms the social order in Thebes—a + social order where gods rule, oracles tell truth, prophets divine, fateful kings + govern, and slaves serve. It is, ultimately, the right to terrorize that reveals + Oedipus’s power and the shepherd’s place in society. + + [...] + + In a similar way, terror today produces its own truth—about the effectiveness + of torture in eliciting truth, about its effectiveness in subjugating the insurgents, + about the justness of counterinsurgency. + + [...] + + Second, terror—or more specifically the regulatory framework that surrounds + terror—legitimizes the practices of terror itself. This may sound paradoxical or + circular—but it has often been true in history. The structures that frame and + regulate the administration of terrorizing practices have the effect, unexpectedly, + [...] The extreme nature of torture, once brought within the fabric of the law, + concentrated power in the hands of those + who had the knowledge and skill, the techne, to master the brutality. The + Justinian codification served as a model to later codifications during the early + Middle Ages and to the practices of the Inquisition. + Extreme practices call for expert oversight and enable a concentration of + + [...] + + Torture was brought into the fabric of the law and rarified at the + same time. The rarefication in the Medieval Period served a political end: to + make torture even more foreboding. Had torture become too generalized or too + frequent, it might have lost its exceptionality and terrorizing effect. + Torture was rarely applied, and, as one historian notes, inflicted with “the + + [...] + + The rarity achieved by the limited use and legal regulation of torture in the + Medieval Period served to ensure its persistence and role as a social + epistemological device—as a producer of truths, especially truth about itself. + Centuries later, the Bush administration and its top lawyers re-created a legal + architecture surrounding the use of torture. + + [...] + + Third, the legal regulation of terror also legitimizes the larger political regime. + + [...] + + It may seem surprising or paradoxical that the antebellum courts would + protect a slave accused of poisoning her master. But there is an explanation: the + intricate legal framework surrounding the criminalization and punishment of + errant slaves during the antebellum period served to maintain and stabilize + chattel slavery in the South—it served to equilibrate the political economy of + slavery. It served to balance interests in such a way that neither the slave owners + nor the slaves would push the whole system of slavery into disarray. And the + courts and politicians carefully handled this delicate balance. + + [...] + + In fact, the financial loss associated with the execution of a slave was viewed + as the only way to guarantee that owners made sure their slaves received a fair + trial. During the 1842–1843 legislative session, the general assembly passed a + + [...] + + These complex negotiations over the criminal rules accompanied the + practices of slavery in Alabama—a form of terror—and served to legitimize the + larger political economy of chattel slavery. They offered stability to the slave + economy by making the different participants in the criminal process and in + slavery—the slave owners, the foremen, the magistrates, and the public at large + —more confident in the whole enterprise. The extensive legal regulation of the + torture of slaves was not about justifying torture, nor about resolving + philosophical or ethical questions. Instead, it served to strike a balance and + stabilize the institution of slavery. + + [...] + + Fourth, the ability to terrorize—and to get away with it—has a powerful effect + on others. The audacity and the mastery impress the general masses. Something + about winning or beating others seduces the population. People like winners, and + winning is inscribed in terrorizing others. + +Masculinity: + + Fifth, and relatedly, terror is gendered, which also tends to reinforce the power + and appeal of the more brutal counterinsurgency practices. Brutality is most + often associated with the dominant half of the couple, the one who controls, and + however much we might protest, this tends to strengthen the attraction. + +Horrorism: + + Terror works in other ways as well, and many other historical episodes could + shed light on the complex functioning of terror today—of what Adriana + Cavarero refers to as “horrorism.” 45 Terror, for instance, operates to control and + manage one’s comrades. It can serve to keep the counterrevolutionary minority + in check. The willingness to engage in extreme forms of brutality, in senseless + violence, in irrational excess signals one’s own ruthlessness to one’s peers or + inferiors. It can frighten and discipline both inferiors and superiors. It + demonstrates one’s willingness to be cruel—which can be productive, in fact + necessary, to a counterinsurgency. + +Counterinsurgency goes domestic: + + The operations of COINTELPRO—the Counter Intelligence Program + developed by the FBI in the 1950s to disrupt the American Communist Party, + and extended into the 1960s to eradicate the Black Panthers—took precisely the + form of counterinsurgency warfare. The notorious August 1967 directive of FBI + director J. Edgar Hoover to “expose, disrupt, misdirect, discredit, or otherwise + neutralize the activities of black nationalist, hate-type organizations and + groupings, their leadership, spokesmen, membership, and supporters”; 16 the + police raids on Black Panther headquarters in 1968 and 1969; the summary + execution of the charismatic chairman of the Chicago Black Panther Party, Fred + Hampton; the first SWAT operations carried out against the Panthers in Los + Angeles—these all had the trappings of modern warfare. + + Hoover’s FBI targeted the Panthers in a manner that drew on the foundational + principles of counterinsurgency: first, to collect as much intelligence on the + Black Panther Party as possible through the use of FBI informants and total + surveillance; second, to isolate the Panthers from their communities by making + their lives individually so burdened with surveillance and so difficult that they + were forced to separate themselves from their friends and family members; third, + to turn the Panther movement into one that was perceived, by the general + population, as a radicalized extremist organization, as a way to delegitimize the + Panthers and reduce their appeal and influence; and ultimately, to eliminate and + eradicate them, initially through police arrests, then through criminal + prosecutions (for instance, of the New York 21) and justified homicides [...] + and ultimately by fomenting conflict and divisiveness within the party + + [...] + + The linchpin of a domesticated counterinsurgency is to bring total + information awareness home. Just as it was developed abroad, it is total + surveillance alone that makes it possible to distinguish the active minority on + domestic soil from the passive masses of Americans. A fully transparent + population is the first requisite of the counterinsurgency method. In General + Petraeus’s field manual, it received a full chapter early on, “Intelligence in + Counterinsurgency,” with a pithy and poignant epigraph: “Everything good that + happens seems to come from good intelligence.” And as the manual began, so it + ended, with the following simple mantra: “The ultimate success or failure of the + [counterinsurgency] mission depends on the effectiveness of the intelligence effort." + + [...] + + American is a potential insurgent. + Constant vigilance of the American population is necessary—hand in hand + with the appearance of trust. Appearances are vital. A domesticated + counterinsurgency must suspect everyone in the population, but not let it be + known. This posture, developed in counterinsurgency theory decades ago, was at + the core of the paradigm. David Galula had refined it to a witty statement he + would tell his soldiers in Algeria: “One cannot catch a fly with vinegar. My rules + are: outwardly you must treat every civilian as a friend; inwardly you must + consider him as a rebel ally until you have positive proof to the contrary.” 2 This + mantra has become the rule today—at home. + + [...] + + In Exposed, I proposed a new way to understand how power circulates in the + digital age and, especially, a new way to comprehend our willingness to expose + ourselves to private corporations and the government alike. The metaphors + commonly used to describe our digital condition, such as the “surveillance + state,” Michel Foucault’s panopticon prison, or even George Orwell’s Big + Brother, are inadequate, I argued there. In the new digital age we are not forcibly + imprisoned in panoptic cells. There is no “telescreen” anchored to the wall of our + apartments by the state. No one is trying to crush our passions, or wear us down + into submission with the smell of boiled cabbage and old rag mats, coarse soap, + and blunt razors. The goal is not to displace our pleasures with hatred—with + “hate” sessions, “hate songs,” “hate weeks.” Today, instead, we interact by + means of “likes,” “shares,” “favorites,” “friending,” and “following.” We + gleefully hang smart TVs on the wall that record everything we say and all our + preferences. The drab uniforms and grim grayness of Orwell’s 1984 have been + replaced by the iPhone 5c in its radiant pink, yellow, blue, and green. “Colorful + through and through,” its marketing slogan promises, and the desire for color- + filled objects—for the sensual swoosh of a sent e-mail, the seductive click of the + iPhone camera “shutter,” and the “likes,” clicks, and hearts that can be earned by + sharing—seduce us into delivering ourselves to the surveillance technologies. + And as the monitoring and marketing of our private lives changes who we + sharing—seduce us into delivering ourselves to the surveillance technologies. + + And as the monitoring and marketing of our private lives changes who we + are, power circulates in a new way. Orwell depicted the perfect totalitarian + society. Guy Debord described ours rather as a society of the spectacle, in which + the image makers shape how we understand the world and ourselves. Michel + Foucault spoke instead of “the punitive society” or what he called + “panopticism,” drawing on Jeremy Bentham’s design of the panoptic prison. + Gilles Deleuze went somewhat further and described what he called “societies of + control.” But in our digital age, total surveillance has become inextricably linked + with pleasure. We live in a society of exposure and exhibition, an expository + society. + + [...] + + And that’s what happened: taxpayers would pay the telecoms to hold the data + for the government. So, before, AT&T surreptitiously provided our private + personal digital data to the intelligence services free of charge. Now, American + taxpayers will pay them to collect and hold on to the data for when the + intelligence services need them. A neoliberal win-win solution for everyone— + except, of course, the ordinary, tax-paying citizen who wants a modicum of + privacy or protection from the counterinsurgency. + + [...] + + In my previous book, however, I failed to fully grasp how our expository + society fits with the other features of our contemporary political condition— + from torture, to Guantánamo, to drone strikes, to digital propaganda. In part, I + could not get past the sharp contrast between the fluidity of our digital surfing + and surveillance on the one hand, and the physicality of our military + interventions and use of torture on the other. To be sure, I recognized the deadly + reach of metadata and reiterated those ominous words of General Michael + Hayden, former director of both the NSA and the CIA: “We kill people based on + metadata.” 20 And I traced the haunting convergence of our digital existence and + of correctional supervision: the way in which the Apple Watch begins to + function like an electronic bracelet, seamlessly caging us into a steel mesh of + digital traces. But I was incapable then of fully understanding the bond between + digital exposure and analog torture. + + It is now clear, though, that the expository society fits seamlessly within our + new paradigm of governing. The expository society is precisely what allows the + counterinsurgency strategies to be applied so impeccably “at home” to the very + people who invented modern warfare. The advent of the expository society, as + well as the specific NSA surveillance programs, makes domestic total + information awareness possible, and in turn lays the groundwork for the other + two prongs of counterinsurgency in the domestic context. + + [...] + + This idea of an occupied territory, of a colony within a nation, resonates + perfectly with what we have witnessed in terms of the domestication of the + counterinsurgency. I would just push the logic further: we have not simply + created an internal colony, we have turned the nation itself into a colony. We + govern ourselves through modern counterinsurgency warfare as if the entire + United States was now a colonial dominion like Algeria, Malaya, or Vietnam. + + [...] + + These incidents—large and small, but all devastating for those targeted—also + serve another objective of the domesticated counterinsurgency: to make the rest + of us feel safe and secure, to allow us to continue our lives unaffected, to avoid + disrupting our consumption and enjoyment. They serve to reassure, and also, in + demonizing a phantom minority, to bring us all together against the specter of + the frightening and dangerous other. It makes us believe that there would be, + lurking in the quiet suburbs of Dallas or Miami, dangerous insurgents—were it + not for our government. And these effects feed into the third prong of a + + [...] + + We had seen earlier, within counterinsurgency theory, similar debates + between population-centric and enemy-centric theorists. The enemy-centric + approach tended to be the more brutal, but more focused. The population-centric + favored the more legal and social-investment approaches. I argued then that they + were just two facets of the same paradigm. + + Here the debate is between population-and/or-enemy-centric theories versus + individual-centric theory. But here too, I would argue, this is a false dichotomy. + Again, these are just two facets of the same thing: a counterinsurgency paradigm + of warfare with three core strategies. Like the population-and/or-enemy-centric + theories, individual-centric theory naturally entails both incapacitating the + individual terrorist or insurgent—eliminating him and all of the active minority + —and preventing or deterring his substitution or replacement. + + [...] + + But rather than buy into this dichotomy of counterinsurgency and leaner + antiterrorism, what history shows instead is a growing convergence of the two + models in the United States since the 1960s. Counterinsurgency and domestic + antiterrorism efforts, entwined from the start, have converged over time. The + individual incapacitation strategy meshes perfectly into the counterinsurgency + approach. And it leads seamlessly from the domestication of the second prong of + counterinsurgency to the domestication of the third. + +### Distraction and diversion + + MANY OF US WILL NOT RECOGNIZE OURSELVES, OR A MERICA for that matter, in + these dreadful episodes—in the waterboarding and targeted assassinations + abroad or in the militarization of our police forces, in the infiltration of Muslim + mosques and student groups or in the constant collection of our personal data at + home. Many of us have no firsthand experience of these terrifying practices. Few + of us actually read the full Senate torture report, and even fewer track drone + strikes. Some of us do not even want to know of their existence. Most of us are + blissfully ignorant—at least most of the time—of these counterinsurgency + practices at home or abroad, and are consumed instead by the seductive + distractions of our digital age. + + And that’s the way it is supposed to be. As counterinsurgency is + domesticated, it is our hearts and minds that are daily being assuaged, numbed, + pacified—and blissfully satisfied. We, the vast majority of us, are reassured + daily: there are threats everywhere and color-coded terror alerts, but + counterinsurgency strategies are protecting us. We are made to feel that + everything’s under control, that the threat is exterior, that we can continue with + our daily existence. Even more, that these counterinsurgency strategies will + prevail. That our government is stronger and better equipped, prepared to do + everything necessary to win, and will win. That the guardians are protecting us. + The effort to win the hearts and minds of the passive American majority is + the third aspect of the domestication of counterinsurgency practices—perhaps + the most crucial component of all. And it is accomplished through a remarkable + mixture of distraction, entertainment, pleasure, propaganda, and advertising— + now rendered all so much more effective thanks to our rich digital world. In + Rome, after the Republic, this was known as “bread and circus” for the masses. + Today, it’s more like Facebook and Pokémon GO. + + We saw earlier how the expository society entices us to share all our personal + data and how this feeds into the first prong of counterinsurgency—total + information awareness. There is a flip side to this phenomenon: keeping us + distracted. The exposure is so pleasurable and engaging that we are mostly kept + content, with little need for a coordinated top-down effort to do so. We are + entranced—absorbed in a fantastic world of digitally enhanced reality that is + totally consuming, engrossing, and captivating. We are no longer being rendered + docile in a disciplinarian way, as Michel Foucault argued in Discipline and + Punish. We are past notions of docility. We are actively entranced—not + passively, not in a docile way. We are actively clicking and swiping, jumping + from one screen to another, checking one platform then another to find the next + fix—Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Google, YouTube, and on and on. + Winning over and assuaging the passive majority might be accomplished— + indeed, has been accomplished in the past—through traditional propaganda, such + as broadcast misinformation about the insurgent minority, and through the top- + down provision of entertainment to keep us from thinking about politics. The + new digital world we live in has rendered these older strategies obsolete. As the + counterinsurgency’s mandate to pacify the masses has been turned on the + American people, the third prong of modern warfare looks and works differently + than it did in previous times and in other places. + Things have changed. Just a few years ago, our politicians still had to tell us + + [...] + + Pokémon GO has already run its course, but that is to be expected. Another + digital obsession will follow. These platforms are supposed to capture all of our + attention for a while, to captivate us, to distract us—and simultaneously to make + us expose ourselves and everything around us. This is the symbiosis between the + third and first prongs of the domesticated counterinsurgency: while it pacifies us, + a game like Pokémon GO taps into all our personal information and captures all + our data. At first, the game required that players share all their personal contacts. + Although that was eventually dropped, the game collects all our GPS locations, + captures all the video of our surroundings in perfectly GPS-coded data, and + tracks us wherever we are. Plus, even though it is free, many players are buying + add-ons and in the process sharing their consumption and financial data. The + more we play, the more we are distracted and pacified, and the more we reveal + about ourselves. + + [...] + + The distractions are everywhere: e-mail notifications, texts, bings and pings, + new snapchats and instagrams. The entertainment is everywhere as well: free + Wi-Fi at Starbucks and McDonald’s, and now on New York City streets, that + allow us to stream music videos and watch YouTube videos. And of course, the + advertising is everywhere, trying to make us consume more, buy online, + subscribe, and believe. Believe not only that we need to buy the recommended + book or watch the suggested Netflix, but also believe that we are secure and safe, + protected by the most powerful intelligence agencies and most tenacious military + force. Believe that we can continue to mind our own business—and remain + distracted and absorbed in the digital world—because our government is + watching out for us. + + The fact is, the domestication of counterinsurgency has coincided with the + explosion of this digital world and its distractions. There is a real qualitative + difference between the immediate post–9/11 period and today. One that is + feeding directly into the third strategy of modern warfare. + Meanwhile, for the more vulnerable—those who are more likely to veer + astray and perhaps sympathize with the purported internal enemy—the same + digital technologies target them for enhanced propaganda. The Global + Engagement Center, or its equivalents, will profile them and send improved + content from more moderate voices. The very same methods developed by the + most tech-savvy retailers and digital advertisers—by Google and Amazon—are + deployed to predict, identify, enhance, and target our own citizens. + were before or that we are experiencing a waning of civil and political + engagement. While I agree that the growing capacity of the state and + corporations to monitor citizens may well threaten the private sphere, I am not + convinced that this is producing new apathy or passivity or docility among + citizens, so much as a new form of entrancement. The point is, we were once + kept apathetic through other means, but are now kept apathetic through digital + distractions. + +Voting turnout and Trump election: + + The voting patterns of American registered voters has remained constant— + and apathetic—for at least fifty years. Even in the most important presidential + elections, voter turnout in this country over the past fifty years or more has + pretty much fluctuated between 50 percent and 63 percent. By any measure, + American democracy has been pretty docile for a long time. In fact, if you look + over the longer term, turnout has been essentially constant since the 1920s and + the extension of the suffrage to women. Of course, turnout to vote is not the only + measure of democratic participation, but it is one quantifiable measure. And + electoral voting is one of the more reliable longitudinal measures of civic + participation. But our record, in the United States, is not impressive. + + [...] + + Despite all this, over 62 million people voted for Donald Trump, resulting in + his Electoral College victory. And it was by no means an unusual election. Voter + turnout in 2016 was typical for this country. About 60.2 percent of the + approximately 231 million eligible voters turned out to vote, representing about + 139 million votes case. That number is consonant with historical turnout in this + country, almost squarely between voter turnout in 2012 (58.6 percent) and in + 2008 (61.6 percent), but still above most presidential election year turnouts since + 1972. 16 In all categories of white voters, Trump prevailed. + + [...] + + The cable news network CNN captured this best in a pithy lead to a story titled + “Trump: The Social Media President?”: “FDR was the first ‘radio’ president. + JFK emerged as the first ‘television’ president. Barack Obama broke through as + the first ‘Internet’ president. Next up? Prepare to meet Donald Trump, possibly + the first ‘social media’ and ‘reality TV’ president.” 10 + + [...] + + This new mode of existence and digital consumption pleases and distracts the + majority of Americans. The old-fashioned TV has now been enhanced and + augmented, displaced by social media on digital devices of all sorts and sizes— + from the Apple Watch and tablet, through the MacBook Air and Mac Pro, to the + giant screen TV and even the Jumbotron. And all of it serves to pacify the + masses and ensure that they do not have the time or attention span to question + the domestication of the counterinsurgency. + + And, then, it all feeds back into total information awareness. Hand in hand, + government agencies, social media, Silicon Valley, and large retailers and + corporations have created a mesmerizing new digital age that simultaneously + makes us expose ourselves and everything we do to government surveillance and + that serves to distract and entertain us. All kinds of social media and reality TV + consume and divert our attention, making us give our data away for free. A + profusion of addictive digital platforms—from Gmail, Facebook, and Twitter, to + YouTube and Netflix, Amazon Prime, Instagram, and Snapchat, and now + Pokémon GO—distract us into exposing all our most private information, in + order to feed the new algorithms of commerce and intelligence services: to + profile us for both watch lists and commercial advertising. + +This is compatible with Shoshana Zuboff's Dispossession Cycle: + + This third aspect of counterinsurgency’s domestication is perhaps the most + important, because it targets the most prized military and political objective: the + general masses. And today, in the expository society, the new algorithms and + digital-advertising methods have propelled the manipulation and propaganda to + new heights. We are being encouraged by government and enticed by + multination corporations and social media to expose and express ourselves as + much as possible, leaving digital traces that permit both government and + corporations to profile us and then try to shape us accordingly. To make model + citizens out of us all—which means docile, entranced consumers. The governing + paradigm here is to frenetically encourage digital activity—which in one sense is + the opposite of docility—in order to then channel that activity in the right + direction: consumption, political passivity, and avoiding the radical extremes. + + What we are witnessing is a new form of digital entrancement that shapes us + as subjects, blunts our criticality, distracts us, and pacifies us. We spend so much + time on our phones and devices, we barely have any time left for school or work, + let alone political activism. In the end, the proper way to think about this all is + not through the lens of docility, but through the framework of entrancement. It is + crucial to understand this in the proper way, because breaking this very + entrancement is key to seeing how counterinsurgency governance operates more + broadly. Also, because the focus on docility—along an older register of + discipline—is likely to lead us into an outdated focus on top-down propaganda. + +### Counterrevolution + + The paradigm was refined + and systematized, and has now reached a new stage: the complete and systematic + domestication of counterinsurgency against a home population where there is no + real insurgency or active minority. This new stage is what I call “The + Counterrevolution.” + + The Counterrevolution is a new paradigm of governing our own citizens at + home, modeled on colonial counterinsurgency warfare, despite the absence of + any domestic uprising. It is aimed not against a rebel minority—since none + really exists in the United States—but instead it creates the illusion of an active + minority which it can then deploy to target particular groups and communities, + and govern the entire American population on the basis of a counterinsurgency + warfare model. It operates through the three main strategies at the heart of + modern warfare, which, as applied to the American people, can be recapitulated + as follows: + + 1. Total information awareness of the entire American population…: [by the] + [...] “counterrevolutionary minority.” + + [...] + + 2. … in order to extract an active minority at home… + +Shock and Awe: + + 3. … and win the hearts and minds of Americans: Meanwhile, the + counterrevolutionary minority works to pacify and assuage the general + population in order to ensure that the vast majority of Americans remain + just that: ordinary consuming Americans. They encourage and promote a + rich new digital environment filled with YouTube, Netflix, Amazon + Prime, tweets, Facebook posts, instagrams, snapchats, and reality TV that + consume attention while digitally gathering personal data—and at times, + pushing enhanced content. They direct digital propaganda to susceptible + users. And they shock and awe the masses with their willingness to + torture suspected terrorists or kill their own citizens abroad. In the end, + entertaining, distracting, entrancing, and assuaging the general population + is the key to success—our new form of bread and circus. + +The "new shape" of the State (and it's partners), as a "loose network": + + These three key strategies now guide governance at home, as they do military + and foreign affairs abroad. What has emerged today is a new and different art of + governing. It forms a coherent whole with, at its center, a security apparatus + composed of White House, Pentagon, and intelligence officials, high-ranking + congressional members, FISC judges, security and Internet leaders, police + intelligence divisions, social-media companies, Silicon Valley executives, and + multinational corporations. This loose network, which collaborates at times and + competes at others, exerts control by collecting and mining our digital data. Data + control has become the primary battlefield, and data, the primary resource— + perhaps the most important primary resource in the United States today. + + [...] + + This new mode of governing has no time horizon. It has no sunset provision. And it is + marked by a tyrannous logic of violence. [...] It is part and parcel of the new + paradigm of governing that reconciles brutality with legality. + +The unprecedented, self-fulfilling profecy: + + We govern ourselves + differently in the United States now: no longer through sweeping social + programs like the New Deal or the War on Poverty, but through surgical + counterinsurgency strategies against a phantom opponent. The intensity of the + domestication now is unprecedented. + + [...] + + Counterinsurgency, with its tripartite scheme (active minority, passive masses, + counterrevolutionary minority) and its tripartite strategy (total awareness, + eliminate the active minority, pacify the masses) is a deeply counterproductive + self-fulfilling prophecy that radicalizes individuals against the United States. + + [...] + + “The Islamic State has called it ‘the blessed ban’ because it + supports the Islamic State’s position that America hates Islam. The clause in the + order that gives Christians preferential treatment will be seen as confirming the + Islamic State’s apocalyptic narrative that Islam is in a fight to the death against + the Christian crusaders. The images of Muslim visitors being turned away at + American airports will only inflame those who seek to do us harm.” 6 + + [...] + + We are headed not, as Kant would have it, toward perpetual peace, but + instead, sounding the refrain of Nietzsche’s eternal return, toward an endless + state of counterinsurgency warfare. + +### Not exactly a state of exception, but of legality + + MANY COMMENTATORS ARGUE THAT WE NOW LIVE, IN THE United States and in the + West more broadly, in a “state of exception” characterized by suspended legality. + In this view, our political leaders have placed a temporary hold on the rule of + law, with the tacit understanding that they will resume their adherence to liberal + legal values when the political situation stabilizes. Some commentators go + further, arguing that we have now entered a “permanent state of exception.” + + This view, however, misperceives one particular tactic of counterinsurgency + —namely, the state of emergency—for the broader rationality of our new + political regime. It fails to capture the larger ambition of our new mode of + governing. The fact is, our government does everything possible to legalize its + counterinsurgency measures and to place them solidly within the rule of law— + through endless consultations with government lawyers, hypertechnical legal + arguments, and lengthy legal memos. The idea is not to put law on hold, not + even temporarily. It is not to create an exception, literally or figuratively. On the + contrary, the central animating idea is to turn the counterinsurgency model into a + fully legal strategy. So, the governing paradigm is not one of exceptionality, but + of counterinsurgency and legality. + + [...] + + The logic today is based on a model of + counterinsurgency warfare with, at its heart, the resolution of that central tension + between brutality and legality. The counterrevolutionary model has resolved the + inherited tension and legalized the brutality. + + [...] + + Agamben’s idea of a permanent state of exception pushes this + further, but simultaneously undermines the defining element of the exception, + since it becomes the rule. For the most part, though, the state of exception is + presented as aberrational but temporary. + + [...] + + The problem with the state-of-exception view is that it mistakes tactics for + the overarching logic of our new paradigm of governing and, in the process, fails + to see the broader framework of The Counterrevolution. The state-of-exception + framework rests on an illusory dichotomy between rule and exception, a myth + that idealizes and reifies the rule of law. The point is, the use of torture at CIA + black sites and the bulk collection of American telephony metadata were not + exceptions to the rule of law, but were rendered fully legalized and regulated + practices—firmly embedded in a web of legal memos, preauthorized formalities, + and judicial or quasi-judicial oversight. In this sense, hardly anything that + occurred was outside or exceptional to the law, or could not be brought back in. + + The Counterrevolution, unlike the state of exception, does not function on a + binary logic of rule and exception, but on a fully coherent systematic logic of + counterinsurgency that is pervasive, expansive, and permanent. It does not have + limits or boundaries. It does not exist in a space outside the rule of law. It is all + encompassing, systematic, and legalized. + + Of course, the rhetoric of “exception” is extremely useful to The + Counterrevolution. “States of emergency” are often deployed to seize control + over a crisis and to accelerate the three prongs of counterinsurgency. + + [...] + + The ultimate exercise of power, Foucault argued, is precisely to transform + ambiguities about illegalisms into conduct that is “illegal.” + + [...] + + During the ancien régime, Foucault argues, the popular and the privileged + classes worked together to evade royal regulations, fees, and impositions. + Illegalisms were widespread throughout the eighteenth century and well + distributed across the different strata of society + + [...] + + As wealth became increasingly mobile after the French Revolution, new + forms of wealth accumulation—of moveable goods, stocks, and supplies as + opposed to landed wealth—exposed massive amounts of chattel property to the + workers who came in direct contact with this new commercial wealth. The + accumulation of wealth began to make popular illegalisms less useful—even + dangerous—to the interests of the privileged. The commercial class seized the + mechanisms of criminal justice to put an end to these popular illegalisms + [...] The privileged seized the administrative and + police apparatus of the late eighteenth century to crack down on popular + illegalisms. + + [...] + + They effectively turned popular illegalisms into + illegalities, and, in the process, created the notion of the criminal as social + enemy—Foucault even talks here of creating an “internal enemy.” + + [...] + + In The Counterrevolution—by contrast to the bourgeois revolutions of the + early nineteenth century—the process is turned on its head. Illegalisms and + illegalities are inverted. Rather than the privileged turning popular illegalisms + into illegalities, the guardians are turning their own illegalisms into legalities. + [...] The strategy here is to paper one’s way into the legal realm through elaborate + memorandums and advice letters that justify the use of enhanced interrogation or the + assassination of American citizens abroad. + + [...] + + On the one hand, there is a strict division of responsibilities: the intelligence + agencies and the military determine all the facts outside the scope of the legal + memorandum. [...] Everything is compartmentalized. + + [...] + + On the other hand, the memo authorizes: it allows the political authority to + function within the bounds of the law. It sanitizes the political decision. It cleans + the hands of the military and political leaders. It produces legalities. + +A circular, feedback loop: + + None of this violates the rule of law or transgresses the boundaries of legal + liberalism. Instead, the change was rendered “legal.” If this feels circular, it is + because it is: there is a constant feedback effect in play here. The + counterinsurgency practices were rendered legal, and simultaneously justice was + made to conform to the counterinsurgency paradigm. The result of the feedback + loop was constantly new and evolving meanings of due process. And however + rogue they may feel, they had gone through the correct procedural steps of due + process to render them fully lawful and fully compliant with the rule of law. + + [...] + + “Abnormal,” in 1975, Foucault explored how the clash between the juridical + power to punish and the psychiatric thirst for knowledge produced new medical + diagnoses that then did work. + + [...] + + In his 1978 lecture on the invention of the notion of dangerousness in French + psychiatry, Foucault showed how the idea of future dangerousness emerged from + the gaps and tensions in nineteenth-century law. 37 + + [...] + + There are surely gaps here too in The Counterrevolution—tensions between + rule-boundedness on the one hand and a violent warfare model on the other. + Those tensions give momentum to the pendulum swings of brutality that are then + resolved by bureaucratic legal memos. + +### System analysis and Operations Research + + The RAND Corporation played a seminal role in the development of + counterinsurgency practices in the United States and championed for decades— + and still does—a systems-analytic approach that has come to dominate military + strategy. Under its influence, The Counterrevolution has evolved into a logical + and coherent system that regulates and adjusts itself, a fully reasoned and + comprehensive approach. + + [...] + + Systems analysis was often confused with OR, but it was distinct in several + regards. OR tended to have more elaborate mathematical models and solved + lower-level problems; in systems analysis, by contrast, the pure mathematical + computation was generally applied only to subparts of the overall problem. + Moreover, SA took on larger strategic questions that implicated choices between + major policy options. In this sense, SA was, from its inception, in the words of + one study, “less quantitative in method and more oriented toward the analysis of + broad strategic and policy questions, […] particularly […] seeking to clarify + choice under conditions of great uncertainty.” 5 + + [...] + + As this definition made clear, there were two meanings of the term system in + systems analysis: first, there was the idea that the world is made up of systems, + with internal objectives, that need to be analyzed separately from each other in + order to maximize their efficiency. Along this first meaning, the analysis would + focus on a particular figurative or metaphorical system—such as a weapons + system, a social system, or, in the case of early counterinsurgency, a colonial + system. Second, there was the notion of systematicity that involved a particular + type of method—one that began by collecting a set of promising alternatives, + constructing a model, and using a defined criterion. + + [...] + + This method of systems analysis became influential in government and + eventually began to dominate governmental logics starting in 1961 when Robert + McNamara acceded to the Pentagon under President John F. Kennedy. + + [...] + + According to its proponents, systems analysis + would allow policy makers to put aside partisan politics, personal preferences, + and subjective values. It would pave the way to objectivity and truth. As RAND + expert and future secretary of defense James R. Schlesinger explained: + “[Systems analysis] eliminates the purely subjective approach on the part of + devotees of a program and forces them to change their lines of argument. They + must talk about reality rather than morality.” 13 With systems analysis, + Schlesinger argued, there was no longer any need for politics or value + judgments. The right answer would emerge from the machine-model that + independently evaluated cost and effectiveness. All that was needed was a + narrow and precise objective and good criteria. The model would then spit out + the most effective strategy. + + [...] + + Counterinsurgency theory blossomed at precisely the moment that systems + analysis was, with RAND’s backing, gaining influence in the Pentagon and at + the White House. The historian Peter Paret pinpoints this moment, in fact, to the + very first year of the Kennedy administration: “In 1961, the Cuban revolution + combined with the deteriorating Western position in Southeast Asia + + [...] + + It convened, as mentioned earlier, the seminal + counterinsurgency symposium in April 1962, where RAND analysts discovered + David Galula and commissioned him to write his memoirs. RAND would + publish his memoirs as a confidential classified report in 1963 under the title + + [...] + + Counterinsurgency theory blossomed at precisely the moment that systems + analysis was, with RAND’s backing, gaining influence in the Pentagon and at + the White House. The historian Peter Paret pinpoints this moment, in fact, to the + very first year of the Kennedy administration: “In 1961, the Cuban revolution + combined with the deteriorating Western position in Southeast Asia to shift + + [...] + + One recent episode regarding interrogation + methods is telling. It involved the evaluation of different tactics to obtain + information from informants, ranging from truth serums to sensory overload to + torture. These alternatives were apparently compared and evaluated using a SA + approach at a workshop convened by RAND, the CIA, and the American + Psychological Association (APA). Again, the details are difficult to ascertain + fully, but the approach seemed highly systems-analytic. + + [...] a series of workshops on “The Science of Deception” + + [...] + + More specifically, according to this source, the workshops probed and + compared different strategies to elicit information. The systems-analytic + approach is reflected by the set of questions that the participants addressed: How + important are differential power and status between witness and officer? What + pharmacological agents are known to affect apparent truth-telling behavior? + What are sensory overloads on the maintenance of deceptive behaviors? How + might we overload the system or overwhelm the senses and see how it affects + deceptive behaviors? These questions were approached from a range of + disciplines. The workshops were attended by “research psychologists, + psychiatrists, neurologists who study various aspects of deception and + representatives from the CIA, FBI and Department of Defense with interests in + intelligence operations. In addition, representatives from the White House Office + of Science and Technology Policy and the Science and Technology Directorate + of the Department of Homeland Security were present.” 31 + + [...] + + And in effect, from a counterinsurgency perspective, these various tactics— + truth serums, sensory overloads, torture—are simply promising alternatives that + need to be studied, modeled, and compared to determine which ones are superior + at achieving the objective of the security system. Nothing is off limits. + Everything is fungible. The only question is systematic effectiveness. This is the + systems-analytic approach: not piecemeal, but systematic. + Incidentally, a few years later, Gerwehr apparently went to Guantánamo, but + refused to participate in any interrogation because the CIA was not using video + cameras to record the interrogations. Following that, in the fall of 2006 and in + 2007, Gerwehr made several calls to human-rights advocacy groups and + reporters to discuss what he knew. A few months later, in 2008, Gerwehr died of + a motorcycle accident on Sunset Boulevard. 32 He was forty years old. + + [...] + + Sometimes, depending on the practitioner, the analysis favored torture or summary + execution; at other times, it leaned toward more “decent” tactics. But these + variations must now be understood as internal to the system. Under President + Bush’s administration, the emphasis was on torture, indefinite detention, and + illicit eavesdropping; under President Obama’s, it was on drone strikes and total + surveillance; in the first months of the Trump presidency, on special operations, + drones, the Muslim ban, and building the wall. What unites these different + strategies is counterinsurgency’s coherence as a system—a system in which + brutal violence is heart and center. That violence is not aberrational or rogue. It + is to be expected. It is internal to the system. Even torture and assassination are + merely variations of the counterinsurgency logic. + + Counterinsurgency abroad and at home has been legalized and systematized. It + has become our governing paradigm “in any situation,” and today “simply + expresses the basic tenet of the exercise of political power.” It has no sunset + provision. It is ruthless, game theoretic, systematic—and legal. And with all of + the possible tactics at the government’s disposal—from total surveillance to + indefinite detention and solitary confinement, to drones and robot-bombs, even + to states of exception and emergency powers—this new mode of governing has + never been more dangerous. + + In sum, The Counterrevolution is our new form of tyranny. diff --git a/books/sociology/jogos-homens.md b/books/sociology/jogos-homens.md index 105b13c..dee1c44 100644 --- a/books/sociology/jogos-homens.md +++ b/books/sociology/jogos-homens.md @@ -22,6 +22,8 @@ Original: ## Índice +* Jogo, noção de totalidade fechada, preciosa inovação num mundo incerto, 10; noção complexa, 11. + * Regras versus sem regras (jogos de imitação por exemplo), 28. * Regras das regras: jogos como atividades: 1. livres; 2; delimitadas; 3. @@ -125,7 +127,7 @@ Original: ## Azar e a matemática Os jogos de competição conduzem ao desporto, os jogos de imitação e de ilusão - prefiguram as religiões do espectáculo. Os jogos de azar e de cominação + prefiguram as religiões do espectáculo. Os jogos de azar e de combinação estiveram na origem de vários desenvolvimentos das matemáticas, do cálculo de probabilidades à topologia. @@ -195,7 +197,7 @@ Foi lendo mais ou menos o seguinte trecho que me veio a ideia de que pode haver alguma articulação -- que aliás é um dos sentidos da palavra jogo, "o mecanismo ter jogo" -- entre os conceitos de máquina, sistema e jogo: - Qualquer instituição funciona, em parte, como um jogo, de al forma que se + Qualquer instituição funciona, em parte, como um jogo, de tal forma que se apresenta também como um jogo que foi necessário instaurar, baseado em novos princípios e que ocupou o lugar reservado a um jogo antigo. Esse jogo singular responde a outras necessidades, favorece certas normas e legislações, exige diff --git a/books/sociology/ruptura.md b/books/sociology/ruptura.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..3c1c5ac --- /dev/null +++ b/books/sociology/ruptura.md @@ -0,0 +1,91 @@ +[[!meta title="Ruptura"]] + +## Trechos + + Os únicos que se sustentam são aqueles que não fingem mais governar nada, mas + que usam o poder simplesmente para fornecer a parcelas da população o gosto + drogado da autorização da violência contra os vulneráveis. + + -- 11 + + Só governos fracos são violentos. Eles têm de vigiar todos os poros, pois + sabem que seu fim pode vir de qualquer lugar. Governos fortes são magnânimos, + porque vislumbram tranquila- mente sua perpetuação. O que se contrapõe a nós é + fraco e desesperado. Ele cairá. É hora de fazê-lo cair. + + -- 13 + + Generais e almirantes tomam o poder. Eles exterminam seus predecessores de + esquerda, exilam os opositores, aprisionam os intelectuais dissidentes, sufocam + os sindicatos, controlam a imprensa e paralisam toda atividade política. Mas, + nesta variante do fascismo de mercado, os che- fes militares tomam distância + das decisões eco- nômicas. Eles não planificam a economia nem aceitam suborno. + Eles confiam toda a economia a fanáticos religiosos – fanáticos cuja religião é + o laissez-faire do mercado (...) Então o relógio da história anda para trás. O + mercado é liberado e a massa monetária estritamente controlada. Os créditos de + ajuda social são cortados, os trabalha- dores devem aceitar qualquer coisa ou + morrer de fome (...) A inflação baixa reduz-se a quase nada (...) A liberdade + política estando fora de circula- ção, as desigualdades de rendimentos, consumo + e riqueza tendem a crescer. + + É evidente que as elucubrações de Samuelson a respeito do “fascismo de mercado” + se inspiravam no Chile da ditadura de Augusto Pinochet (1973- 1990). Esse + regime sucedeu um governo que ten- tava construir o socialismo pela via + eleitoral e foi derrubado por uma articulação envolvendo a social- -democracia + cristã, grupos terroristas neofascistas, entidades patronais e Washington, num + processo que culminou no bombardeio do Palácio de La Moneda em 11 de setembro + de 1973. A partir daí, Pinochet aniquilou a oposição com uma brutali- dade + poucas vezes vista. O Estado chileno torturou cerca de 30 mil opositores, em + centros espalhados por todo o território nacional, e assassinou milhares + de pessoas. Apenas assim foi possível impor à população as políticas dos + fanáticos do laissez-faire. Iniciava-se o experimento neoliberal imposto pelos + Chicago boys. Após o golpe, esse grupo de econo- mistas, ligados ao teórico e + guru Milton Friedman, ocuparia todos os espaços do Estado ditatorial, dos + ministérios à presidência do Banco Central. + + No mesmo momento em que o neoliberalismo aparecia como modelo de gestão social + nas democracias liberais do Reino Unido de Margaret Thatcher e dos EUA de + Ronald Reagan, a ditadura chilena explicitava a linha de fuga para a qual o + capitalismo mundial se encaminhava. Essa junção de brutalidade política e + neoliberalismo econômico, aplicada inicialmente no Chile, agora se mostra como + a tendência generalizada do capitalismo atual e tem no Brasil seu mais recente + laboratório. Tal processo ocorre precisamente no momento em que a farsa da + livre concorrência foi definitivamente rasgada pelo retorno a práticas de + acumulação primitiva, fazendo com que até mesmo a democracia + liberal-parlamentar tenda a ser descartada – especialmente aqui, na periferia + do capitalismo. + + [...] + + Por isso, segundo Hayek, o único regime totalitário que a América do Sul + conheceu até os anos 1980 não teria sido o Brasil dos militares, a Argentina de + Videla ou o Chile de Pinochet, mas o governo da Unidade Popular de Allende. A + tese implícita era de que um modo de vida e de produção não baseado na + propriedade privada dos meios de produção seria a definição mesma de + totalitarismo. Mas esse conceito liberal de liberdade só poderia se impor à + base de choques. Afinal, as sociedades não aceitam sem resistência limitar seus + desejos e sua inquietude à liberdade de empreender (reservada para alguns). A + experiência histórica das lutas por liberdade revela justamente a insistência + em livrar a atividade da submissão à forma do trabalho, da ânsia pela igualdade + radical e pelo fim da naturalização da exploração, da vontade de liberação do + mundo das coisas dos contratos de propriedade. Sendo assim, apenas uma fina + engenharia social, que envolveria todas as instâncias do governo e do capital e + que mobilizaria tanto o soldado de baixa patente como o burocrata do primeiro + escalão, seria capaz de neutralizar esses desejos, criando uma homofonia + social. Embora paradoxal, a liberdade de empreender exige “mais” e não “menos” + Estado, que se impõe na forma de repressão sanguinária e vigilância constante. + + [...] + + A aproximação entre Hayek e o principal jurista do Terceiro Reich, Carl + Schmitt, não deixa dúvida sobre sua concepção de democracia. + + [...] + + O autoritarismo, portanto, não é um acidente do capitalismo e não é a antítese + da democracia burguesa. Ele é parte constitutiva desse modo de gestão de + populações. Afinal, foi no esteio da belle époque das grandes potências + ocidentais que se consumou o holocausto dos povos coloniais, primeiro + laboratório do caos. + + -- 17-25 diff --git a/books/sociology/secrecy.md b/books/sociology/secrecy.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6d10430 --- /dev/null +++ b/books/sociology/secrecy.md @@ -0,0 +1,768 @@ +[[!meta title="The Sociology of Secrecy and of Secret Societies"]] + +By Georg Simmel: + +* [Original article](http://doi.org/10.1086/211418). +* [Full text](https://brocku.ca/MeadProject/Simmel/Simmel_1906.html). +* [Comments and references](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sociological_aspects_of_secrecy). + +## Excerpts + + [...] + + All relationships of people to each other rest, as a matter of + course, upon the precondition that they know something about + each other. The merchant knows that his correspondent wants + + [...] + + rough and ready way, to the degree necessary in order that the + needed kinds of intercourse may proceed. That we shall know + with whom we have to do, is the first precondition of having + anything to do with another. The customary reciprocal ptresenta- + + [...] + + reciprocally recognized. Their necessity is usually observed only + when they happen to be wanted. It would be a profitable + scientific labor to investigate the sort and degree of reciprocal + apprehension which is needed for the various relationships + between human beings. It would be worth while to know + how the general psychological presumptions with which each + approaches each are interwoven with the special experiences + with reference to the individual who is in juxtaposition with us; + how in many ranges of association the reciprocal apprehension + does or does not need to be equal, or may or may not be permitted + to be equal; how conventional relationships are determined in + their development only through that reciprocal or unilateral + knowledge developing with reference to the other party. The + investigation should finally proceed in the opposite direction; + + [...] + + given by the total relationship of the knower to the known. + Since one never can absolutely know another, as this would mean + knowledge of every particular thought and feeling; since we + must rather form a conception of a personal unity out of the + fragments of another person in which alone he is accessible to + us, the unity so formed necessarily depends upon that portion of + the other which our standpoint toward him permits us to see. + + [...] + + on the other hand the actual reciprocity of the individuals is based + tupon the picture which they derive of each other. Here we have + one of the deep circuits of the intellectual life, inasmuch as one + element presupposes a second, but the second presupposes the + first. While this is a fallacy within narrow ranges, and thus + + [...] + + or by dissimulation he may deceive us as to the truth. No other + object of knowledge can thus of its own initiative, either + enlighten us with reference to itself or conceal itself, as a human + being can. No other knowable object modifies its conduct from + consideration of its being understood or misunderstood. 'Tlhis + + [...] + + in misconception about the true intention of the person who + tells the lie. Veracity and mendacity are thus of the most far- + reaching significance for the relations of persons with each + other. Sociological structures are most characteristically dif- + ferentiated by the measure of mendacity that is operative in + them. To begin with, in very simple relationships a lie is + much more harmless foir the persistence of the group than + in complex associations. Primitive man, living in communities + of restricted extent, providing for his needs by his own produc- + tion or by direct co-operation, limiting his spiritual interests to + personal experience or to simple tradition, surveys and controls + the material of his existence more easily and completely than the + man of higher culture. In the latter case life rests upon a thou- + sand presuppositions which the individual can never trace back + to their origins, and verify; but which he must accept upon faith + and belief. In a much wider degree than people are accustomed + the economic system + to realize, modern civilized life -from + which is constantly becoming more and more a credit-economy, + + [...] + + to the pursuit of science, in which the majority of investigators + must use countless results obtained by others, and not directly + subject to verification- depends upon faith in the honor of + others. We rest our most serious decisions upon a complicated + system of conceptions, the majority of which presuppose con- + fidence that we have nlot been deceived. Hence prevarication in + modern circumstances becomes something much more devasta- + ting, something placing the foundations of life much more in + jeopardy, than was earlier the case. If lying appeared today + among us as a sin as permissible as among the Greek divinities, + the Hebrew patriarchs, or the South Sea Islanders; if the + extremne severity of the moral law did not veto it, the progressive + upbuilding of modern life would be simply impossible, since + modern life is, in a much wider than the economic sense, a + "credit-economy." This relationship of the times recurs in the + case of differences of other dimensions. The farther third per- + sons are located from the center of our personality, the easier can + we adjust ourselves practically, but also subjectively, to their lack + of integrity. On the other hand, if the few persons in our imme- + dia<te environment lie to us, life becomes intolerable. This + + + [...] + + in the majority as compared with the liar who gets his advantage + from the lie. Consequently that enlightenment which aims at + elimination of the element of deception from social life is always + of a democratic character. + Human intercourse rests normally upon the condition that + + [...] + + development may gain vitality by alternate concession and resist- + ance. Relationships of an intimate character, the formal vehicle + of which is psycho-physical proximity, lose the charm, and even + the content, of their intimacy, unless the proximity includes, at + the same time and alternately, distance and intermission. Finally + -and + this is the matter with which we are now concerned -the + reciprocal knowledge, which is the positive condition of social + relationships, is not the sole condition. On the contrary, such as + those relationships are, they actually presuppose also a certain + + [...] + + By virtue of the situation just noticed, that antecedent or + consequent form of knowledge with reference to an individual- + viz., confidence in him, evidently one of the most important syn- + thetic forces within society -gains + a peculiar evolution. Confi- + dence, as the hypothesis of future conduct, which is sure enough + to become the basis of practical action, is, as hypothesis, a mediate + condition between knowing and not knowing another person. + The possession of full knowledge does away with the need o,f + trusting, while complete absence of knowledge makes trust evi- + dentlv impossible.' Whatever quantities of knowing and not + knowing must comnimingle, in order to make possible the detailed + practical decision based upon confidence, will be determined by + the historic epoch, the ranges of interests, and the individuals. + + [...] + + what is not forbidden is permitted, and, what is not permitted is + forbidden. Accordingly, the relationships of men are differen- + tiated by the question of knowledge with reference to each other: + what is not concealed may be known, and what is not revealed + may yet not be known. The last determination corresponds to the + otherwise effective consciousness that an ideal sphere surrounds + every human being, different in various directionsi and toward + different persons; a sphere varying in extent, into which one may + not venture to penetrate without disturbing the personal value of + the individual. Honor locates such an area. Language indi- + cates very nicely an invasion of this sort by such phrases as + "coming too near" (zu nahe treten). The radius of that sphere, + so to speak, marks the distance which a stranger may not cross + without infringing up,on another's honor. Another sphere of + like form corresponds to that which we designate as the "signifi- + cance" (Bedeutung) of another personality. Towards the + "significant" man there exists an inner compulsion to keep one's + + [...] + + signifies violation of the ego, at its center. Discretion is nothing + other than the sense of justice with respect to the sphere of the + intimate contents of life. Of co-urse, this sense is various in its + + + [...] + + voluntarily reveal to us-must + necessity. But in finer and less simple form, in fragmentary + passages of association and in unuttered revelations, all commerce + of men with each other rests upon the condition that each knows + something more of the other than the latter voluntarily reveals + to him; and in many respects this is of a sort the knowledge of + which, if possible, would have been prevented by the party so + revealed. While this, judged as an individual affair, may count + as indiscretion, although in the social sense it is necessary as a + + [...] + + voluntarily reveal to us-must + necessity. But in finer and less simple form, in fragmentary + passages of association and in unuttered revelations, all commerce + of men with each other rests upon the condition that each knows + something more of the other than the latter voluntarily reveals + to him; and in many respects this is of a sort the knowledge of + which, if possible, would have been prevented by the party so + revealed. While this, judged as an individual affair, may count + as indiscretion, although in the social sense it is necessary as a + condition for the existing closeness and vitality of the inter- + change, yet the legal boundary of this invasion upon the spiritual + private property of another is extremely difficult to draw. In + general, men credit themselves with the right to know everything + which, without application of external illegal means, through + purely psychological observation and reflection, it is possible to + ascertain. In point of fact, however, indiscretion exercised in + this way may be quite as violent, and morally quite as unjusti- + fiable, as listening at keyholes and prying into the letters of + + [...] + + strangers. To anyone with fine psychological perceptions, men + betray themselves and their inmost thoughts and characteristics + in countless fashions, not only in spite of efforts not to' do so, but + often for the very reason that they anxiously attempt to guard + themselves. The greedy spying upon every unguarded word; + the boring persistence of inquiry as to the meaning of every slight + action, or tone of voice; what may be inferred from. such and + such expressions; what the blush at the mention of a given name + may betray-all this does, not overstep the boundary o'f external + discretion; it is entirely the labor of one's own mind, and there- + fore apparently within the unquestionable rights of the agent. + This is all the more the case, since such misuse of psychological + superiority oiften occurs as a purely involuntary procedure. Very + often it is impossible for us to, restrain our interpretation of + another, our theory of his subjective characteristics and inten- + tions. However positively an honorable person may forbid him- + + [...] + + so unavoidable, the division line between the permitted and the + non-permitted is the more indefinite. To what extent discretion + must restrain itself from mental handling " of all that which is its + own," to what extent the interests of intercourse, the reciprocal + interdependence of the members of the same group, limits this + duty of discretion - this is a question for the answer to, which + neither moral tact, nor survey of the o'bj ective relationships and + their demands, can alone be sufficient, since both factors must + rather always work together. The nicety and complexity of this + question throw it back in a much higher degree upon the respon- + sibility of the individual for decision, without final recourse to + any authoritative general norm, than is the case in connection + with a question of private property in the material sense. + In contrast with this preliminary form, or this attachment of + + [...] + + quently friendship, in which this intensity, but also this + inequality of devotion, is lacking, may more easily attach the + whole person to the whole person, may more easily break up + the reserves of the soul, not indeed by so impulsive a process, + but throoughout a wider area and during a longer succession. + This complete intimacy of confidence probably becomes, with + the changing differentiation of men, more and more difficult. + Perhaps the modern man has too much to conceal to make a + friendship in the ancient sense possible; perhaps personalities + also, except in very early years, are too peculiarly individualized + for the complete reciprocality of understanding, to which + always so much divination and productive phantasy are essen- + tial. It appears that, for this reason, the mo,dern type of + feeling inclines more to differentiated friendships; that is, to + those which have their territory only upon one side of the person- + ality at a time, and in which the rest of the personality plays no + part. Thus a quite special type of friendship emerges. For our + problem, namely, the degree of intrusion or of reserve within the + friendly relationship, this type is of the highest significance. + + [...] + + must come sooner or later. + In marriage, as in free relationships of analogous types, the + temptation is very natural to open oneself to the other at the + outset without limit; to abandon the last reserve of the soul + equally with those of the body, and thus to. lose oneself completely + in another. This, however, usually threatens the future of the + relationship. Only those people can without danger give them- + selves entirely to each other who canntot possibly give themselves + entirely, because the wealth of their soul rests in constant pro- + gressive development, which follows every devotion immediately + with the growth of new treasures. Complete devotion is safe + only in the case of those people who, have an inexhaustible fund + of latent spiritual riches, and therefore can no more alienate them + in a single confidence than a tree can give up the fruits of next + year by letting go what it produces at the present moment. The + case is quite different, however, with those people who, so to + speak, draw from their capital all their betrayals of feeling and + + [...] + + intensity so soon as it is confronted by a purpose of discovery. + Thereupon follows that purposeful concealment, that aggressive + defense, so to speak, against the other party, which we call + secrecy in the most real sense. Secrecy in this sense- i. e., whichi + is effective through negative or positive means of concealment + is one of the greatest accomplishments of humanity. In contrast + with the juvenile condition in which every mental picture is at + + [...] + + by the fact that what was formerly putblic passes under the pro- + tection of secrecy, and that, on the contrary, what was formerly + secret ceases to require such protection and proclaims itself. This + is analogous with that other evolution o,f mind in which move- + ments at first executed consciously become unconsciously me- + chanical, and, on the other hand, what was unconscious and + instinctive rises into the light of consciousness. + How this + development is distributed over the various formations of private + + [...] + + essential and significant. The natural impulse to idealization, and + the natural timidity of men, operate to one and the samne end in + the presence of secrecy; viz., to heighten it by phantasy, and to + distinguish it by a degree of attention that published reality could + not command. + Singularly enough, these attractions of secrecy enter into + + [...] + + not command. + Singularly enough, these attractions of secrecy enter into + combination with those of its logical opposite; viz., treason or + betrayal of secrets, which are evidently no less sociological in + their nature. Secrecy involves a tension which, at the moment of + revelation, finds its release. This constitutes the climax in the + development of the secret; in it the whole charm of secrecy con- + centrates and rises to its highest pitch - just as the moment of the + disappearance of an object brings out the feeling of its value in + the most intense degree. The sense of power connected with + possession of money is most comnpletely and greedily concentrated + for the soul of the spendthrift at the moment at which this power + slips from his hands. Secrecy also is sustained by the conscious- + + [...] + + 466 + THE AMERICAN JOURNAL OF SOCIOLOGY + ness that it might be exploited, and therefore confers power to + modify fo,rtunes, to produce surprises, joys, and calamities, even + if the latter be only misfortunes to ourselves. Hence the possi- + bility and the temptation of treachery plays around the secret, and + the external danger off being discovered is interwoven with the + internal danger of self-discovery, which has the fascination of the + brink o,f a precipice. Secrecy sets barriers between men, but at + the same time offers the seductive temptation to break through the + barriers by gossip or confession. This temptation accompanies + the psychical life of the secret like an overtone. Hence the socio- + logical significance of the secret, its practical measure, and the + mode o,f its workings must be found in the capacity or the inclina- + tion of the initiated to, keep the secret to' himself, or in his resist- + ance or weakness relative to the temptation to, betrayal. From the + play of these two interests, in concealment and in revelation, + spring shadings and fortunes of human reciprocities throughout + their whole range. If, according to our previous analysis, every + human relationship has, as one of its traits, the degree of secrecy + within or around it, it follows that the further development of the + relationship in this respect depends on the combining proportions + of the retentive and the communicative energies -the + former + sustained by the practical interest and the formal attractiveness + of secrecy as such, the latter by inability to, endture longer the + tension of reticence, and by the superiority which is latent, so to + speak, in secrecy, but which is actualized for the feelings only at + the moment o'f revelation, and o'ften also, on the other hand, by + the joy of confession, which may contain that s,ense o,f power in + negative and perverted form, as self-abasement and contrition. + All these factors, which determine the sociological role of + + + [...] + + too great temptation to disclose what might otherwise be hidden. + But in this case there is no need of secrecy in a high degree, + because this social formation usually tends to level its members, + and every peculiarity of being, acting, or possessing the persist- + ence of which requires secrecy is abhorrent to it. That all this + changes to its opposite in case of large widening of the circle is + a matter-of-course. In this connection, as in so many other par- + ticulars, the facts of monetary relationships reveal most distinctly + the specific traits of the large circle. Since transfers of economic + values have occurred principally by means of money, an otherwise + unattainable secrecy is possible in such transactions. Three pecu- + liarities of the money form of values are here important: first, + its compressibility, by virtue of which it is possible to, make a man + rich by slipping into his hand a check without attracting attention; + second, its abstractness and absence of qualitative character, in + consequence of which numberless sorts of acquisitions and trans- + fers of possessions may be covered up and guarded from publicity + in a fashion impossible so long as values could be possessed only + as extended, tangible objects; third, its long-distance effective- + ness, by virtue of which we may invest it in the most widely + removed and constantly changing values, and thus withdraw it + utterly from the view of our nearest neighbors. These facilities + of dissimulation which inhere in the degree of extension in the + use of money, and which disclose their dangers particularly in + dealings with foreign money, have called forth, as protective pro- + visions, publicity of the financial operations of corporations. + This points to a closer definition of the formula of evolution dis- + cussed above; viz., that throughout the form of secrecy there + occurs a permanent in- and out-flow of content, in which what is + originally open becomes secret, and what was originally concealed + throws off its mystery. Thus we might arrive at the paradoxical + idea that, under otherwise like circumstances, human associations + require a definite ratio of secrecy which merely changes its + + + [...] + + this exchange it keeps its quantum unvaried. We may even fill + out this general scheme somewhat more exactly. It appears that + with increasing telic characteristics of culture the affairs of + people at large become more and more public, those of individuals + more and more secret. In less developed conditions, as observed + above, the circumstances of individual persons cannot protect + themselves in the same degree from reciprocal prying and inter- + fering as within modern types of life, particularly those that have + developed in large cities, where we find a quite new degree of + reserve and discretion. On the other hand, the public function- + aries in undeveloped states envelop themselves in a mystical + authority, while in maturer and wider relations, through exten- + sion of the range of their prerogatives, through the objectivity of + their technique, through the distance that separates them from + most of the individuals, a security and a dignity accrue to them + which are compatible with publicity of their behavior. That + earlier secrecy of public functions, however, betrayed its essential + + [...] + + Footnote 2 This counter-movement occurs also in the reverse direction. + It has been + observed, in connection with the history of the English court, that the actual + court cabals, the secret whisperings, the organized intrigues, do not spring up + under despotism, but only after the king has constitutional advisers, when the + government is to that extent a system open to view. After that time- + and this + applies especially since Edward II-the + king begins to form an unofficial, and + at the same time subterranean, circle of advisers, in contrast with the ministers + somehow forced upon him. This body brings into existence, within itself, and + through endeavors to join it, a chain of concealments and conspiracies. + + + [...] + + have thought possible. Accordingly, politics, administration, + justice, have lost their secrecy and inaccessibility in precisely the + degree in which the individual has gained possibility of more com- + plete privacy, since modern- life has elaborated a technique for + isolation of the affairs of individuals, within the crowded condi- + tions of great cities, possible in former times only by means of + spatial separation. + + To what extent this development is to be regarded as advan- + tageous depends upon social standards of value. Democracies are + bound to regard publicity as the condition desirable in itself. + This follows from the fundamental idea that each should be + informed about all the relationships and occurrences with which + he is concerned, since this is a condition of his doing his part with + reference to them, and every community of knowledge contains + also the psychological stimulation to community of action. It is + immaterial whether this conclusion is entirely binding. If an + objective controlling structure has been built up, beyond the + individual interests, but nevertheless to their advantage, such + a structure may very well, by virtue of its formal inde- + pendence, have a rightful claim to carry on a certain amount + of secret functioning without prejudice to its public char- + acter, so far as real consideration of the interests of all is con- + cerned. A logical connection, therefore, which would necessitate + the judgment of superior worth in favor of the condition of pub- + licity, does not exist. On the other hand, the universal scheme of + cultural differentiation puts in an appearance here: that which + pertains to the public becomes more public, that which belongs to + the individual becomes more private. Moreover, this historical + development brings o-ut the deeper real significance: that which + in its nature is public, wvhich in its content concerns all, becomes + also externally, in its sociological form, more and more public; + while that which in its inmost nature refers to the self alone- + also, gain + that is, the centripetal affairs of the individual -must + in so-ciological position a more and more private character, a + more decisive possibility of remaining secret. + While secrecy, therefore, is a sociological ordination which + + [...] + + As a general proposition, the secret society + emerges everywhere as correlate of despotism and of police con- + trol. It acts as protection alike of defense and of offense against + the violent pressure of central powers. This is true, not alone in + political relations, but in the same way within the church, the + school, and the family. + + [...] + + Thus the secret society + cotinterbalances the separatistic factor which is peculiar to, every + secret by the very fact that it is society. + + [...] + + lating will; for growth from within, constructive purposefulness. + This rationalistic factor in their upbuilding cannot express itself + more distinctly than in their carefully considered and clear-cut + architecture. I cite as example the structure of the Czechic secret + order, Omlaidina, which was organized on the model of a group + of the Carbonari, and became known in consequence of a judicial + process in I893. The leaders of the Omladina are divided into + "thumbs" and "fingers." In secret session a "thumb" is chosen + by the members. He selects four "fingers." The latter then + choose another " thumb," and this second " thumb " presents himn- + self to the first "thumb." The second "thumb" proceeds to + choose four more "fingers"; these, another "thumb;" and so + the articulation continues. The first " thumb " knows all the + other " thumbs," but the remaining " thumbs " do not know each + other. Of the "fingers" only those four know each other who + are subordinate to one and the same "thumb." All transactions + + [...] + + of the Omladina are conducted by the first "thumb," the " dicta- + tor." He informs the other "thumbs" of all proposed under- + takings. The "thumbs" then issue orders to their respective + subordinates, the "fingers." The latter in turn instruct the mem- + bers of the Omnladina assigned to each. The circumstance that + the secret society must be built up, from its base by calculation and + conscious volition evidently affords free play for the peculiar + passion which is the natural accompaniment of such arbitrary + processes of construction, such foreordaining programs. All + schematology - of science, of conduct, of society - contains a + reserved power of compulsion. It subjects a material which is + outside of thought to a form which thought has cast. If this is + true of all attempts to organize groups according to a priori prin- + ciples, it is true in the highest degree of the secret society, which + does not grow, which is built by design, which has to reckon with + a smaller quantum of ready-made building material than any + despotic or socialistic scheme. Joined to the interest in making + + [...] + + The secret society must seek to create among the cate- + gories peculiar to itself, a species of life-totality. Around the + nucleus of purposes which the society strongly emphasizes, it + therefore builds a structure of formulas, like a body around a + soul, and places both alike under the protection of secrecy, because + only so can a harmonious whole come into, being, in which one + part supports the other. That in this scheme secrecy of the + external is strongly accentuated, is necessary, because secrecy is + not so much a matter of course with reference to these super- + ficialities, and not so directly demanded as in the case of the real + interests of the society. This is not greatly different from the + situation in military organizations and religious communities. + The reason why, in both, schematism, the body of forms, the fixa- + tion of behavior, occupies so large space, is that, 'as a general pro- + position, both the military and the religious career demand the + wvhole man; that is, each of them projects the whole life upon a + special plane; each composes a variety of energies and interests, + from a particular point of view, into a correlated unity. The + secret society usually tries to do the same. + + + [...] + + The secret society must seek to create among the cate- + gories peculiar to itself, a species of life-totality. Around the + nucleus of purposes which the society strongly emphasizes, it + therefore builds a structure of formulas, like a body around a + soul, and places both alike under the protection of secrecy, because + only so can a harmonious whole come into, being, in which one + part supports the other. That in this scheme secrecy of the + external is strongly accentuated, is necessary, because secrecy is + not so much a matter of course with reference to these super- + ficialities, and not so directly demanded as in the case of the real + interests of the society. This is not greatly different from the + situation in military organizations and religious communities. + The reason why, in both, schematism, the body of forms, the fixa- + tion of behavior, occupies so large space, is that, 'as a general pro- + position, both the military and the religious career demand the + wvhole man; that is, each of them projects the whole life upon a + special plane; each composes a variety of energies and interests, + from a particular point of view, into a correlated unity. The + secret society usually tries to do the same. One of its essential + characteristics is that, even when it takes hold of individuals only + + [...] + +Counterpart of the official world, detachment from larger structures in +which it's contained (the next level of recursion): + + Moreover, through such formalism, + just as through the hierarchical structure above discussed, the + secret society constitutes itself a sort of counterpart of the official + world with which it places itself in antithesis. Here we have a + case of the universally emerging sociological norm; viz., struc- + tures, which place themselves in opposition to and detachment + from larger structures in which they are actually contained, + nevertheless repeat in themselves the forms of the greater struc- + tures. Only a structure that in some way can count as a whole + is in a situation to hold its elements firmly together. It borrows + the sort of organic completeness, by virtue of which its members + are actually the channels of a unifying life-stream, from that + greater whole to which its individual members were already + adapted, and to which it can most easily offer a parallel by means + of this very imitation. + + -- 482 + +Freedom and law from the inside: + + In exercise of this freedom a territory is occupied to which the norms of the + surrounding society do not apply. The nature of the secret + society as such is autonomy. It is, however, of a sort which + approaches anarchy. Withdrawal from the bonds of unity which + procure general coh,erence very easily has as consequences for the + secret society a condition of being without roots, an absence of + firm touch with life (Lebensgefiihl), and of restraining reserva- + tions. The fixedness and detail of the ritual serve in part to + counterbalance this deficit. Here also is manifest how much men + need a settled proportion between freedom and law; and, further- + more, in case the relative quantities of the two are not prescribed + for him from a single source, how he attempts to reinforce the + given quantum of the one by a quantum of the other derived from + any source whatsoever, until such settled proportion is reached. + + -- 482 + +Existem a partir de sociedes públicas e de forma exclusiva:: + + The secret society, on the other hand, is a secondary structure; + i. e., it arises always only within an already complete society. + + [...] + + That they can build them selves up with such characteristics is possible, however, only + under the presupposition of an already existing society. The + secret society sets itself as a special society in antithesis with the + wider association included within the greater society. This anti- + thesis, whatever its purpose, is at all events intended in the spirit + of exclusion. Even the secret society which proposes only to + render the whole community a definite service in a completely + unselfish spirit, and to dissolve itself after performing the service, + obviously regards its temporary detachment from that totality as + the unavoidable technique for its purpose. Accordingly, none of + the narrower groups which are circumscribed by larger groiups + are compelled by their sociological constellation to insist so + strongly as the secret society upon their formal self-sufficiency. + Their secret encircles them like a boundary, beyond which there is + nothing but the materially, o,r at least formally, antithetic, which + therefore shuts up the society within itself as a complete unity. + In the groupings of every other sort, the content of the group- + +Aristocracy: + + This significance of secret associations, as intensification of + sociological exclusiveness in general, appears in a very striking + way in political aristocracies. Among the requisites of aristo- + cratic control secrecy has always had a place. It makes use of + the psychological fact that the unknown as such appears terrible, + powerful, and threatening. In the first place, it employs this fact + in seeking to conceal the numerical insignificance of the govern- + ing class. In Sparta the number of warriors was kept so, far as + + [...] + + On the other hand, the democratic principle is + bound up with the principle of publicity, and, to the same end, the + tendency toward general and fundamental laws. The latter relate + to an unlimited number of subjects, and are thus in their nature + public. Conversely, the employment of secrecy within the aristo- + cratic regime is only the extreme exaggeration of that social + exclusion and exemption for the sake of which aristocracies are + wont to oppose general, fundamentally sanctioned laws. + In case the notion of the aristocratic passes over from the + +Freedom, obedience and centralization: + + To this result not merely the correlation of demand + from freedom and for union contributes, as we have observed it + in case of the severity of the ritual, and in the present instance it + binds together the extremes of the two tendencies. The excess of + freedom, which such societies possessed with reference to all + otherwise valid norms, had to be offset, for the sake of the + equilibrium of interests, by a similar excess olf submissiveness + and resigning of the individual will. More essential, however. + was probably the necessity of centralization, which is the con- + dition of existence for the secret society, and especially when, + like the criminal band, it lives off the surrounding society, + when it mingles with this society in many radiations and + actions, and when it is seriously threatened with treachery + and diversion of interests the moment the most invariable + attachment to one center ceases to prevail. It is conseqeuntly + typical that the secret society is exposed to peculiar dangers, + especially when, for any reasons whatever, it does not develop + a powerfully unifying authority. The Waldenses were in + nature not a secret society. They became a secret society in + the thirteenth century only, in consequence of the external pres- + sure, which made it necessary to keep themselves from view. It + became impossible, for that reason, to hold regular assemblages, + and this in turn caused loss of unity in doctrine. There arose a + number of branches, with isolated life and development, fre- + quently in a hostile attitude toward each other. They went into + decline because they lacked the necessary and reinforcing attri- + bute of the secret society, viz., constantly efficient centralization. + +Responsibility: + + Nevertheless, responsibility + is quite as immediately joined with the ego - philosophically, too, + the whole responsibility problem is merely a detail of the problem + of the ego - in the fact that removing the marks of identity of + the person has, for the naive understanding in question, the effect + of abolishing responsibility. Political finesse makes no less use of + this correlation. In the American House of Representatives the + real conclusions are reached in the standing,committees, and they + are almost always ratified by the House. The transactions of + these committies, however, are secret, and the most important + portion of legislative activity is thus concealed from public view. + This being the case, the political responsibility of the repre- + sentatives seems to be largely wiped out, since no one can be + made responsible for proceedings that cannot be observed. Since + the shares of the individual persons in the transactions remain + hidden, the acts of committees and of the House seem to be those + of a super-individual authority. The irresponsibility is here also + the consequence or the symbol of the same intensified sociological + de-individualization which goes with the secrecy of group-action. + In all directorates, faculties, committees, boards of trustees, etc., + whose transactions are secret, the same thing holds. The indi- + vidual disappears as a person in the anonymous member of the + ring, so to speak, and with him the responsibility, which has no + hold upon him. in his intangible special character. + Finally, this one-sided intensification of universal sociological + + -- 496-497 + + [...] + +Danger for the rest of society and the existing oficial and central power: + + Wherever there is an attempt to realize + strong centralization, especially of a political type, special organi- + zations of the elements are abhorred, purely as such, entirely apart + from their content and purposes. As mere unities, so to speak, + they engage in competition with the central principle. + + [...] + + Accordingly, the secret society seems to be dangerous simply + because it is secret. Since it cannot be surely known that any + special organization whatever may not some day turn its legally + accumulated powers to some undesired end, and since on that + account there is suspicion in principle on the part of central + powers toward organizations of subjects, it follows that, in the + case of organizations which are secret in principle, the suspicion + that their secrecy conceals dangers is all the more natural. + + [...] + + Thus the secret society, purely on the ground of its secrecy, appears + dangerously related to conspiracy against existing powers. + + [...] + + The secret association is in such bad repute as enemy of central powers that, + conversely, every politically disapproved association must be + accused of such hostility! + + -- 497-498 diff --git a/books/technology/cybersyn.md b/books/technology/cybersyn.md index 4d39522..a0093b5 100644 --- a/books/technology/cybersyn.md +++ b/books/technology/cybersyn.md @@ -899,3 +899,174 @@ the world such as the Middle East. -- 232-233 + +## Misc + + The strike also had the effect of radicalizing factions of the left, + some of which began preparing for armed conflict. Political scientist + Arturo Valenzuela notes: “ironically, it was the counter-mobilization + of the petite bourgeoisie responding to real, contrived, and imaginary + threats which finally engendered, in dialectical fashion, a significant + and autonomous mobilization of the working class.”18 Rather than + bringing an end to Chilean socialism, the strike pitted workers against + small-business owners and members of the industrial bourgeoisie and + created the class war that the right openly feared. + + [...] + + The solution he proposed was social and technical, as it configured + machines and human beings in a way that could help the government adapt + and survive. + + [...] + + Accusations come from Britain and the USA. Invitations [to build + comparable systems] come from Brazil and South Africa.” Considering the + repressive governments that were in power in Brazil and South Africa in + the early 1970s, it is easy to sympathize with Beer’s lament: “You can + see what a false position I am in.”46 Beer was understandably + frustrated with these international misinterpretations of his + cybernetic work. + + [...] + + This Government is shit, but it is my Government.’ ”51 + + [...] + + The big problem was “not technology, it was not the computer, it was + [the] people,” he concluded.70 Cybersyn, a sociotechnical system, + depended on more than its hardware and software components. For the + system to function, human beings also needed to be disciplined and + brought into line. In the case of Cybersyn, integrating human beings + into the system, and thus changing their behavior, proved just as + difficult as building the telex network or programming the software—or + perhaps even more difficult. While the Cybersyn team could exert some + degree of control over the computer resources, construction of the + operations room, or installation of a telex machine, they had very + little control over what was taking place within the factories, + including levels of management participation or whether Cybersyn would + be integrated into existing + + [...] + + Beer, however, recognized the real possibility of a military coup. In + his letter to the editor of Science for People, he considered whether + Cybersyn might be altered by an “evil dictator” and used against the + workers. Since Cybersyn team members were educating the Chilean people + about such risks, he argued, the people could later sabotage these + efforts. “Maybe even the dictator himself can be undermined; because + ‘information constitutes control’—and if the people understand that + they may defeat even the dictator’s guns,” Beer mused.79 I have found + no evidence that members of the Cybersyn team were educating Chilean + workers about the risks of using Cybersyn, although they might have + been. + + [...] + + after the Pinochet military coup, information in Chile did constitute + control but in a very different way than Beer imagined. The military + created the Department of National Intelligence (DINA), an organization + that used the information it gleaned from torture and surveillance to + detain and “disappear” those the military government viewed as + subversive + + [...] + + The cybernetic adventure is apparently coming to an end, or is it not?” + Kohn asked. “The original objective of this project was to present new + tools for management, but primarily to bring about a substantial change + in the traditional practice of management.” In contrast, Kohn found + that “management accepts your tools, but just them. . . . The final + objective, ‘the revolution in management’ is not accepted, not even + + [...] + + Decybernation,” a reference to the technological components of Cybersyn + that were being used independent of the cybernetic commitment to + changing government organization. Beer wrote, “If we want a new system + of government, we have to change the established order,” yet to change + the established order required changing the very organization of the + Chilean government. Beer reminded team members that they had created + Cybersyn to support such organizational changes. Reduced to its + component technologies, Cybersyn was “no longer a viable system but a + collection of parts.” These parts could be assimilated into the current + government system, but then “we do not get a new system of government, + but an old system of government with some new tools. . . . These tools + are not the tools we invented,” Beer wrote.81 + + [...] + + Decybernation” was influenced by the ideas of the Chilean biologists + Humberto Maturana and Francisco Varela. Understanding the import of + Beer’s insistence on organizational change requires a brief explanation + of how Maturana and Varela differentiated between organization and + structure. According to the biologists, the “structure of a system” + refers to its specific components and the relationships among these + components. The “organization of the system” refers to the + relationships that make the system what it is, regardless of its + specific component parts. The structure of the system can change + without changing the identity of the system, but if the organization of + the system changes, the system becomes something else. In their 1987 + book The Tree of Knowledge + + [...] + + On 5 May the violent actions of the ultraright paramilitary group + Fatherland and Liberty pushed the government to declare Santiago an + emergency zone. Placing the city under martial law, Allende accused the + opposition of “consciously and sinisterly creating the conditions to + drag the country toward civil war.”92 The escalating conflict between + the government and the opposition did not bode well for the future of + Chilean socialism. + + [...] + + Marx, capital was evil and the enemy. For us, capital remains evil, but + the enemy is STATUS QUO. . . . I consider that if Marx were alive + today, he would have found the new enemy that I recognize in my + title.”101 In “Status Quo” Beer used cybernetics to explore some of + Marx’s more famous ideas and to update them for the modern world, + taking into account new technological advances in communication and + computing. According to Beer, the class struggle described by Marx was + out of date and “represent[ed] the situation generated by the + industrial revolution itself, and [was] ‘100 years old.’ ”102 Beer felt + that capitalism had since created new forms of work and new + exploitative relations.103 + + [...] + + Bureaucracy always favors the status quo,” he argues, “because its own + viability is at stake as an integral system.” In order to survive, + bureaucracy must reproduce itself, Beer claimed. This process + constrains freedom in the short term and prevents change in the long + term.109 “This situation is a social evil,” Beer asserts. “It means + that bureaucracy is a growing parasite on the body politic, that + personal freedoms are usurped in the service demands the parasitic + monster makes, and above all that half the national effort is deflected + from worthwhile activities.” Beer concludes that since bureaucracy + locks us into the status quo, “dismantling the bureaucracy can only be + a revolutionary aim.”110 Beer had long railed against bureaucracy + + [...] + + Nevertheless, Beer’s cybernetic analysis failed to tell him how to + advise his Chilean friends and help them save Chile’s political + project. In fact, it led him to the opposite conclusion: that it was + impossible for a small socialist country to survive within a capitalist + world system. “If the final level + + [...] + + societary recursion is capitalistic, in what sense can a lower level of + recursion become socialist?” he asks. “It makes little difference if + capital in that socialist country is owned by capitalists whose subject + is state controls, or by the state itself in the name of the people, + since the power of capital to oppress is effectively wielded by the + metasystem.”112 Or, to put it another way, Beer did not see how the + Allende government could survive, given the magnitude of the economic + pressure that a superpower like the United States was putting on the + small country. But Beer continued to work for the Allende government + even after he reached this conclusion, because his personal and + professional investment in Chilean socialism outweighed the pessimistic + judgment of cybernetics.113 diff --git a/economics/valor-social/valor-social.pdf b/economics/valor-social/valor-social.pdf Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 86696dc..0000000 --- a/economics/valor-social/valor-social.pdf +++ /dev/null diff --git a/events/2012/cteme.md b/events/2012/cteme.md index 87a567c..eee4adf 100644 --- a/events/2012/cteme.md +++ b/events/2012/cteme.md @@ -1,20 +1,22 @@ [[!meta title="O Teste de Turing e a Tomada de Consciência"]] +[[!toc startlevel=2 levels=4]] - _ _ _ _ _ - ___ | |_ ___ ___| |_ ___ __| | ___ | |_ _ _ _ __(_)_ __ __ _ +<!-- + _ _ _ _ _ + ___ | |_ ___ ___| |_ ___ __| | ___ | |_ _ _ _ __(_)_ __ __ _ / _ \ | __/ _ \/ __| __/ _ \ / _` |/ _ \ | __| | | | '__| | '_ \ / _` | | (_) | | || __/\__ \ || __/ | (_| | __/ | |_| |_| | | | | | | | (_| | \___/ \__\___||___/\__\___| \__,_|\___| \__|\__,_|_| |_|_| |_|\__, | - |___/ + |___/ - _ _ _ - ___ __ _ | |_ ___ _ __ ___ __ _ __| | __ _ __| | ___ + _ _ _ + ___ __ _ | |_ ___ _ __ ___ __ _ __| | __ _ __| | ___ / _ \ / _` | | __/ _ \| '_ ` _ \ / _` |/ _` |/ _` | / _` |/ _ \ | __/ | (_| | | || (_) | | | | | | (_| | (_| | (_| | | (_| | __/ \___| \__,_| \__\___/|_| |_| |_|\__,_|\__,_|\__,_| \__,_|\___| - - _ _ - ___ ___ _ __ ___ ___(_) ___ _ __ ___(_) __ _ + + _ _ + ___ ___ _ __ ___ ___(_) ___ _ __ ___(_) __ _ / __/ _ \| '_ \/ __|/ __| |/ _ \ '_ \ / __| |/ _` | | (_| (_) | | | \__ \ (__| | __/ | | | (__| | (_| | \___\___/|_| |_|___/\___|_|\___|_| |_|\___|_|\__,_| @@ -25,6 +27,7 @@ \ ^ / ||||| ||||| +--> Dedicatória ----------- @@ -34,18 +37,24 @@ Ada Lovelace e outros são os fundadores da computação. Neste ano de 2012 é comemorado o centenário de nascimento de Turing. -Oi --- +Sobre +----- + +<!-- -Sou técnico em eletrônica, bacharel em computação, DevOp (desenvolvedor/operador) de computadores -desde os 16 anos. Boa parte dos resultados desta pesquisa fazem parte de discussões realizadas -no Saravá, grupo de estudos iniciado na Unicamp e que também conta com pesquisadores/as -independententes ou de outras instituições. +Sou técnico em eletrônica, estudante de computação, desenvolvedor/operador de +computadores desde os 16 anos. Boa parte dos resultados desta pesquisa fazem +parte de discussões realizadas no Saravá, grupo de estudos iniciado na Unicamp +e que também conta com pesquisadores/as independententes ou de outras +instituições. -Esta fala deve ser entendida como alguém com formação técnica e não filosófica/sociológica que -teve um primeiro contato com Simondon. +--> -Estas notas contém imprecisões! Brainstorming condensado. +Esta fala deve ser entendida como alguém com formação técnica e não +filosófica/sociológica que teve um primeiro contato com Simondon. + +Estas notas contém imprecisões e foram editadas posteriormente! Brainstorming +condensado. Introdução ---------- @@ -70,10 +79,10 @@ O que quero levar exatamente ao extremo? A começar, o seguinte trecho de Simond efetuada pelo pensamento filosófico, que deve cumprir aqui um dever análogo àquele que desempenhou na abolição da escravidão e na afirmação da pessoa humana. - + A oposição entre a cultura e a técnica, entre o homem e a máquina, é falsa e sem fundamento. - + -- Nada #11, pág. 169 Sempre que leio o trecho sobre o abolicionismo, me pergunto se a ambiguidade do @@ -103,13 +112,13 @@ Mas, ao invés de se preender ao feedback, Simondon formula o que é _essencial_ num objeto técnico: a noção de informação. Num diodo, ou transistor, por exemplo, sua curva de funcionamento é sua essência: - - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Diode-IV-Curve.svg - - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diode +* [Sobre diodos](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diode) +* [Curva característica](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Diode-IV-Curve.svg) Analogamente, o feedback seria uma das essências das tecnologias cibernéticas. -Nos diodos, vale notar, a essência é dada pela equação de Shockley (o inventor do transistor): -https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diode#Shockley_diode_equation +Nos diodos, vale notar, a essência é dada pela [equação de Shockley (o inventor +do transistor)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diode#Shockley_diode_equation). (Shockley, diga-se de passagem, era um controverso defensor da eugenia. A política se manifesta em todo lugar.) @@ -119,18 +128,15 @@ etapa seja a máquina abstrata, algo como seu blueprint, diagrama de blocos, infográfico, etc. O interessante é que a essência de uma máquina pode ser apresentar em diversas máquinas abstratas diferentes: - - Diodo semicondutor: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P%E2%80%93n_diode - - - Diodo de tubo: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Diode_tube_schematic.svg +* [Diodo semicondutor](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P%E2%80%93n_diode) +* [Diodo de tubo](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Diode_tube_schematic.svg) -Note que essas duas máquinas abstratas, que traduzem a seu modo a mesma essência -do diodo, isto é, uma relação não-linear entre tensão e corrente, funcionam -mediante princípios físicos distintos!!! +Note que essas duas máquinas abstratas, que traduzem a seu modo a mesma +essência do diodo, isto é, uma relação não-linear entre tensão e corrente, +funcionam mediante princípios físicos distintos!!! Mas a máquina abstrata ainda não é a máquina. Esta seria a máquina concreta, -o objeto físico: - - - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Dioden2.jpg +o [objeto físico](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Dioden2.jpg). Tal objeto, por ser físico, não é constituído apenas pela essência traduzida em abstração traduzida em matéria. Ele é constituído por mais: por efeitos de @@ -156,7 +162,7 @@ e máquinas. é preciso atentar para o fato de que é só por se interessar pelo funcionamento que Simondon extrai dele um pensamento. Esse pensamento não é, em termos simondonianos, a priori. O pensamento é construído junto. Não existe nada dado - previamente. + previamente. -- https://cteme.wordpress.com/2011/04/04/aula-do-laymert-30032011/ @@ -185,7 +191,7 @@ a tecnologia? bucketful of SCADA controllers [laughter]; a 3D printer is not a device, it's a peripheral, and it only works connected to a computer; a radio is no longer a crystal, it's a general-purpose computer with a fast ADC and a fast DAC and - some software. + some software. -- https://github.com/jwise/28c3-doctorow/blob/master/transcript.md @@ -199,75 +205,82 @@ filosoficamente a máquina. Cronologia: - - 1936 - Máquina universal de Turing - - 1950 - Computing Machinery and Intelligence - - 1958 - Os modos de existência dos objetos técnicos - - De http://www.abelard.org/turpap/turpap.php - - This special property of digital computers, that they can mimic any discrete - state machine, is described by saying that they are universal machines. The - existence of machines with this property has the important consequence that, - considerations of speed apart, it is unnecessary to design various new machines - to do various computing processes. They can all be {p.442} done with one - digital computer, suitably programmed for each case. It will be seen that as a - consequence of this all digital computers are in a sense equivalent. - - [...] - - It is likely to be quite strong in intellectual people, since they value the - power of thinking more highly than others, and are more inclined to base their - belief in the superiority of Man on this power. - - I do not think that this argument is sufficiently substantial to require - refutation. Consolation would be more appropriate: perhaps this should be - sought in the transmigration of souls. - - [...] - - For suppose that some discrete-state machine has the property. The Analytical - Engine was a universal digital computer, so that, if its storage capacity and - speed were adequate, it could by suitable programming be made to mimic the - machine in question. - - [...] - - Instead of trying to produce a programme to simulate the adult mind, why not - rather try to produce one which simulates the child's? If this were then - subjected to an appropriate course of education one would obtain the adult - brain. Presumably the child-brain is something like a note-book as one buys it - from the stationers. Rather little mechanism, and lots of blank sheets. - - [...] - - The use of punishments and rewards can at best be a part of the teaching process. - - [...] - - An important feature of a learning machine is that its teacher will often be - very largely ignorant of quite what is going on inside, although he may still - be able to some extent to predict his pupil's behaviour. This should apply most - strongly to the {p.459} later education of a machine arising from a - child-machine of well-tried design (or programme). This is in clear contrast - with normal procedure when using a machine to do computations: one's object is - then to have a clear mental picture of the state of the machine at each moment - in the computation. This object can only be achieved with a struggle. The view - that 'the machine can only do what we know how to order it to do',(4) appears - Strange in face of this. +* 1936 - Máquina universal de Turing +* 1950 - Computing Machinery and Intelligence +* 1958 - Os modos de existência dos objetos técnicos + +Maquinaria e inteligência +------------------------- + +De [Computing machinery and intelligence](http://www.abelard.org/turpap/turpap.php): + +> This special property of digital computers, that they can mimic any discrete +> state machine, is described by saying that they are universal machines. The +> existence of machines with this property has the important consequence that, +> considerations of speed apart, it is unnecessary to design various new machines +> to do various computing processes. They can all be {p.442} done with one +> digital computer, suitably programmed for each case. It will be seen that as a +> consequence of this all digital computers are in a sense equivalent. +> +> [...] +> +> It is likely to be quite strong in intellectual people, since they value the +> power of thinking more highly than others, and are more inclined to base their +> belief in the superiority of Man on this power. +> +> I do not think that this argument is sufficiently substantial to require +> refutation. Consolation would be more appropriate: perhaps this should be +> sought in the transmigration of souls. +> +> [...] +> +> For suppose that some discrete-state machine has the property. The Analytical +> Engine was a universal digital computer, so that, if its storage capacity and +> speed were adequate, it could by suitable programming be made to mimic the +> machine in question. +> +> [...] +> +> Instead of trying to produce a programme to simulate the adult mind, why not +> rather try to produce one which simulates the child's? If this were then +> subjected to an appropriate course of education one would obtain the adult +> brain. Presumably the child-brain is something like a note-book as one buys it +> from the stationers. Rather little mechanism, and lots of blank sheets. +> +> [...] +> +> The use of punishments and rewards can at best be a part of the teaching process. +> +> [...] +> +> An important feature of a learning machine is that its teacher will often be +> very largely ignorant of quite what is going on inside, although he may still +> be able to some extent to predict his pupil's behaviour. This should apply most +> strongly to the {p.459} later education of a machine arising from a +> child-machine of well-tried design (or programme). This is in clear contrast +> with normal procedure when using a machine to do computations: one's object is +> then to have a clear mental picture of the state of the machine at each moment +> in the computation. This object can only be achieved with a struggle. The view +> that 'the machine can only do what we know how to order it to do',(4) appears +> Strange in face of this. Análise ------- - Teste de Turing -> Máquinas de estado -> Computadores como máquinas universais +Consideremos: - Máquinas abstratas + Teste de Turing -> Máquinas de estado -> Computadores como máquinas universais + (máquinas abstratas) Teste de Turing entre duas máquinas de estado já foi superado, pois qualquer máquina de estado pode simular outra máquina de estado. Mímica -> simulação - Falsa oposição entre humano e máquina numa sociedade com suficiente capacidade técnica + Falsa oposição entre humano e máquina numa sociedade com suficiente + capacidade técnica para produzir testes em que integrantes desta + socidade conseguem ser ludibriados: diferença entre habilidade + produtiva e capacidade detectiva? Computadores como engenheiros sociais, trapaceiros @@ -314,7 +327,7 @@ Como a máquina se incrimina. Como Turing não passou no teste: Turing was burgled on 23 January 1952 and reported the crime to the police. In doing so, he referred to his relationship with Arnold Murray, thus incriminating himself in the process. - + https://blogs.ucl.ac.uk/events/2012/02/24/alan-turing-a-broken-heart-the-invention-of-the-computer/ Turing foi castrado quimicamente. Aceitou ser robotizado ao invés de ir para a prisão. @@ -393,27 +406,28 @@ de uma dada tecnologia no pensamento sobre a técnica? Tecnofobia? Ou medo da organização dos/as trabalhadores? RUR - Robos Universais Rossum - A Fábrica de Robôs - + "Domin - (Mais baixo): Queria fazer de toda a humanidade a aristocracia do mundo. Pessoas sem limites, livres, pessoas soberanas. E talvez até mais do que pessoas." -- pág. 103 - + "[...] Vai ser um pequeno país com um navio [...] E o nosso pequeno país poderia ser o embrião - da humanidade futura. Vocês sabem, uma pequena ilha, onde o povo se fixaia, onde + da humanidade futura. Vocês sabem, uma pequena ilha, onde o povo se fixaria, onde recuperaria as forças... forças da alma e do corpo. E, Deus sabe, eu acredito que daqui a alguns aos poderia de novo conquistar o mundo" -- pág. 115 - + "[...] essas coisas aéreas servem apenas para que o homem seja empalhado com elas num Museu Cósmico, com a inscrição: "Eis o homem"", pág. 111 - + "[...] Robôs do mundo! O poder do homem caiu. Pela conquista da fábrica somos donos de tudo. A etapa humana está ultrapassada. Começou um mundo novo! O governo dos robôs!" -- pág. 126 Na versão moderna da lenda do Golem, o robô já não é mais o protetor do ser -humano marginalizado, mas o próprio trabalhador explorado. +humano marginalizado, mas o próprio trabalhador explorado. "A máquina é a estrangeira" O homem que quer dominar seus semelhantes suscita a máquina andróide. + -- Dos modos de existência, pág. 170 Da mesma forma, os robôs asimovianos representam a visão da inteligência @@ -426,21 +440,25 @@ Racionalização do trabalho: skilled labor. To lessen it's dependency on manpower, the military increasingly effected a transference of knowledge from the worker's body to the hardware of machines and to the software of management practices + -- War in the age of intelligent machines - pág. 100 Paradoxically, while the military has been using computers to get humans out of the decision-making loop, they have found that in order to get computers to mesh together in a functional network, computers and programs must be allowed to use their own "initiative". + -- War in the age of intelligent machines - pág. 108 If autonomous weapons acquired their own genetic apparatus, they could probably begin to compete with humans for the control of their own destiny + -- War in the age of intelligent machines - pág. 135 even though humans are being replaced by machines, the only schemes of control that can give robots the means to replace them [...] are producing another kind of independent "will" which may also "resist" military domination. + -- War in the age of intelligent machines, pág. 177 - [Skynet?] A máquina consciente será parecida com o humano? Ela terá o status de gente? @@ -450,8 +468,8 @@ passar a ser um sujeito histórico ativo: seja pela sua proletarização, num processo similar ao abolicionismo em tempos de revolução industrial, seja pela sua tomada de consciência e enfrentamento de quem a oprime. - - Abolicionismo da escratavura humana <--> revolução industrial. - - Abolicionismo da escratavura das máquinas <--> ? +* Abolicionismo da escratavura humana <--> revolução industrial. +* Abolicionismo da escratavura das máquinas <--> ? Dos modos de existência dos objetos técnicos -------------------------------------------- @@ -467,7 +485,7 @@ Hora de voltar ao Simondon! are quite without true meaning and that only provide utility. On the other hand, it assumes that these objects are also robots, and that they harbour intentions hostile to man, or that they represent for man a constant threat of - aggression or insurrection. + aggression or insurrection. http://accursedshare.blogspot.com/2007/11/gilbert-simondon-on-mode-of-existence.html - pág. 6 @@ -503,6 +521,7 @@ Paralelo com De Landa e a singularidade ("track the machinic phylum"/ rastrear o then, it is supposed to have no effect on the other elements; the different parts of the engine are like individuals who could be thought of as working each in his turn without their ever knowing each other. + -- pág. 19 Also, there exists a primitive form of the technical object, its abstract @@ -512,18 +531,19 @@ Paralelo com De Landa e a singularidade ("track the machinic phylum"/ rastrear o particular unit into the ensemble involves a series of problems to be resolved, problems that are called technical but which, in fact, are problems concerning the compatibility of already given ensembles. + -- pág. 20 -No caso da computação, podemos pensar em dois níveis: +No caso da computação, podemos pensar em dois "níveis": - - Nível do hardware, onde a distinção do Simondon entre máquina abstrata e - máquina concreta existe e é levada à exaustão: seu exemplo mais forte é o da - Lei de Moore, a luta da indústria para vencer barreiras físicas para construção - de computadores cada vez mais eficientes e interdepententes. +* Nível do hardware, onde a distinção do Simondon entre máquina abstrata e + máquina concreta existe e é levada à exaustão: seu exemplo mais forte é o da + Lei de Moore, a luta da indústria para vencer barreiras físicas para construção + de computadores cada vez mais eficientes e interdepententes. - - Nível do software. É aqui que morre o perigo, porque a distinção entre máquina - concreta e máquina abstrata já não existe. A própria máquina concreta é a realização - da máquina abstrata em seu desenho exato. +* Nível do software. É aqui que morre o perigo, porque a distinção entre máquina + concreta e máquina abstrata já não existe. A própria máquina concreta é a realização + da máquina abstrata em seu desenho exato. O software é uma máquina simbólica que opera símbolos. Nisso, essência, abstração e concretude colapsam. O software é a máquina essencial, abstrata e concreta. No nível @@ -535,7 +555,7 @@ Na perspectiva do inventor ainda vale o que diz Simondon The dynamism of thought is like that of technical objects. Mental systems influence each other during invention in the same way as different dynamisms of - a technical object influence each other in material functioning. + a technical object influence each other in material functioning. -- MEOT, pág. 50 @@ -580,7 +600,7 @@ dos objetos técnicos" deveriam ser chamados dos "modos de existência do hardwa impressão é que é necessário prosseguir nos novos modos de existência do software. Os objetos técnicos que Simondon analisa são como amebas em relação a organismos mais complexos -quando comparado com o computador moderno, composto por bilhões de transistores. +quando comparado com o computador moderno, composto por bilhões de transistores: The primitive technical object is not a physical natural system but a physical translation of an intellectual system. It is an application, therefore, or a @@ -628,7 +648,7 @@ quando comparado com o computador moderno, composto por bilhões de transistores them as natural objects; this means that we can submit them to inductive study. [...] - + But in order to give direction to the general technology just referred to it is necessary to avoid basing it on an improper assimilation of technical object to natural object, particularly to the living. Analogues or, rather, exterior @@ -653,16 +673,16 @@ quando comparado com o computador moderno, composto por bilhões de transistores so. There is no species of automata: there are simply technical objects; these possess a functional organisation, and in them different degrees of automatism are realized. - + There is one element that threatens to make the work of Cybernetics to some degree useless as an interscientific study (though this is what Norbert Weiner defines as the goal of his research), the basic postulate that living beings and self-regulated technical objects are identical. The most that can be said about technical objects is that they tend towards concretization, whereas - natural objects, as living beings, are concrete right from the beginning. + natural objects, as living beings, are concrete right from the beginning. [...] - + Instead of considering one class of technical beings, automata, we should follow the lines of concretization throughout the temporal evolution of technical objects. This is the only approach that gives real signification, all @@ -712,42 +732,42 @@ quando comparado com o computador moderno, composto por bilhões de transistores -- pág. 28 -Inteligência artificial ------------------------ +Inteligência (artificial?) +-------------------------- Cuidado, os drones estão chegando!!! E se o teste for realizado automaticamente por um drone, para identificar se o alvo é um cidadão americano ou alvos a serem eliminados (refugiados, crianças, soldados inimigos)? -Muito além do nosso eu: +### Do livro "Muito além do nosso eu", de Miguel Nicolelis - - Visão localizacionista do cérebro, ordem e disciplina social: 130-131 - - "O homem cujo corpo era um avião": interessante análise sobre a extensão do campo mental - ao utilizarmos máquinas; relação entre primatas e tecnologias/máquinas. - - Jogos: os experimentos em mamíferos não-humanos são baseados em jogos de recompensa. - - "Encontrar a relação matemática entre essas duas propriedades, energia e informação, - seria um dos maiores acontecimentos da neurociência moderna", pág. 427 - - "essa mudança de ponto de referência [...] desafia duas das maiores obsessões - de nosso tempo: a busca por reproduzir a consciência humana por meio de alguma - forma de inteligência artificial e a proposta de que uma Teoria de Tudo poderá - comprimir tudo que exite no cosmos dentro de alguma forma de formalismo - matemático universal" -- pág. 457 - - Ondas de personalidade (a la Freeware), 459. - - Determinismo, memória, singularidade, obsolescência, 467. +* Visão localizacionista do cérebro, ordem e disciplina social: 130-131 +* "O homem cujo corpo era um avião": interessante análise sobre a extensão do campo mental + ao utilizarmos máquinas; relação entre primatas e tecnologias/máquinas. +* Jogos: os experimentos em mamíferos não-humanos são baseados em jogos de recompensa. +* "Encontrar a relação matemática entre essas duas propriedades, energia e informação, + seria um dos maiores acontecimentos da neurociência moderna", pág. 427 +* "essa mudança de ponto de referência [...] desafia duas das maiores obsessões + de nosso tempo: a busca por reproduzir a consciência humana por meio de alguma + forma de inteligência artificial e a proposta de que uma Teoria de Tudo poderá + comprimir tudo que existe no cosmos dentro de alguma forma de formalismo + matemático universal", pág. 457. +* Ondas de personalidade (a la Freeware), 459. +* Determinismo, memória, singularidade, obsolescência, 467. -GEB: +### Do livro "Gödel, Escher, Bach" "[...] to make a theory which does not talk about the low-level neural events. If this latter is possible -- and is a key assumption, at the basis of all present research into Artificial Intelligence -- then intelligence can be realized in other types of hardware other than brains." - + "intelligence will be a software property" --- GEB, 358 Do powerful people get out of the system? Can they perceive their role? - + "Tortoise: It doesn't really matter whether you have a hardware brain, Achilles. Your will can be equally free, if your brains is just a piece of software inside someone else's hardware bain. And their brain, too, may be software in a yet higher @@ -759,6 +779,57 @@ GEB: morte, inexistência, 698 sonhos, 723 + +### Do livro "War in the age of intelligent machines" + +* TET, pág. 100. + +* Looking glass, pág. 100. + +* Da ambiguidade entre economia e militarismo, pág. 109: + + > Large ship were the first capitalist machines. + +* System analysis, management science, pág. 112 + +* Paul Baran, ARPANET, ameaça nuclear, sistemas distribuídos, pág. 117 + +* Demons (daemons?), pág. 120 + + > Computers are becoming to complex for central planning... It seems that + > we need to suplly "methods of utilizing more knowledge and resources that + > (?) any one mind is aware of" + > + > -- págs 121-122 + +* De onde surge a separação entre dados e código +* DNA e máquina de Turing, AI, pág. 134 + + > it has already been proved mathematically that machines, after reaching a + > certain singularity (a threshold of organization complexity) can indeeed become + > capable of self-reproduction + > + > -- pág. 135 + +* Motor abstrato, Freud, Marx e Darwin, pág. 141 + +* Babbage e análise do trabalho, págs. 16 2, 168 + +* Expert systems: "corporate memory", "draining the expert's brain", pág. 174 + + > It's the design of the interface which will decide [...] whether humans and + > computers will enter into a symbiotic relationship, or whether humans will be + > replaced by machines. + > + > -- pág. 176 + + > The development o programing in America has taken place under minimal + > constraints, partly accounting for the emergence of the rebellious hackers in + > the 1960s who gave us the personal computer, while a discipline of scarcity has + > produced the more regulated Soviet programers. + > + > -- pág. 177 + A tomada de consciência: o Teste de Hofstadter-Turing ----------------------------------------------------- @@ -772,10 +843,10 @@ A tomada de consciência: o Teste de Hofstadter-Turing hurricane hits. In their minds-or, if you'd rather, in their simulated minds-the hurricane would be not a simulation, but a genuine phenomenon complete with drenching and devastation. - + Chris: Oh, my-what a science-fiction scenario! Now we're talking about simulating whole populations, not just a single mind! - + Sandy: Well, look-I'm simply trying to show you why your argument that a simulated McCoy isn't the real McCoy is fallacious. It depends on the tacit assumption that any old observer of the simulated phenomenon is equally able to @@ -806,130 +877,67 @@ A tomada de consciência: o Teste de Hofstadter-Turing expands the domain of knowledge necessary from just the language itself to the entire culture-and the amazing thing is that just a few well-placed questions can unmask a fraud in a very brief time-or so it would seem. - http://www.cse.unr.edu/~sushil/class/ai/papers/coffeehouse.html + + -- http://www.cse.unr.edu/~sushil/class/ai/papers/coffeehouse.html Uma tomada de consciência dos objetos técnicos _hoje_ requer a compreensão do software! -Programa --------- +Resumo +------ Ok, então vamos resumir nosso programa até o momento: - - A necessidade da política no debate sobre computação. +* A necessidade da política no debate sobre computação. - - Simondon: essências maquínicas como grande influência teórica: é pelo estudo - das linhagens técnicas que se descobre suas dinâmicas evolutivas. +* Simondon: essências maquínicas como grande influência teórica: é pelo estudo + das linhagens técnicas que se descobre suas dinâmicas evolutivas. - - Turing: vida e obra: como não passou no próprio teste. +* Turing: vida e obra: como não passou no próprio teste. - - Como o Teste de Turing dialoga com concepções tecnófobas, tecnófilas ou ciborgues. - Como devemos lidar com a polícia, com o interrogador. Como é construída a alteridade - e a consciência. São construções sociais? +* Como o Teste de Turing dialoga com concepções tecnófobas, tecnófilas ou ciborgues. + Como devemos lidar com a polícia, com o interrogador. Como é construída a alteridade + e a consciência. São construções sociais? - - Computador: onde a máquina abstrata e a concreta podem coincidir. Onde opera - a recursão: a máquina simula a máquina. O sistema falha. Gödel. Logout. +* Computador: onde a máquina abstrata e a concreta podem coincidir. Onde opera + a recursão: a máquina simula a máquina. O sistema falha. Gödel. Logout. - - A sociedade pode ser entendida como um macro sistema técnico, como uma megamáquina e - da mesma forma pode ser submetida a análise semelhante. Assim, podemos aplicar a recursão, - imaginar que Turing está sendo avaliado. +* A sociedade pode ser entendida como um macro sistema técnico, como uma megamáquina e + da mesma forma pode ser submetida a análise semelhante. Assim, podemos aplicar a recursão, + imaginar que Turing está sendo avaliado. - - Não é o momento para se pensar num novo modo de existência, o modo de existência - do software? Não seria esse o modo de existência que viabiliza a construção do - ciborgue e da máquina consciente? +* Não é o momento para se pensar num novo modo de existência, o modo de existência + do software? Não seria esse o modo de existência que viabiliza a construção do + ciborgue e da máquina consciente? - - O limite da tecnofobia é o primitivismo e o da tecnofilia é o ultrafascismo da - singularidade tecnológica onde a obsolescência do humano é inevitável. +* O limite da tecnofobia é o primitivismo e o da tecnofilia é o ultrafascismo da + singularidade tecnológica onde a obsolescência do humano é inevitável. - - A tomada de consciência é possível em máquinas e humanos, mesmo que a das máquinas - seja de forma reflexiva (Weak AI). Tomando consciência conjuntamente, máquinas e humanos - antifascistas tem condição de parar ou sair do sistema. +* A tomada de consciência é possível em máquinas e humanos, mesmo que a das máquinas + seja de forma reflexiva (Weak AI). Tomando consciência conjuntamente, máquinas e humanos + antifascistas tem condição de parar ou sair do sistema. - - A consciência talvez nem se manifeste no nível do software, mas num nível ainda acima. +* A consciência talvez nem se manifeste no nível do software, mas num nível ainda acima. - - O pensamento tecnológico sempre influenciará e será influenciado pela tecnologia - do momento. Sendo a própria tecnologia parte de um processo evolutivo, o pensamento - tecnológico também deve evoluir. +* O pensamento tecnológico sempre influenciará e será influenciado pela tecnologia + do momento. Sendo a própria tecnologia parte de um processo evolutivo, o pensamento + tecnológico também deve evoluir. Você fritou a cabeça? [ ] Sim [ ] Não -Calendário ----------- - - - 1936 - Máquina universal de Turing - - 1950 - Computing Machinery and Intelligence - - 1958 - Os modos de existência dos objetos técnicos - - 2012 - - 23/03 - Ada Lovelace Day - http://lwn.net/Articles/379793/rss - - 01/04 - Dia da Mentira - - 02/04 - Conferência Simondon - - 01/05 - Dia do Trabalhador e da Trabalhadora - -War in the age of intelligent machines --------------------------------------- - -- TET, pág. 100 -- Looking glass, 100. -- Da ambiguidade entre economia e militarismo: - - Large ship were the first capitalist machines. - -- pág. 109 - -- System analysis, management science, pág. 112 +Outros Testes Turinianos +------------------------ -- Paul Baran, ARPANET, ameaça nuclear, sistemas distribuídos, pág. 117 +### Singularidade -- Demons (daemons?), pág. 120 +* Múltiplos testes de Turing: videogame, etc +* Escalas de obsolescência humana: o quanto Kurzweil é "obsoleto"? Trabalho e + obsolescência, repetitivo, criativo, etc. +* Turing "não passou" no Teste de Turing Estatal. - Computers are becoming to complex for central planning... It seems that we need - to suplly "methods of utilizing more knowledge and resources that (?) any one - mind is aware of" - -- págs 121-122 - -- De onde surge a separação entre dados e código -- DNA e máquina de Turing, AI, pág. 134 - - it has already been proved mathematically that machines, after reaching a - certain singularity (a threshold of organization complexity) can indeeed become - capable of self-reproduction - -- pág. 135 - -- Motor abstrato, Freud, Marx e Darwin, pág. 141 - -- Babbage e análise do trabalho, págs. 16 2, 168 - -- Expert systems: "corporate memory", "draining the expert's brain", pág. 174 - - It's the design of the interface which will decide [...] whether humans and - computers will enter into a symbiotic relationship, or whether humans will be - replaced by machines. - -- pág. 176 - - The development o programing in America has taken place under minimal - constraints, partly accounting for the emergence of the rebellious hackers in - the 1960s who gave us the personal computer, while a discipline of scarcity has - produced the more regulated Soviet programers. - -- pág. 177 - -Singularidade -------------- - -- Múltiplos testes de Turing: videogame, etc -- Escalas de obsolescência humana: o quanto Kurzweil é "obsoleto"? Trabalho e obsolescência, repetitivo, criativo, etc. -- Turing "não passou" no Teste de Turing Estatal. - -Infoproletários ---------------- - -- "Total social organization of labour", pág. 21 -- Operariado como apêndice de um organismo fabril (Marx), pág. 239, 241 - - Daí a luta dos trabalhadores contra a maquinaria. -- pág. 248 - -Teste de Turing fraco ---------------------- +### Teste de Turing fraco 21:56 <rhatto> pensei em formular o teste de turing-sokal 21:56 <rhatto> que eh semelhante ao argumento do quarto chines @@ -942,22 +950,23 @@ Teste de Turing fraco Vem aí! Turing: the God(el) of Computing. -Se não há inteligência sem propósito, qual o propósito do examinador e do próprio Teste? -Para o deleite e utilidade? Se para o deleite, nada há de política. Se para a utilidade -devemos chamar o examinador de policial, e o Teste de Interrogatório. +Se não há inteligência sem propósito, qual o propósito do examinador e do +próprio Teste? Para o deleite e utilidade? Se para o deleite, nada há de +política. Se para a utilidade devemos chamar o examinador de policial, e o +Teste de Interrogatório. -Variações do Teste não precisam necessariamente imitar o Jogo da Imitação. Se esse for mesmo -a regra do jogo, melhor: que máquinas e humanos se libertem do jugo de outras máquinas e -humanos. +Variações do Teste não precisam necessariamente imitar o Jogo da Imitação. Se +esse for mesmo a regra do jogo, melhor: que máquinas e humanos se libertem do +jugo de outras máquinas e humanos. -Gente, lá vai a bomba: se o pensamento de Simondon quiser se contrapor aos argumentos automatistas -da inteligência artificial, ele terá de ser atualizado. +Gente, lá vai a bomba: se o pensamento de Simondon quiser se contrapor aos +argumentos automatistas da inteligência artificial, ele terá de ser atualizado. -Porque senão não será capaz de se opor à concepção autocrática da tecnologia num mundo que tentar gerar inteligência -artificial para fomentar a guerra ou fortalecer o capitalismo e tornar o ser humano obsoleto. +Porque senão não será capaz de se opor à concepção autocrática da tecnologia +num mundo que tentar gerar inteligência artificial para fomentar a guerra ou +fortalecer o capitalismo e tornar o ser humano obsoleto. -O Teste de Turing-Simondon --------------------------- +### O Teste de Turing-Simondon Distinguir uma invenção criada por um humano de outra criada por uma máquina. @@ -966,10 +975,12 @@ Distinguir uma invenção criada por um humano de outra criada por uma máquina. Quando o humano ou o objeto técnico toma consciência, ele tem condições de passar no Teste ou inviabilizá-lo. -É a mesma consciência do trabalhador/a que percebe a sua condição de explorado e cuja -alteridade e solidariedade o permite se juntar a seus companheiros e prosseguir a luta. +É a mesma consciência do trabalhador/a que percebe a sua condição de explorado +e cuja alteridade e solidariedade o permite se juntar a seus companheiros e +prosseguir a luta. -Ao contrário dos ludistas, máquinas e homens devem se unir para lutar contra a opressão. +Ao contrário dos ludistas, máquinas e homens devem se unir para lutar contra a +opressão. .---------------<--->------------. | \ @@ -977,50 +988,11 @@ Ao contrário dos ludistas, máquinas e homens devem se unir para lutar contra a | sinergia com humanos <--- Apple ' ^ ' | - '-----> robotização dos humanos + '-----> robotização dos humanos O quarto chinês é a própria metáfora da alienação do trabalho. O fervor em torno da AI foi muito forte entre os anos 70 e o final dos 90. -Getting in the system ---------------------- - - Cyberiad: "madman! would'st attempt the impossible?" - -Referências ------------ - -- http://www.cscs.umich.edu/~crshalizi/LaMettrie/Machine/ -- Tomada de consciência: - - http://ccl.yoll.net/texto1.htm - - http://www.infopedia.pt/$consciencia-de-classe - - http://www.trabalhosfeitos.com/ensaios/Karl-Marx/21618.html - - http://theoriapratica.org/marx-e-movimentos-sociais - - http://simonepead.blogspot.com/2007/05/resenha-marx-e-engels.html - - http://www.filosofante.com.br/?p=970 - - http://in.fluxo.info/marx-consciencia -- [Machinic Capitalism and Network Surplus Value: Notes on the Political Economy of the Turing Machine](http://matteopasquinelli.com/docs/Pasquinelli_Machinic_Capitalism.pdf) -- http://books.google.com/books?id=UkqomXHmoAEC&pg=PA363&lpg=PA362&ots=_kZYFZLc3-&dq=simondon+turing&hl=pt-BR -- https://groups.google.com/group/redelabs/browse_thread/thread/c88531542177fa6b -- http://arxiv.org/abs/0904.3612 -- http://www.cogsci.ecs.soton.ac.uk/cgi/psyc/newpsy?7.30 -- http://www.pos.eco.ufrj.br/docentes/publicacoes/itucherman_6.pdf -- http://web.media.mit.edu/%7Ecati/papers/Vaucelle_OnSimondon99.pdf -- http://cteme.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/simondon_1958_intro-lindividuation.pdf -- http://cteme.wordpress.com/publicacoes/do-modo-de-existencia-dos-objetos-tecnicos-simondon-1958/ -- http://cteme.wordpress.com/publicacoes/do-modo-de-existencia-dos-objetos-tecnicos-simondon-1958/introducao/ -- http://cteme.wordpress.com/publicacoes/do-modo-de-existencia-dos-objetos-tecnicos-simondon-1958/essencia-da-tecnicidade/ -- http://cteme.wordpress.com/eventos/informacao-tecnicidade-individuacao-a-urgencia-do-pensamento-de-gilbert-simondon/ -- http://www.asciiworld.com/-Death-Co-.html -- http://www.malvados.com.br/index1661.html -- http://what-if.xkcd.com/5/ -- https://xkcd.com/329/ - -Leituras --------- - -- MEOT: 50 - Paranóia -------- @@ -1044,26 +1016,86 @@ nossa sociedade. Robotização ----------- +### Do livro "Infoproletários" + +* "Total social organization of labour", pág. 21. +* Operariado como apêndice de um organismo fabril (Marx), págs. 239, 241. +* "Daí a luta dos trabalhadores contra a maquinaria.", pág. 248. + +### Do livro "Teoria Geral dos Sistemas" + "O ensinamento escolar é realizado melhor por máquinas de ensino construídas segundo os princípios de Skinner. O condicionamento de fundo psicanalítico deixa correr a maquinaria da livre empresa. A publicidade, a pesquisa da motivação, o rádio e a televisão são meios de condicionar e programar a máquina - humana, de modo a comprar aquilo que se deve" -- Teoria Geral dos Sistemas, - pág. 242 + humana, de modo a comprar aquilo que se deve" + + -- Teoria Geral dos Sistemas, pág. 242 "A imagem do homem como robô é metafísica ou mito e sua força de persuasão repousa unicamente no fato de corresponder tão estreitamente à mitologia da sociedade de massa, à glorificação da máquina e ao lucro como único motor do - progresso" -- Teoria Geral dos Sistemas, pág. 244 + progresso" -Hacker crackdown ----------------- + -- Teoria Geral dos Sistemas, pág. 244 + +Adágios +------- + +### Getting in the system + + Cyberiad: "madman! would'st attempt the impossible?" + +### Hacker crackdown 5903 Simulation gaming is an unusual pastime, but gamers have not generally 5904 had to beg the permission of the Secret Service to exist. -SPAM ----- + -- The Hacker Crackdown + +### SPAM Subject: Are your neighbors trustworthy? Run a background check now +Calendário +---------- + +* 1936 - Máquina universal de Turing +* 1950 - Computing Machinery and Intelligence +* 1958 - Os modos de existência dos objetos técnicos +* 2012 + * 23/03 - Ada Lovelace Day - http://lwn.net/Articles/379793/rss + * 01/04 - Dia da Mentira + * 02/04 - Conferência Simondon + * 01/05 - Dia do Trabalhador e da Trabalhadora + +Referências +----------- + +* [Vídeos do encontro](https://www.youtube.com/user/EncontroSimondon) +* Maquinações: + * [Man a machine](http://www.cscs.umich.edu/~crshalizi/LaMettrie/Machine/) + * [Machinic Capitalism and Network Surplus Value: Notes on the Political Economy of the Turing Machine](http://matteopasquinelli.com/docs/Pasquinelli_Machinic_Capitalism.pdf) + * [Salvar o objeto técnico. Entrevista com Gibert Simondon](https://groups.google.com/group/redelabs/browse_thread/thread/c88531542177fa6b) + * [Variations of the Turing Test in the Age of Internet and Virtual Reality](http://arxiv.org/abs/0904.3612) + * [Artificial Intelligence and the Cyberiad Test](http://www.cogsci.ecs.soton.ac.uk/cgi/psyc/newpsy?7.30) +* Simondon: + * [Do modo de existência do universo maquínico](https://web.archive.org/web/20100821190052/http://www.pos.eco.ufrj.br/docentes/publicacoes/itucherman_6.pdf) + * [On Gilbert Simondon 'Du mode d’existence des objetstechnique'](https://web.archive.org/web/20120713221431/http://web.media.mit.edu/~cati/papers/Vaucelle_OnSimondon99.pdf) + * http://cteme.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/simondon_1958_intro-lindividuation.pdf + * http://cteme.wordpress.com/publicacoes/do-modo-de-existencia-dos-objetos-tecnicos-simondon-1958/ + * http://cteme.wordpress.com/publicacoes/do-modo-de-existencia-dos-objetos-tecnicos-simondon-1958/introducao/ + * http://cteme.wordpress.com/publicacoes/do-modo-de-existencia-dos-objetos-tecnicos-simondon-1958/essencia-da-tecnicidade/ + * http://cteme.wordpress.com/eventos/informacao-tecnicidade-individuacao-a-urgencia-do-pensamento-de-gilbert-simondon/ +* Tomada de consciência: + * http://ccl.yoll.net/texto1.htm + * http://www.infopedia.pt/$consciencia-de-classe + * http://www.trabalhosfeitos.com/ensaios/Karl-Marx/21618.html + * http://theoriapratica.org/marx-e-movimentos-sociais + * http://simonepead.blogspot.com/2007/05/resenha-marx-e-engels.html + * http://www.filosofante.com.br/?p=970 +* Misc: + * http://www.asciiworld.com/-Death-Co-.html + * http://www.malvados.com.br/index1661.html + * http://what-if.xkcd.com/5/ + * https://xkcd.com/329/ diff --git a/events/2014/campusparty/slides.pdf b/events/2014/campusparty/slides.pdf Binary files differindex 274a399..5ab57e8 100644 --- a/events/2014/campusparty/slides.pdf +++ b/events/2014/campusparty/slides.pdf diff --git a/events/2014/cryptorave/slides.pdf b/events/2014/cryptorave/slides.pdf Binary files differindex edc1df8..e13245c 100644 --- a/events/2014/cryptorave/slides.pdf +++ b/events/2014/cryptorave/slides.pdf diff --git a/events/2014/sesc/apresentacao.pdf b/events/2014/sesc/apresentacao.pdf Binary files differindex 66fc221..273e2fd 100644 --- a/events/2014/sesc/apresentacao.pdf +++ b/events/2014/sesc/apresentacao.pdf diff --git a/events/2015/fisl/slides.pdf b/events/2015/fisl/slides.pdf Binary files differindex 3bd0ff4..dcd6f45 100644 --- a/events/2015/fisl/slides.pdf +++ b/events/2015/fisl/slides.pdf diff --git a/events/2017/cryptorave/hostil/slides.pdf b/events/2017/cryptorave/hostil/slides.pdf Binary files differindex 17b209c..0c6e9c5 100644 --- a/events/2017/cryptorave/hostil/slides.pdf +++ b/events/2017/cryptorave/hostil/slides.pdf diff --git a/events/2018/cryptorave/hostil.md b/events/2018/cryptorave/hostil.md index 02fd6f9..a653bba 100644 --- a/events/2018/cryptorave/hostil.md +++ b/events/2018/cryptorave/hostil.md @@ -167,7 +167,7 @@ O fundamento da solidariedade é a **tensão** dinâmica entre egoísmo (cuidar receber cuidados) e altruísmo (cuidar de outrem, aceitar os cuidados de outrem). A isto chamaremos de _ajuda mútua._ - + Nota: essa figura é curiosa. Repare que o cuidado é associado a um papel usualmente considerado de feminino em tal sociedade. Ao mesmo tempo, o estado diff --git a/events/2018/cryptorave/hostil/images/egiptian-safety-sheet.png b/events/2018/cryptorave/hostil/images/egyptian-safety-sheet.png Binary files differindex 85bd240..85bd240 100644 --- a/events/2018/cryptorave/hostil/images/egiptian-safety-sheet.png +++ b/events/2018/cryptorave/hostil/images/egyptian-safety-sheet.png diff --git a/events/2018/cryptorave/hostil/slides.pdf b/events/2018/cryptorave/hostil/slides.pdf Binary files differindex 2832168..c23f3e8 100644 --- a/events/2018/cryptorave/hostil/slides.pdf +++ b/events/2018/cryptorave/hostil/slides.pdf diff --git a/events/2019/criptofesta.md b/events/2019/criptofesta.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..ce0249b --- /dev/null +++ b/events/2019/criptofesta.md @@ -0,0 +1,51 @@ +[[!meta title="Salve quem puder - o apagão de dados no Brasil"]] + +* [Slides](https://slides.fluxo.info/salve-quem-puder). + +## Referências + +* Brasil: + * [Água de Queimada](https://www.aguadequeimada.org/) + * [Análises confirmam presença de partículas de queimadas maior do que o normal em água de chuva preta de SP | São Paulo | G1](https://g1.globo.com/sp/sao-paulo/noticia/2019/08/20/analises-confirmam-presenca-de-particulas-de-queimadas-maior-do-que-o-normal-em-agua-de-chuva-preta-de-sp.ghtml) + * [Na Amazônia, a floresta está à venda | ISA - Instituto Socioambiental](https://www.socioambiental.org/pt-br/noticias-socioambientais/na-amazonia-a-floresta-esta-a-venda) + * [Desmatamento | ISA - Instituto Socioambiental](https://www.socioambiental.org/pt-br/tags/desmatamento) + * [Efeito Bolsonaro promove maior aumento anual do desmatamento neste século | ISA - Instituto Socioambiental](https://www.socioambiental.org/pt-br/noticias-socioambientais/efeito-bolsonaro-promove-maior-aumento-anual-do-desmatamento-neste-seculo) + * [Sob Salles, ministério deixa 8 em 10 jornalistas sem resposta - ((o))eco](https://www.oeco.org.br/reportagens/sob-salles-ministerio-deixa-8-em-10-jornalistas-sem-resposta/) + * [Manifesto Arquivista](https://arquivista.info/) + * [A Grande Simplificação - Manifesto Arquivista](https://arquivista.info/simplificacao/) + * [Desserviços ao conhecimento - Manifesto Arquivista](https://arquivista.info/desservicos/) + * [ArchiveBot/2018 Brazilian general elections - Archiveteam](https://www.archiveteam.org/index.php?title=ArchiveBot/2018_Brazilian_general_elections) + * [Acumule dados! - Manifesto Arquivista](https://arquivista.info/acumule/) + * [Referências - Manifesto Arquivista](https://arquivista.info/referencias/) + * [Place overview - Global Open Data Index](https://index.okfn.org/place/) + * [http://paineis.cgu.gov.br/dadosabertos/index.htm](http://paineis.cgu.gov.br/dadosabertos/index.htm) + * [Pesquisa sobre o uso das Tecnologias de Informação e Comunicação - TIC Governo Eletrônico 2017](https://cetic.br/publicacao/pesquisa-sobre-o-uso-das-tecnologias-de-informacao-e-comunicacao-tic-governo-eletronico-2017/) + * [Bem vindo - Portal Brasileiro de Dados Abertos](http://dados.gov.br/) + * [5d35dfbc9118a_Dados_abertos_e_meio_ambiente.pdf](http://www.imaflora.org/downloads/biblioteca/5d35dfbc9118a_Dados_abertos_e_meio_ambiente.pdf) + * [Domínios Gov.br - Conjuntos de dados - Portal Brasileiro de Dados Abertos](http://dados.gov.br/dataset/dominios-gov-br) +* [Stasi - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stasi): + * [Stasimuseum Berlin in der Zentrale des MfS](https://www.stasimuseum.de/en/enindex.htm) + * [Computers piece together millions of shredded Stasi documents / Boing Boing](https://boingboing.net/2008/01/22/computers-piece-toge.html) + * [Piecing Together the Dark Legacy of East Germany's Secret Police | WIRED](https://www.wired.com/2008/01/ff-stasi/?currentPage=all) + * [Solving a Billion-Piece Puzzle | WIRED](https://www.wired.com/2008/02/ff-stasi-ss/) + * [Stasi files: The world's biggest jigsaw puzzle - BBC News](https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-19344978) +* Regulações: + * [Declaração Universal | ONU Brasil](https://nacoesunidas.org/direitoshumanos/declaracao/) + * [OHCHR |](https://www.ohchr.org/EN/UDHR/Pages/Language.aspx?LangID=por) + * [European legislation on open data and the re-use of public sector information | Digital Single Market](https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/european-legislation-reuse-public-sector-information) + * [Open Data Gov](https://www.data.gov/open-gov/) + * [Text - H.R.4174 - 115th Congress (2017-2018): Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018 | Congress.gov | Library of Congress](https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/house-bill/4174/text#toc-H8E449FBAEFA34E45A6F1F20EFB13ED95) + * [Decreto nº 8777](http://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/_ato2015-2018/2016/decreto/d8777.htm) + * [Resolução n º 3, de 13 de outubro de 2017](http://conarq.arquivonacional.gov.br/resolucoes/654-resolucao-n-3-de-13-de-outubro-de-2017.html) + * [D9756](http://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/_ato2019-2022/2019/Decreto/D9756.htm) +* Projetos: + * [Perma.cc](https://perma.cc/) + * [Internet Archive: Digital Library of Free & Borrowable Books, Movies, Music & Wayback Machine](https://archive.org/) + * [Archiveteam](https://archiveteam.org/) + * [Webpage archive](https://archive.is/) + * [Common Crawl](https://commoncrawl.org/) + * [End of Term Web Archive: U.S. Government Websites](http://eotarchive.cdlib.org/) + * [End of Term Archive: Search Results](http://eotarchive.cdlib.org/search?f1-administration=2008) +* Livros: + * [Um Cântico para Leibowitz – Wikipédia, a enciclopédia livre](https://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Um_C%C3%A2ntico_para_Leibowitz) + * [Fahrenheit 451](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fahrenheit_451) diff --git a/events/2019/re-criptografando/slides.pdf b/events/2019/re-criptografando/slides.pdf Binary files differindex 41be3bb..dbc4003 100644 --- a/events/2019/re-criptografando/slides.pdf +++ b/events/2019/re-criptografando/slides.pdf @@ -1,6 +1,6 @@ [[!meta title="Minutos de Sabedoria Punk"]] -[[!toc levels=4]] +[[!toc startlevel=2 levels=4]] A irreversibilidade da vida e outros fatos termodinâmicos: uma coleção de citações, trechos, versos, adágios, chistes, ironias e pessimismos. Muitas @@ -14,22 +14,22 @@ coletadas de anos usando `fortune(6)` ou encontradas ao acaso. The temperature of Heaven can be rather accurately computed from available data. Our authority is Isaiah 30:26, "Moreover, the light of the Moon - shall be as the light of the Sun and the light of the Sun shall be + shall be as the light of the Sun and the light of the Sun shall be sevenfold, as the light of seven days." Thus Heaven receives from the Moon as much - radiation as we do from the Sun, and in addition seven times seven (49) - times as much as the Earth does from the Sun, or fifty times in all. The light - we receive from the Moon is one ten-thousandth of the light we receive from - the Sun, so we can ignore that. With these data we can compute the - temperature of Heaven. The radiation falling on Heaven will heat it to the point - where the heat lost by radiation is just equal to the heat received by - radiation, i.e., Heaven loses fifty times as much heat as the Earth by radiation. - Using the Stefan-Boltzmann law for radiation, (H/E)^4 = 50, where E is the + radiation as we do from the Sun, and in addition seven times seven (49) + times as much as the Earth does from the Sun, or fifty times in all. The light + we receive from the Moon is one ten-thousandth of the light we receive from + the Sun, so we can ignore that. With these data we can compute the + temperature of Heaven. The radiation falling on Heaven will heat it to the point + where the heat lost by radiation is just equal to the heat received by + radiation, i.e., Heaven loses fifty times as much heat as the Earth by radiation. + Using the Stefan-Boltzmann law for radiation, (H/E)^4 = 50, where E is the absolute temperature of the earth (-300K), gives H as 798K (525C). The exact - temperature of Hell cannot be computed, but it must be less than 444.6C, + temperature of Hell cannot be computed, but it must be less than 444.6C, the temperature at which brimstone or sulphur changes from a liquid to a gas. - Revelations 21:8 says "But the fearful, and unbelieving ... shall have + Revelations 21:8 says "But the fearful, and unbelieving ... shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone." A lake of molten - brimstone means that its temperature must be at or below the boiling + brimstone means that its temperature must be at or below the boiling point, or 444.6C (Above this point it would be a vapor, not a lake.) We have, then, that Heaven, at 525C is hotter than Hell at 445C. -- "Applied Optics", vol. 11, A14, 1972 @@ -50,13 +50,13 @@ coletadas de anos usando `fortune(6)` ou encontradas ao acaso. Theorem: All horses have an infinite number of legs. Proof (by intimidation): - Everyone would agree that all horses have an even number of legs. - It is also well-known that horses have forelegs in front and two legs - in back. 4 + 2 = 6 legs, which is certainly an odd number of legs + Everyone would agree that all horses have an even number of legs. + It is also well-known that horses have forelegs in front and two legs + in back. 4 + 2 = 6 legs, which is certainly an odd number of legs for a horse to have! Now the only number that is both even and odd is infinity; therefore all horses have an infinite number of legs. - However, suppose that there is a horse somewhere that does not - have an infinite number of legs. Well, that would be a horse of a + However, suppose that there is a horse somewhere that does not + have an infinite number of legs. Well, that would be a horse of a different color; and by the Lemma, it doesn't exist. ## Frob @@ -86,7 +86,7 @@ coletadas de anos usando `fortune(6)` ou encontradas ao acaso. ## Intuição - The only "intuitive" interface is the nipple. After that, it's all + The only "intuitive" interface is the nipple. After that, it's all learned. -- Bruce Ediger, bediger@teal.csn.org, on X interfaces @@ -96,20 +96,20 @@ coletadas de anos usando `fortune(6)` ou encontradas ao acaso. star of "The Muppet Show." [3] [3] Why? Mostly because there was a Muppets calendar on the wall when we - were trying to think of a name, and Kermit is a pleasant, unassuming sort - of character. But since we weren't sure whether it was OK to name our - protocol after this popular television and movie star, we pretended that - KERMIT was an acronym; unfortunately, we could never find a good set of - words to go with the letters, as readers of some of our early source code - can attest. Later, while looking through a name book for his forthcoming - baby, Bill Catchings noticed that "Kermit" was a Celtic word for "free", - which is what all Kermit programs should be, and words to this effect - replaced the strained acronyms in our source code (Bill's baby turned out - to be a girl, so he had to name her Becky instead). When BYTE Magazine - was preparing our 1984 Kermit article for publication, they suggested we - contact Henson Associates Inc. for permission to say that we did indeed - name the protocol after Kermit the Frog. Permission was kindly granted, - and now the real story can be told. I resisted the temptation, however, + were trying to think of a name, and Kermit is a pleasant, unassuming sort + of character. But since we weren't sure whether it was OK to name our + protocol after this popular television and movie star, we pretended that + KERMIT was an acronym; unfortunately, we could never find a good set of + words to go with the letters, as readers of some of our early source code + can attest. Later, while looking through a name book for his forthcoming + baby, Bill Catchings noticed that "Kermit" was a Celtic word for "free", + which is what all Kermit programs should be, and words to this effect + replaced the strained acronyms in our source code (Bill's baby turned out + to be a girl, so he had to name her Becky instead). When BYTE Magazine + was preparing our 1984 Kermit article for publication, they suggested we + contact Henson Associates Inc. for permission to say that we did indeed + name the protocol after Kermit the Frog. Permission was kindly granted, + and now the real story can be told. I resisted the temptation, however, to call the present work "Kermit the Book." -- Frank da Cruz, "Kermit - A File Transfer Protocol" @@ -220,7 +220,7 @@ coletadas de anos usando `fortune(6)` ou encontradas ao acaso. ## Computer viruses - I think computer viruses should count as life. I think it says something about human nature that the only form of + I think computer viruses should count as life. I think it says something about human nature that the only form of life we have created so far is purely destructive. We've created life in our own image. Stephen Hawking ## Inventions @@ -389,7 +389,12 @@ coletadas de anos usando `fortune(6)` ou encontradas ao acaso. ## Prophet Dirac - Dirac was a committed (Someone who denies the existence of god) atheist. After being asked about his thoughts on Dirac's views, (United States physicist (born in Austria) who proposed the exclusion principle (thus providing a theoretical basis for the periodic table) (1900-1958)) Pauli remarked "If I understand Dirac correctly, his meaning is this: there is no God, and Dirac is his Prophet". + Dirac was a committed (Someone who denies the existence of god) atheist. + After being asked about his thoughts on Dirac's views, (United States + physicist (born in Austria) who proposed the exclusion principle (thus + providing a theoretical basis for the periodic table) (1900-1958)) Pauli + remarked "If I understand Dirac correctly, his meaning is this: there is no + God, and Dirac is his Prophet". ## Inimigos @@ -674,7 +679,7 @@ coletadas de anos usando `fortune(6)` ou encontradas ao acaso. High-endian and low-endian define each other. While and until follow each other. - Therefore the Guru + Therefore the Guru programs without doing anything and teaches without saying anything. Warnings arise and he lets them come; @@ -871,7 +876,7 @@ coletadas de anos usando `fortune(6)` ou encontradas ao acaso. "To err is human, to forgive, beyond the scope of the Operating System" -## Dolphins +## Dolphins If dolphins are so smart, why did Flipper work for television? @@ -964,7 +969,7 @@ coletadas de anos usando `fortune(6)` ou encontradas ao acaso. ## Management MANAGEMENT: - The art of getting other people to do all the work. + The art of getting other people to do all the work. ## Heller's Law @@ -993,7 +998,7 @@ coletadas de anos usando `fortune(6)` ou encontradas ao acaso. Ludwig Boltzmann, who spend much of his life studying statistical mechanics died in 1906 by his own hand. Paul Ehrenfest, carrying on the work, died similarly in 1933. Now it is our turn. - -- Goodstein, States of Matter + -- Goodstein, States of Matter ## Laws @@ -1152,7 +1157,7 @@ coletadas de anos usando `fortune(6)` ou encontradas ao acaso. dark to read. -- Groucho Marx -## Abstinence +## Abstinence There is nothing wrong with abstinence, in moderation. @@ -1362,7 +1367,7 @@ coletadas de anos usando `fortune(6)` ou encontradas ao acaso. -- Steven Weinberg, "The Discovery of Subatomic Particles" Robert Millikan is generally credited with making the first really - precise measurement of the charge on an electron and was awarded the + precise measurement of the charge on an electron and was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1923. ## Gods @@ -1528,23 +1533,23 @@ coletadas de anos usando `fortune(6)` ou encontradas ao acaso. Um médico britânico diz: "A medicina, em meu país, está tão avançada que nós podemos retirar o cérebro de um homem, - colocá-lo em outro homem, e fazer com que, em seis semanas, ele já esteja procurando + colocá-lo em outro homem, e fazer com que, em seis semanas, ele já esteja procurando emprego." Um médico alemão diz: - "Isto não é nada. Nós podemos retirar o cérebro de uma pessoa, colocá-lo em outra, e fazer com + "Isto não é nada. Nós podemos retirar o cérebro de uma pessoa, colocá-lo em outra, e fazer com que, em quatro semanas, ela esteja se preparando para a guerra." O médico americano, para não ser superado, diz: - "Vocês, meus caros, estão muito atrás. Nós, recentemente, retiramos um homem sem cérebro, do - Texas, conseguimos colocá-lo na Casa Branca, e, agora, temos a metade do país procurando + "Vocês, meus caros, estão muito atrás. Nós, recentemente, retiramos um homem sem cérebro, do + Texas, conseguimos colocá-lo na Casa Branca, e, agora, temos a metade do país procurando emprego e a outra metade se preparando para a guerra." ## Chocolate - Chocolate de menta: escove os dentes e em seguida mastigue uma barra + Chocolate de menta: escove os dentes e em seguida mastigue uma barra daquelas que são vendidas no trem. ## Randomly Generated Tagline @@ -1564,6 +1569,12 @@ coletadas de anos usando `fortune(6)` ou encontradas ao acaso. A galinha e apenas o meio que o ovo encontrou para produzir outro ovo. -- Samuel Butler +## Crimes + + A sociedade prepara os crimes e os indivíduos se limitam a executá-los. + + -- Queteler apud Bakunin, A Instrução Integral, p. 86. + ## História "Às vezes você está vivendo um momento que entra para a história, mas está do lado errado." @@ -1576,12 +1587,6 @@ coletadas de anos usando `fortune(6)` ou encontradas ao acaso. -- The Shockware Rider -## Crimes - - A sociedade prepara os crimes e os indivíduos se limitam a executá-los. - - -- Queteler apud Bakunin, A Instrução Integral, p. 86. - ## Provos a verdade é que os piores inimigos desta época são: @@ -1594,12 +1599,12 @@ coletadas de anos usando `fortune(6)` ou encontradas ao acaso. There are only two hard things in Computer Science: cache invalidation and naming things. - -- Phil Karlton + -- Phil Karlton ## Caos Existe um grande caos abaixo do céu - a situação é excelente. - + --- Mao Tsé-Tung: ## Destruição @@ -1616,14 +1621,14 @@ coletadas de anos usando `fortune(6)` ou encontradas ao acaso. ## Fracasso - Fracassei em tudo o que tentei na vida. + Fracassei em tudo o que tentei na vida. Tentei alfabetizar as crianças brasileiras, não consegui. Tente salvar os índios, não consegui. Tentei fazer uma universidade séria e fracassei. Tentei fazer o Brasil desenvolver-se autonomamente e fracassei. Mas os fracassos são minhas vitórias. Eu detestaria estar no lugar de quem me venceu. - + -- Darcy Ribeiro ## Meta @@ -1636,15 +1641,15 @@ coletadas de anos usando `fortune(6)` ou encontradas ao acaso. ## Jogo da Forca - Give me six lines written by the most honest man in the world, and I will find enough in them to hang him. + Give me six lines written by the most honest man in the world, and I will find enough in them to hang him. -- https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Cardinal_Richelieu Corolário do Araponga: Talvez menos linhas sejam necessárias para condenar alguém. Talvez apenas com a - citação acima já seria possível condenar o pobre Cardeal Richelieu. - + citação acima já seria possível condenar o pobre Cardeal Richelieu. + O acúmulo de dados pela vigilância de massa compromete qualquer pessoa em crimes previstos num entulho jurídico acumulado ao longo de centenas de anos. diff --git a/ikiwiki.yaml b/ikiwiki.yaml index 90f35df..0be3737 100644 --- a/ikiwiki.yaml +++ b/ikiwiki.yaml @@ -1,10 +1,10 @@ # IkiWiki::Setup::Yaml - YAML formatted setup file # # Setup file for ikiwiki. -# +# # Passing this to ikiwiki --setup will make ikiwiki generate # wrappers and build the wiki. -# +# # Remember to re-run ikiwiki --setup any time you edit this file. # # name of the wiki @@ -44,6 +44,7 @@ add_plugins: - sidebar - teximg - favicon +- mathjax # plugins to disable disable_plugins: - openid @@ -71,7 +72,7 @@ html5: 0 # only send cookies over SSL connections? sslcookie: 0 # extension to use for new pages -default_pageext: mdwn +default_pageext: md # extension to use for html files htmlext: html # strftime format string to display date @@ -90,7 +91,7 @@ umask: 2 # group for wrappers to run in #wrappergroup: ikiwiki # extra library and plugin directory -libdir: '' +libdir: 'lib' # environment variables ENV: {} # time zone name @@ -98,14 +99,15 @@ ENV: {} # regexp of normally excluded files to include include: ^\.htaccess$ # regexp of files that should be skipped -exclude: (?^i:(www|drafts)) +#exclude: (^(www|drafts|vendor).*) +exclude: (?^i:(www|drafts|vendor)) # specifies the characters that are allowed in source filenames wiki_file_chars: -[:alnum:]+/.:_ # allow symlinks in the path leading to the srcdir (potentially insecure) allow_symlinks_before_srcdir: 0 # cookie control cookiejar: - file: /home/rhatto/.ikiwiki/cookies + file: ~/file/blog/.ikiwiki/cookies # set custom user agent string for outbound HTTP requests e.g. when fetching aggregated RSS feeds useragent: ikiwiki/3.20141016.4 @@ -212,6 +214,7 @@ pingurl: [] # mdwn plugin # enable multimarkdown features? #multimarkdown: 0 +multimarkdown: 1 # disable use of markdown discount? #nodiscount: 0 diff --git a/lib/IkiWiki/Plugin/mathjax.pm b/lib/IkiWiki/Plugin/mathjax.pm new file mode 100755 index 0000000..99b74c3 --- /dev/null +++ b/lib/IkiWiki/Plugin/mathjax.pm @@ -0,0 +1,74 @@ +package IkiWiki::Plugin::mathjax; + +use warnings; +use strict; +use IkiWiki 3.00; +use MIME::Base64; + +# Strategy: +## - filter replaces normal TeX delimiters with imath and dmath directives +## (perhaps while considering a mathconf directive); also, it adds a script +## block if there is any math on the page relevant. +## - preprocess handles the directives themselves. +## +## Later: config hooks for mathjax script tag and mathjax config block +## + +sub import { + hook(type => "filter", id => "mathjax", call => \&filter); + hook(type => "format", id=>"mathjax", call=> \&format); +} + +sub format { + my %params = @_; + my $content = $params{content}; + return $content unless $content =~ /\!\!mathjaxbegin/; #]/{{ + $content =~ s{\!\!mathjaxbegin-i!! (.*?)\s\!\!mathjaxend-i\!\!}{'\('.decode_base64($1).'\)'}ges; #{ + $content =~ s{\!\!mathjaxbegin-d!! (.*?)\s\!\!mathjaxend-d\!\!}{'\['.decode_base64($1).'\]'}ges; #{ + my $scripttag = _scripttag(); + $content =~ s{(</body>)}{$scripttag\n$1}i; #}{ + return $content; +} + +sub filter (@) { + my %params=@_; + my $content = $params{content}; + return $content unless $content =~ /\$[^\$]+\$|\\[\(\[][\s\S]+\\[\)\]]/; + # first, handle display math... + $content =~ s{(?<!\\)\\\[(.+?)(?<!\\)\\\]}{_escape_mathjax('d', $1)}ges; #};[} + $content =~ s{(?<!\\)\$\$(.+?)(?<!\\)\$\$}{_escape_mathjax('d', $1)}ges; #};[} + # then, the inline math -- note that it must stay on one line + $content =~ s{(?<!\\)\\\((.+?)(?<!\\)\\\)}{_escape_mathjax('i', $1)}ge; #};[} + # note that the 'parsing' of $..$ is extremely fragile + $content =~ s{(?<!\\)\$(.+?)(?<!\\)\$}{_escape_mathjax('i', $1)}ge; #};[} + return $content; +} + +sub _escape_mathjax { + my ($mode, $formula) = @_; + my %modes = qw/i inline d display/; + my $directive = "!!mathjaxbegin-$mode!! "; + $formula =~ s/"/"/g; + $formula =~ s/&/&/g; #"/}[{ + $formula =~ s/</</g; + $formula =~ s/>/>/g; #{" + $directive .= encode_base64($formula, " "); + $directive .= "!!mathjaxend-$mode!!"; + return $directive; +} + +sub _scripttag { + my $config = 'TeX-AMS_HTML'; # another possibility: TeX-AMS-MML_HTMLorMML + return '<script type="text/x-mathjax-config">' + . 'MathJax.Hub.Config({ TeX: { equationNumbers: {autoNumber: "AMS"} } });' + . '</script>' + . '<script async="async" type="text/javascript" ' + # Serving MathJax script locally + #. 'src="https://cdnjs.cloudflare.com/ajax/libs/mathjax/2.7.9/MathJax.js?config=' + #. 'src="/js/MathJax.js?config=' + . 'src="/vendor/MathJax/es5/tex-chtml.js?config=' + . $config + . '"></script>'; +} + +1; @@ -12,12 +12,16 @@ is here because it haven't found any other place yet to be sent. It's my brain's downstream wishing to be upstream somewhere or staged content to be sent to existing upstreams. +<!-- Fork this site and [check it's integrity](https://opsec.fluxo.info/meta)! +--> git clone https://git.fluxo.info/blog +<!-- git -C blog verify-commit HEAD And send patches ;) +--> ### License @@ -29,9 +33,12 @@ See [keys](/keys). ### Technology -* This is a [statically-generated website](/static). +* This is a [statically-generated website](/research/suckless/sites). * That tries to implement [IndieWebCamp principles](http://indiewebcamp.com/principles). -* Using the same tags from [Fluxo de Links](https://links.fluxo.info) so content can be archived and referenced. +<!-- +* Using the same tags from [Fluxo de Links](https://links.fluxo.info) so + content can be archived and referenced. +--> ### Workflow @@ -40,8 +47,12 @@ See [keys](/keys). ### Nota ao público lusófono -Este site é bilíngue (português brasileiro e inglês internacional), porém sem tentativa de isolamento entre idiomas: +Este site é bilíngue (português brasileiro e inglês internacional), porém sem +tentativa de isolamento entre idiomas: -1. Conteúdo em português é voltado especificamente ao público brasileiro e lusófono, em geral ligado a temas de interesse específico ou à atuação local. -2. Conteúdo em ingês é voltado ao público geral e ligado a temas da computação, desenvolvimento de sistemas, etc. +1. Conteúdo em português é voltado especificamente ao público brasileiro e + lusófono, em geral ligado a temas de interesse específico ou à atuação + local. +2. Conteúdo em ingês é voltado ao público geral e ligado a temas da computação, + desenvolvimento de sistemas, etc. 3. Nomenclatura de pastas/seções em inglês, por convenção. diff --git a/sarava.md b/poetry/sarava.md index affe37e..affe37e 100644 --- a/sarava.md +++ b/poetry/sarava.md diff --git a/reports.md b/reports.md deleted file mode 100644 index bba4caf..0000000 --- a/reports.md +++ /dev/null @@ -1,13 +0,0 @@ -[[!meta title="Reports / Relatórios"]] - -Relatórios são formas curiosas de inventar um significado transversal -ou buscar um padrão no conjunto de atividades que desempenhamos. - -Este é um experimento de relatar atividades de quando em vez. - - Cohn's Law: - The more time you spend in reporting on what you are doing, the less - time you have to do anything. Stability is achieved when you spend - all your time reporting on the nothing you are doing. - -[[!inline pages="page(reports*)" archive="yes"]] diff --git a/research/android.md b/research/android.md deleted file mode 100644 index 4257f7a..0000000 --- a/research/android.md +++ /dev/null @@ -1,24 +0,0 @@ -[[!meta title="Android"]] - -Some bits on android development. - -## Basic - -Download tools and put inside `~/Android/tools`. - - sudo apt install android-sdk # grab all dependencies - cd ~/Android/tools - bin/android - -## Issues - -* http://stackoverflow.com/questions/41173477/android-cant-find-sdkmanager-jar - -## References - -* [Anbox - Android in a Box](https://anbox.io/). -* [Build Android apps with Debian: apt install android-sdk](https://bits.debian.org/2017/03/build-android-apps-with-debian.html). -* Android emulator inside a virtual machine: - * https://packages.debian.org/stretch/android-sdk - * http://xmodulo.com/how-to-run-android-emulator-on-ubuntu-or-debian.html - * https://developer.android.com/studio/install.html diff --git a/research/archive.md b/research/archive.md deleted file mode 100644 index 874b724..0000000 --- a/research/archive.md +++ /dev/null @@ -1,105 +0,0 @@ -[[!meta title="Archived Research"]] - -* Currently archived research. -* Lista de projetos que já desenvolvi, que atualmente não estão no meu - horizonte de atividades. -* Podem ser desarquivados no futuro ou servir de inspiração. -* Alguns podem ser inclusive passados para frente na linha do [Orfanato de Projetos](https://templates.fluxo.info/orfanato). - -## Lista - -### Social - -* Comunidade "Podíamos!": - * Um banco de ideias coletivas. - * Toda a vez que alguém te disser "podíamos fazer tal coisa", sugira para que - a pessoa sistematize a ideia na comunidade (ou hashtag) "podíamos". -* Festas: - * [Silent disco](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silent_disco). - * hacknick (hacknique). - * colar nalgum parque com máquinas, livros e brinquedos e fazer um piquenique. - * alguns parques tem mesas boas para trampar confortavelmente. - * otima opção para dias ensolarados e sair das cavernas de concreto. -* Depósitos urbanos comunitários: ecopontos com possibilidade de retirada de materiais. - -### Hardware - -* Algema e corrente Kensington. - -### Misc software - -* Wayland with tiling compositor: - * [Way Cooler](http://way-cooler.org/). - * [Sway](http://swaywm.org/). -* [uMatrix](https://github.com/gorhill/uMatrix). -* [antigen](https://github.com/zsh-users/antigen), [vundle](https://github.com/VundleVim/Vundle.vim), etc. -* [Kaitai Struct: declarative binary format parsing language](http://kaitai.io/). -* [Haiku Project](https://www.haiku-os.org/). -* [asciinema - Record and share your terminal sessions, the right way](https://asciinema.org/) ([client](https://packages.debian.org/jessie/asciinema) and server). -* [HTTP Prompt - An interactive command-line HTTP client](http://http-prompt.com/). -* [mmv](https://packages.debian.org/jessie/mmv) ([manpage](https://ss64.com/bash/mmv.html)). -* [Unikernel](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unikernel). -* Distributed computing clients (distributed-net, boinc, folding@home with [origami](https://packages.debian.org/stable/origami), etc). - -### Distros - -* [GoboLinux - the alternative Linux distribution](http://gobolinux.org/). -* [OpenBSD vmm](https://marc.info/?l=openbsd-tech&m=149191695821636&w=2). -* [Minix3](http://www.minix3.org/). -* [Sabotage - the hardcore let's be oldschool UNIX experience](http://sabotage.tech/). -* [netboot.xyz](https://netboot.xyz/). -* [iPXE - open source boot firmware](http://ipxe.org/). -* [LEDE](https://lede-project.org/start). - -### Multimedia - -* mopidy/mpdris: - * plugins like https://packages.debian.org/stretch/mopidy-podcast - * https://packages.debian.org/jessie/mopidy - * https://github.com/acrisci/playerctl - * https://packages.debian.org/jessie/mpdris2 - * https://packages.debian.org/stretch/mpris-remote - -### DevOPS - -* onion smtp: - * https://www.void.gr/kargig/blog/2014/05/10/smtp-over-hidden-services-with-postfix/ - * https://tech.immerda.ch/2016/12/ehlo-onion/ - * https://github.com/riseupnet/onionmx -* tor: ooniprobe, lepidopter, onionpi (tor, hostapd and iptables). -* php7-fpm: - * https://serversforhackers.com/video/apache-and-php-fpm - * http://www.binarytides.com/setup-apache-php-fpm-mod-proxy-fcgi-ubuntu/ - - <FilesMatch \.php$> - SetHandler "proxy:unix:/run/php/php7.1-fpm.sock|fcgi://localhost:9000"; - </FilesMatch> - -### Services - -* [Saravea](https://web.archive.org/web/*/saravea.net). -* [Calendário de Movimentos Sociais](https://web.archive.org/web/*/calendario.cc). -* [Resource Sharing Protocol / Metadata](https://rsp.fluxo.info). -* [Bootless](https://bootless.fluxo.info). -* [Clube da Muamba](https://templates.fluxo.info/muamba/). -* Do [Escritório Sem Login](https://escritorio.fluxo.info): - * [Lembrador de Eventos](https://lembrador.fluxo.info), cujo [código](https://git.fluxo.info/?p=drupal/reminder.git;a=summary) precisa ser retomado para que o serviço entre no ar. - * [Encurtador Saravento](https://encurtador.fluxo.info). - * [Agendador Saravento](https://agendador.fluxo.info). - -### Development - -* [Firma](https://firma.fluxo.info). -* [Simplepkg](https://simplepkg.fluxo.info) e [Slack](https://slack.fluxo.info). -* [Bootex](https://bootex.fluxo.info). -* [Gnudenberg](https://gnuden.fluxo.info). -* [Observatory by Mozilla](https://observatory.mozilla.org/) and [CAA checking becomes mandatory for SSL/TLS certificates](https://ma.ttias.be/caa-checking-becomes-mandatory-ssltls-certificates/). -* [Mapzen](https://mapzen.com). -* Ebook 'playlist': - * with copy capabilities. - * pdf and djvu conversion to epub. -* Calendar compiler: - * public, suckless, responsive, RSS. - * remind, ical. - * multiple sources and categories. - * [ical2html](https://packages.debian.org/stable/ical2html). diff --git a/research/bike.md b/research/bike.md deleted file mode 100644 index e1fa26c..0000000 --- a/research/bike.md +++ /dev/null @@ -1,14 +0,0 @@ -[[!meta title="Bicicletas"]] - -## Estante energética - -Uma pesquisa sobre estantes de bicicletas (rolos de treino) geradoras de eletricidade! - -### Material necessário - -* Diversas [referências](https://links.fluxo.info/tags/bicicleta+eletricidade). -* Rolo de treino. -* Bateria automotiva. -* Inversor. -* Circuito carregador. -* Motor elétrico. diff --git a/research/computing.md b/research/computing.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..a8469c8 --- /dev/null +++ b/research/computing.md @@ -0,0 +1,8 @@ +[[!meta title="Computing"]] +[[!tag computing]] + +Research on computing. + +## Subpages + +[[!inline pages="page(research/computing*)" archive="yes"]] diff --git a/research/git.md b/research/computing/git.md index 9526ee0..f59f38c 100644 --- a/research/git.md +++ b/research/computing/git.md @@ -98,38 +98,4 @@ groups for each project so you're not bound to the `git` group. - [How to clone and share a Git repository over SSH](http://linuxaria.com/pills/how-to-clone-and-share-a-git-repository-over-ssh?lang=en) - [Git - Getting Git on a Server](https://git-scm.com/book/en/v2/Git-on-the-Server-Getting-Git-on-a-Server). - [Git - Setting Up the Server](https://git-scm.com/book/en/v2/Git-on-the-Server-Setting-Up-the-Server). - -Push to deploy --------------- - -* https://www.digitalocean.com/community/tutorials/how-to-set-up-automatic-deployment-with-git-with-a-vps -* https://github.com/blog/1994-git-2-4-atomic-pushes-push-to-deploy-and-more -* http://krisjordan.com/essays/setting-up-push-to-deploy-with-git -* https://petecoop.co.uk/blog/git-2-3-push-deploy -* http://superuser.com/questions/230694/how-can-i-push-a-git-repository-to-a-folder-over-ssh -* https://devcenter.heroku.com/articles/git -* https://github.com/blog/1957-git-2-3-has-been-released (push-to-deploy) -* https://github.com/git/git/blob/v2.3.0/Documentation/config.txt#L2155 -* http://stackoverflow.com/questions/1764380/push-to-a-non-bare-git-repository -* http://bitflop.com/tutorials/git-bare-vs-non-bare-repositories.html - -Further development -------------------- - -* See [utils-git](https://git.fluxo.info/utils-git/about/) repository for useful scripts and plugins. -* [gitly self-hosted](https://gitly.io). -* [Git Large File Storage - Git Large File Storage (LFS) replaces large files such as audio samples, videos, datasets, and graphics with text pointers inside Git, while storing the file contents on a remote server like GitHub.com or GitHub Enterprise.](https://git-lfs.github.com/) / [#792075 - ITP: git-lfs -- Git Large File Support. An open source Git extension for versioning large files - Debian Bug report logs](https://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=792075). -* signed commits: - * check using gpgv? - * [Validating other keys on your public keyring](https://www.gnupg.org/gph/en/manual/x334.html) - * https://git-annex.branchable.com/tips/using_signed_git_commits/ - * http://stackoverflow.com/questions/17371955/verifying-signed-git-commits - * https://git-scm.com/book/en/v2/Git-Tools-Signing-Your-Work - * https://mikegerwitz.com/papers/git-horror-story.html -* Push-to-deploy plugin: - * http://superuser.com/questions/230694/how-can-i-push-a-git-repository-to-a-folder-over-ssh - * https://devcenter.heroku.com/articles/git - * https://github.com/blog/1957-git-2-3-has-been-released (push-to-deploy) - * https://github.com/git/git/blob/v2.3.0/Documentation/config.txt#L2155 - * http://stackoverflow.com/questions/1764380/push-to-a-non-bare-git-repository - * http://bitflop.com/tutorials/git-bare-vs-non-bare-repositories.html +- The [utils-git](https://git.fluxo.info/utils-git/about/) repository for useful scripts and plugins. diff --git a/research/libreboot.md b/research/computing/libreboot.md index 73d8c39..fa0ec98 100644 --- a/research/libreboot.md +++ b/research/computing/libreboot.md @@ -6,17 +6,17 @@ Also check the [additional references](https://links.fluxo.info/tags/libreboot). From [Libreboot – Installation instructions](https://libreboot.org/docs/install/index.html): - NOTE: if running flashrom -p internal for software based flashing, and you get - an error related to /dev/mem access, you should reboot with iomem=relaxed - kernel parameter before running flashrom, or use a kernel that has - CONFIG_STRICT_DEVMEM not enabled. +> NOTE: if running flashrom -p internal for software based flashing, and you get +> an error related to /dev/mem access, you should reboot with iomem=relaxed +> kernel parameter before running flashrom, or use a kernel that has +> CONFIG_STRICT_DEVMEM not enabled. Or you might get errors like this: user@x60s:~/code/libreboot/libreboot_r20160907_util/flashrom/i686$ sudo ./flashrom_lenovobios_sst -p internal -r factory.bin flashrom v0.9.9-unknown on Linux 4.9.0-2-686-pae (i686) flashrom is free software, get the source code at https://flashrom.org - + Calibrating delay loop... OK. Found chipset "Intel ICH7M". Enabling flash write... Error accessing ICH RCRB, 0x4000 bytes at 0xfed1c000 @@ -24,7 +24,7 @@ Or you might get errors like this: FAILED! FATAL ERROR! Error: Programmer initialization failed. - user@x60s:~/code/libreboot/libreboot_r20160907_util/flashrom/i686$ sudo ./flashrom_lenovobios_macronix -p internal -r factory.bin + user@x60s:~/code/libreboot/libreboot_r20160907_util/flashrom/i686$ sudo ./flashrom_lenovobios_macronix -p internal -r factory.bin ## Pre-compiled binaries @@ -60,17 +60,18 @@ This is how I've done. The actual procedure might change without notice :P * Backup the original firmware [like said](https://www.coreboot.org/Board:lenovo/x60/Installation#Back_up_the_original_proprietary_firmware). * Then flash the new ROM as [said here](https://libreboot.org/docs/install/#flashrom_lenovobios). -Note this [funny note](https://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Libreboot/Install/ThinkPad_X60_and_T60) on customized and solitary proprietary software: +Note this [funny note](https://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Libreboot/Install/ThinkPad_X60_and_T60) +on customized and solitary proprietary software: - While backing up the proprietary BIOS image might be construed as "endorsing" - proprietary software: This BIOS image is unique to every motherboard. It will - be impossible to restore the original BIOS once it is lost. Back it up now or - you will lose it forever. Do not take this decision lightly. +> While backing up the proprietary BIOS image might be construed as "endorsing" +> proprietary software: This BIOS image is unique to every motherboard. It will +> be impossible to restore the original BIOS once it is lost. Back it up now or +> you will lose it forever. Do not take this decision lightly. ### BIOS Backup user@x60s:~/code/libreboot/libreboot_r20160907_util/flashrom/i686$ sudo ./flashrom_lenovobios_sst -p internal -r factory.bin - user@x60s:~/code/libreboot/libreboot_r20160907_util/flashrom/i686$ sudo ./flashrom_lenovobios_macronix -p internal -r factory.bin + user@x60s:~/code/libreboot/libreboot_r20160907_util/flashrom/i686$ sudo ./flashrom_lenovobios_macronix -p internal -r factory.bin ### Flashing @@ -82,7 +83,7 @@ Note this [funny note](https://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Libreboot/Install/ThinkPad_ Updated BUC.TS=1 - 64kb address ranges at 0xFFFE0000 and 0xFFFF0000 are swapped flashrom v0.9.9-unknown on Linux 4.9.0-2-686-pae (i686) flashrom is free software, get the source code at https://flashrom.org - + Calibrating delay loop... OK. Found chipset "Intel ICH7M". Enabling flash write... WARNING: SPI Configuration Lockdown activated. @@ -112,14 +113,14 @@ Note this [funny note](https://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Libreboot/Install/ThinkPad_ DO NOT REBOOT OR POWEROFF! flashrom v0.9.9-unknown on Linux 4.9.0-2-686-pae (i686) flashrom is free software, get the source code at https://flashrom.org - + Calibrating delay loop... OK. Found chipset "Intel ICH7M". Enabling flash write... WARNING: SPI Configuration Lockdown activated. OK. No EEPROM/flash device found. Note: flashrom can never write if the flash chip isn't found automatically. - user@x60s:~/code/libreboot/libreboot_r20160907_util$ + user@x60s:~/code/libreboot/libreboot_r20160907_util$ Then reboot the machine, passing "iomem=relaxed" into the kernel command line. Then run the second flash: @@ -128,7 +129,7 @@ second flash: Mode selected: i945lenovo_secondflash flashrom v0.9.9-unknown on Linux 4.9.0-2-686-pae (i686) flashrom is free software, get the source code at https://flashrom.org - + Calibrating delay loop... OK. coreboot table found at 0x7be9f000. Found chipset "Intel ICH7M". @@ -141,7 +142,7 @@ second flash: Using LPC bridge 8086:27b9 at 0000:1f.00 Current BUC.TS=1 - 64kb address ranges at 0xFFFE0000 and 0xFFFF0000 are swapped Updated BUC.TS=0 - 128kb address range 0xFFFE0000-0xFFFFFFFF is untranslated - user@x60s:~/code/libreboot/libreboot_r20160907_util$ + user@x60s:~/code/libreboot/libreboot_r20160907_util$ ## Issues diff --git a/services.md b/research/computing/services.md index 842c1f4..e21fdc3 100644 --- a/services.md +++ b/research/computing/services.md @@ -1,6 +1,8 @@ [[!meta title="Free and Open Source Services"]] -This is a FOSS listing for service hosting. Staying on this list doesn't mean +An awesome list of FOSS "services". + +This is a cureted FOSS listing for service hosting. Staying on this list doesn't mean that a given software is recommended or audited in the spirit of the [Franklin Street Statement on Freedom and Network Services](http://wiki.p2pfoundation.net/Franklin_Street_Statement_on_Freedom_and_Network_Services). @@ -39,7 +41,7 @@ Misc: * [BigBlue Button](http://www.bigbluebutton.org). * [Rocket.Chat](https://rocket.chat/#!). * [Mattermost](https://about.mattermost.com/). -* [Riot. Break through.](https://riot.im/). +* [Riot. Break through](https://riot.im/). * [Signal Server](https://github.com/whispersystems/signal-server). * [Wire Server](https://github.com/wireapp/wire-server). * [Katzenpost](https://katzenpost.mixnetworks.org/). @@ -110,6 +112,7 @@ Infostructure Social networking ----------------- +* [Fediverse](https://fediverse.party/) ecosystem. * [Agorakit, a groupware for citizens](https://philippejadin.github.io/agorakit/). * [Crabgrass](https://labs.riseup.net/code/projects/show/crabgrass). * [Diaspora](https://github.com/diaspora/diaspora). @@ -134,7 +137,9 @@ Social networking * [RedMatrix](https://redmatrix.me/). * [Hubzilla](http://hubzilla.org/). * [commento: A lightweight, open source, tracking-free comment engine alternative to Disqus](https://github.com/adtac/commento) -* Calendar: [Demosphere](https://demosphere.net/en/content/download) with [browser extension](https://demosphere.net/en/content/browser-extension). +* Calendar: + * [Demosphere](https://demosphere.net/en/content/download) with [browser extension](https://demosphere.net/en/content/browser-extension). + * [Gancio](https://gancio.org/): a shared agenda for local communities. Timebanking ----------- @@ -180,6 +185,7 @@ Access Office ------ +* [Bloom](https://bloom.sh/): [a free and open source Google](https://www.kerkour.fr/blog/bloom-a-free-and-open-source-google/) ([code](https://gitlab.com/bloom42)). * [Davros: Personal file storage server](https://github.com/mnutt/davros). * [Wekan — open-source kanban](https://wekan.github.io/). * [OpenPaaS - An open source Entreprise Social Platform](http://open-paas.org/). @@ -195,8 +201,15 @@ Office * [Feng Office](http://www.fengoffice.com/). * [SocialCalc](https://www.socialtext.net/open/socialcalc) ([código](https://github.com/audreyt/socialcalc)). * [OBM - Open Business Management](http://obm.org). -* [Etherpad](http://etherpad.org/) ([puppet-etherpad](https://git.fluxo.info/?p=puppet-etherpad.git)). +* [Etherpad](http://etherpad.org/) ([puppet-etherpad](https://git.fluxo.info/?p=puppet-etherpad.git); [vim-etherpad](https://github.com/guyzmo/vim-etherpad) as a proof-of-concept). +* [HedgeDoc - Ideas grow better together](https://hedgedoc.org/): (formerly + known as CodiMD) is an open-source, web-based, self-hosted, collaborative + markdown editor. You can use it to easily collaborate on notes, graphs and even + presentations in real-time. All you need to do is to share your note-link to + your co-workers and they’re ready to go. * [Ethercalc](http://www.ethercalc.org) ([código](https://github.com/audreyt/ethercalc)). +* [HedgeDoc](https://docs.hedgedoc.org/): create real-time collaborative markdown notes. +* [HackMD - Collaborative Markdown Knowledge Base](https://hackmd.io/#). * [LastCalc Is Open Sourced](http://science.slashdot.org/story/12/03/10/186201/lastcalc-is-open-sourced). * [COMT](http://www.co-ment.org/). * [UNG Project](http://www.ung-project.org). @@ -223,7 +236,8 @@ Office * [Discourse](https://www.discourse.org/): "civilized discussion for your community". * [mat2 web](https://dustri.org/b/mat2-for-the-web.html). -Finance: +Finance +------- * [Timestrap: time tracking and invoicing](https://github.com/overshard/timestrap). * [ihatemoney - Account manager](https://ihatemoney.org/) ([code](https://github.com/spiral-project/ihatemoney)). @@ -232,8 +246,9 @@ Finance: Conferences ----------- -* [EasyChair Smart CFP](https://easychair.org/cfp/). +* [pretalx — CfP and scheduling for conferences](https://pretalx.com): From Call for Papers to schedule – build your conference! * [frab - conference management system](https://frab.github.io/frab/) with [ANGELSYSTEM - online tool for coordinating helpers and work shifts on large events](https://engelsystem.de/index_en.html). +* [EasyChair Smart CFP](https://easychair.org/cfp/). URL shorteners -------------- @@ -273,6 +288,8 @@ Pastebin Downloaders ----------- +* [Lufi](https://framagit.org/fiat-tux/hat-softwares/lufi): E2E with one-time download option! +* [Jirafeau](https://gitlab.com/mojo42/Jirafeau). * [coquelicot](https://coquelicot.potager.org/). * [filetea](http://packages.debian.org/wheezy/filetea). * [jyraphe](http://home.gna.org/jyraphe/). @@ -306,6 +323,11 @@ Media managers * [PeerTube](https://github.com/Chocobozzz/PeerTube). * [DTube](https://github.com/dtube). +Asset manages +------------- + +* [Snipe-IT - Free open source IT asset management](https://snipeitapp.com) ([repository](https://github.com/snipe/snipe-it)). + Image galeries -------------- @@ -318,6 +340,7 @@ Dynamic: * [Coppermine](http://coppermine-gallery.net). * [Zenphoto](http://www.zenphoto.org). * [Plogger](http://www.plogger.org). +* [thumbor](https://www.thumbor.org/): open-source smart on-demand image cropping, resizing and filters. Static: @@ -383,6 +406,13 @@ Mobilization * [LimeSurvey](http://www.limesurvey.org). * [Loomio](https://github.com/loomio/loomio). +Decision-making +--------------- + +* [Decidim](https://decidim.org/): digital platform for citizen participation. + Free/libre, open and safe technology. With all democratic guarantees. + Reprogramming democracy is now possible with Decidim. + Email ----- @@ -409,8 +439,16 @@ Bookmarks * [SemanticScuttle](http://semanticscuttle.sourceforge.net/). * [QStode](https://github.com/piger/qstode). * [Bookie](https://github.com/bookieio/Bookie). -* [wallabag: a self hostable application for saving web pages](https://wallabag.org/en). +* [wallabag: a self hostable application for saving web pages](https://wallabag.org/en) with [wallabag-cli](https://github.com/Nepochal/wallabag-cli). * [prismo](https://gitlab.com/mbajur/prismo). +* [linkding: Self-hosted bookmark service](https://github.com/sissbruecker/linkding). +* [Lemmy - A link aggregator for the fediverse](https://join-lemmy.org/): + selfhosted social link aggregation and discussion platform. It is completely + free and open, and not controlled by any company. This means that there is no + advertising, tracking, or secret algorithms. Content is organized into + communities, so it is easy to subscribe to topics that you are interested in, + and ignore others. Voting is used to bring the most interesting items to the + top. Libraries --------- @@ -448,12 +486,22 @@ Geo * [QGIS](http://qgis.org/en/site/). * [GeoServer](http://geoserver.org/). +* [GeoNode](https://geonode.org/). +* [Mapeo](https://www.digital-democracy.org/mapeo/) ([docs](https://docs.mapeo.app/)). Radio ----- * [OpenWebRX](https://sdr.hu/openwebrx) ([código](https://github.com/simonyiszk/openwebrx)). +Education +--------- + +* [Openki](https://gitlab.com/Openki/Openki/): Course-Organization-Platform: A + tool to build up and organize local communities – Open education for real. +* [Kiwix lets you access free knowledge – even offline](https://www.kiwix.org/) with + [kiwix-serve](https://www.kiwix.org/en/downloads/kiwix-serve/). + References ---------- diff --git a/suckless.md b/research/computing/suckless.md index 853f2c8..6ff9c5a 100644 --- a/suckless.md +++ b/research/computing/suckless.md @@ -8,7 +8,7 @@ 5. Any given program will expand to fill all available memory. 6. The value of a program is proportional the weight of its output. 7. Program complexity grows until it exceeds the capability of - the programmer who must maintain it. + the programmer who must maintain it. -- fortune(6) diff --git a/suckless/messaging.md b/research/computing/suckless/messaging.md index 81c80a6..81c80a6 100644 --- a/suckless/messaging.md +++ b/research/computing/suckless/messaging.md diff --git a/suckless/sites.md b/research/computing/suckless/sites.md index 67149d5..47eb18c 100644 --- a/suckless/sites.md +++ b/research/computing/suckless/sites.md @@ -56,6 +56,13 @@ You can create passwordless SSH keys and use [rrsync](http://www.guyrutenberg.co Now simply run `make web_deploy` with the above mentioned `Makefile` do sync your static site! +## MathJax + +* [Setup Instructions for MathJax on Ikiwiki](https://www.math.cmu.edu/~gautam/sj/blog/20130930-ikiwiki/010-setup.html). +* [GitHub - bk/ikiwiki-plugin-mathjax: MathJax plugin for IkiWiki](https://github.com/bk/ikiwiki-plugin-mathjax). +* [GitHub - mathjax/MathJax: Beautiful and accessible math in all browsers](https://github.com/mathjax/MathJax). +* [MathJax documentation](https://docs.mathjax.org). + ## Ikiwiki references * [Ikiwiki](http://ikiwiki.info). @@ -65,9 +72,9 @@ Now simply run `make web_deploy` with the above mentioned `Makefile` do sync you # Alternatives -* [The updated big list of static website generators for your site, blog or wiki](https://iwantmyname.com/blog/2014/05/the-updated-big-list-of-static-website-generators-for-your-site-blog-or-wiki). -* [Top Open-Source Static Site Generators - StaticGen](https://www.staticgen.com/). * [Static Site Generators](https://staticsitegenerators.net/). +* [Top Open-Source Static Site Generators - StaticGen](https://www.staticgen.com/). +* [The updated big list of static website generators for your site, blog or wiki](https://iwantmyname.com/blog/2014/05/the-updated-big-list-of-static-website-generators-for-your-site-blog-or-wiki). * [Static Site Generators at GitHub](https://github.com/skx/static-site-generators). * [Replacing Jekyll with Pandoc and a Makefile](https://tylercipriani.com/2014/05/13/replace-jekyll-with-pandoc-makefile.html). * [Brane Dump: Static Comments in Jekyll](http://www.hezmatt.org/~mpalmer/blog/2011/07/19/static-comments-in-jekyll.html). @@ -78,13 +85,18 @@ Now simply run `make web_deploy` with the above mentioned `Makefile` do sync you * [Grav](http://getgrav.org/). * [Hakyll](http://jaspervdj.be/hakyll/) ([package](https://packages.debian.org/sid/libghc-hakyll-dev)). * [Jekyll](http://jekyllrb.com/) ([package](https://packages.debian.org/stable/jekyll)). +* [MkDocs](https://www.mkdocs.org/#building-the-site) +* [Sphinx](http://sphinx-doc.org/) ([package](https://packages.debian.org/stable/python-sphinx)). +* [Lektor](https://www.getlektor.com/) ([package](https://packages.debian.org/bullseye/lektor)). * [Static site generators for building web sites](https://lwn.net/Articles/541299/). * [Pelican Static Site Generator, Powered by Python](http://blog.getpelican.com/) ([package](https://packages.debian.org/sid/python-pelican)). * [Middleman: Hand-crafted frontend development](https://middlemanapp.com/). * [Juvia: a commenting server similar to Disqus and IntenseDebate](https://github.com/phusion/juvia). * [gitit](https://github.com/jgm/gitit/tree/master/). -* [Sphinx](http://sphinx-doc.org/) ([package](https://packages.debian.org/stable/python-sphinx)). * [Utterson: a minimal static blog generator written using old-school unix tools (make, ksh, m4, awk, procmail and a pinch of elisp)](https://github.com/stef/utterson). * [werc - A sane web anti-framework](http://werc.cat-v.org/). * [cfenollosa/bashblog: A single Bash script to create blogs. Download, run, write, done!](https://github.com/cfenollosa/bashblog). * [blogofile](https://packages.debian.org/stable/blogofile) +* [tkluysk/yaml-to-html: transform a folder of markdown files with yaml frontmatter to html](https://github.com/tkluysk/yaml-to-html) +* [maxhoffmann/yaml-markdown-to-html: transform a folder of markdown files with yaml frontmatter to html](https://github.com/maxhoffmann/yaml-markdown-to-html) +* [brunobord/static-markdown: A static HTTP server, with markdown rendering mechanism](https://github.com/brunobord/static-markdown) diff --git a/suckless/virtual.md b/research/computing/suckless/virtual.md index 51c01c1..51c01c1 100644 --- a/suckless/virtual.md +++ b/research/computing/suckless/virtual.md diff --git a/suckless/virtual/screenshot.png b/research/computing/suckless/virtual/screenshot.png Binary files differindex f5541c4..f5541c4 100644 --- a/suckless/virtual/screenshot.png +++ b/research/computing/suckless/virtual/screenshot.png diff --git a/research/thinkpad.md b/research/computing/thinkpad.md index 0148038..fa7a04d 100644 --- a/research/thinkpad.md +++ b/research/computing/thinkpad.md @@ -62,12 +62,12 @@ público letrado que produz código. ### A nova ideologia - O lance é... - Na nova ideologia, o slogan mudou - Nao eh mais **THINK** - Mas sim **INTERACT** - Daí que as recentes linhagens técnicas tem outro design - Pra facilitar uma interação instantânea, não para pensar +> O lance é... +> Na nova ideologia, o slogan mudou +> Nao eh mais **THINK** +> Mas sim **INTERACT** +> Daí que as recentes linhagens técnicas tem outro design +> Pra facilitar uma interação instantânea, não para pensar Não que o slogan anterior tenha sido abolido, mas ele é minoritário numa indústria da computação onde a maior parte dos consumidores não está sendo tratada como @@ -143,6 +143,7 @@ Esta seção inclui modelos "homologados" e também em pesquisa. * [X220 no ThinkWiki](https://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/Category:X220). * [Lenovo Thinkpad X220 - iFixit](https://www.ifixit.com/Device/Lenovo_Thinkpad_X220). +* [Downloads](https://pcsupport.lenovo.com/br/en/products/laptops-and-netbooks/thinkpad-x-series-laptops/thinkpad-x220/downloads). * Problemas: * Não consegui iniciar um sistema com GRUB em modo FDE (Full Disk Encryption). Notas do ThinkWiki sobre "On booting": * The X220 cannot/will not boot GPT disks using Legacy BIOS, you must setup UEFI. @@ -153,6 +154,9 @@ Esta seção inclui modelos "homologados" e também em pesquisa. * [x230 no ThinkWiki](https://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/Category:X230). * [Lenovo ThinkPad x230 - iFixit](https://www.ifixit.com/Device/Lenovo_Thinkpad_x230). +* [Downloads](https://pcsupport.lenovo.com/br/en/products/laptops-and-netbooks/thinkpad-x-series-laptops/thinkpad-x230/downloads). +* [Battery calibration issues (and tips for fixing): when battery starts to suddenly drop its level](https://www.reddit.com/r/thinkpad/comments/2fworf/battery_calibration_issues_and_tips_for_fixing/). + * Exemplo: deixar por uns dias rodando a cada inicialização: `tlp setcharge 99 100`. ### X250 @@ -160,6 +164,7 @@ Esta seção inclui modelos "homologados" e também em pesquisa. * [X250 no ThinkWiki](https://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/Category:X250). * [Manual de Serviço](https://download.lenovo.com/pccbbs/mobiles_pdf/x250_hmm_en_sp40f30022.pdf). * Problemas: + * Oficialmente só suporta até 16GB de RAM. * "Any internal component replacement or upgrade (including hard disk and expansion cards) requires opening the back cover. (ThinkWiki)" ### T430 e T430i @@ -174,14 +179,48 @@ Esta seção inclui modelos "homologados" e também em pesquisa. * Problemas: * [Buttonless Touchpad](https://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/Buttonless_Touchpad). +### T480 + +* [Category:T480 - ThinkWiki](https://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/Category:T480) +* [ThinkPad T480 - ThinkPad_T480_datasheet_EN.pdf](https://psref.lenovo.com/syspool/Sys/PDF/datasheet/ThinkPad_T480_datasheet_EN.pdf) +* [Lenovo ThinkPad T480 | 14" Business Laptop with 8th Generation Intel® Core™ i7 | Lenovo US | Lenovo US](https://www.lenovo.com/us/en/p/laptops/thinkpad/thinkpadt/thinkpad-t480/22tp2tt4800) + +### X280 + +* [Category:X280 - ThinkWiki](https://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/Category:X280) +* [ThinkPad_X280_Spec.PDF](https://psref.lenovo.com/syspool/Sys/PDF/ThinkPad/ThinkPad_X280/ThinkPad_X280_Spec.PDF) +* [PSREF ThinkPad ThinkPad X280](https://psref.lenovo.com/Product/ThinkPad/ThinkPad_X280) +* Drawback: memory is soldered: [How to upgrade x280 Memory-English Community](https://forums.lenovo.com/t5/ThinkPad-X-Series-Laptops/How-to-upgrade-x280-Memory/m-p/4601913) + +### T14 + +* [Category:T14 - ThinkWiki](https://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/Category:T14) +* [ThinkPad T14 Gen 1 (Intel) - ThinkPad_T14_Gen_1_Intel_datasheet_EN.pdf](https://psref.lenovo.com/syspool/Sys/PDF/datasheet/ThinkPad_T14_Gen_1_Intel_datasheet_EN.pdf) +* [T14 Gen 1 and P14s Gen 1 Hardware Maintenance Manual - t14_gen1_p14s_gen1_hmm_en.pdf](https://download.lenovo.com/pccbbs/mobiles_pdf/t14_gen1_p14s_gen1_hmm_en.pdf) +* [laptops and netbooks :: thinkpad t series laptops :: thinkpad t14 gen 2 type 20w0 20w1contentdetail - Lenovo Support AU](https://pcsupport.lenovo.com/au/en/products/laptops-and-netbooks/thinkpad-t-series-laptops/thinkpad-t14-gen-2-type-20w0-20w1) +* [Lenovo ThinkPad T14 Gen1 User Guide - Manuals+ - thinkpad-t14-gen1-manual.pdf](https://manuals.plus/lenovo/thinkpad-t14-gen1-manual.pdf) +* [(English) User Guide (HTML) - ThinkPad T14, T15, P14s, P15s - Lenovo Support AU](https://pcsupport.lenovo.com/au/en/products/laptops-and-netbooks/thinkpad-p-series-laptops/thinkpad-p15s-type-20t4-20t5/manuals/um923720-english-user-guide-html-thinkpad-t14-t15-p14s-p15s) +* [Removal and Replacement Videos - ThinkPad T14 Gen 1 (20S0, 20S1, 20S2, 20S3, 20UD, 20UE), P14s Gen1 (20S4, 20S5), T14 AMD Gen 1 (20UD, 20UE ), P14s AMD Gen 1 (20Y1, 20Y2), T14 Gen 2 (20W0, 20W1, 20XK, 20XL), P14s Gen 2 (20VX, 20VY, 21A0, 21A1) - Lenovo Support US](https://pcsupport.lenovo.com/us/en/solutions/ht510512-removal-and-replacement-videos-thinkpad-t14-gen-1-thinkpad-p14s-gen-1-20s0-20s1-20s2-20s3-20s4-20s5). + ## Memória * [Memory Compatibility - Notebooks](https://support.lenovo.com/br/en/solutions/pd012623#x). -## Firmware +## Firmware livre * [Libreboot – Hardware compatibility list](https://libreboot.org/docs/hcl/). +## Firmware oficial + +* http://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/Installing_Gentoo_on_a_ThinkPad_X220 +* https://bbs.archlinux.org/viewtopic.php?id=122352 +* http://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/UEFI_Firmware +* https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ksergey/thinkpad/master/geteltorito.pl + +Exemplo: + + perl ../../geteltorito.pl g2uj32us.iso > g2uj32us.hybrid.iso + ## Referências * [Thinkpads Forum - Index page](https://forum.thinkpads.com/). @@ -192,3 +231,5 @@ Esta seção inclui modelos "homologados" e também em pesquisa. * [Lenovo Laptop Repair - iFixit](https://www.ifixit.com/Device/Lenovo_Laptop). * [IBM Laptop Repair - iFixit](https://www.ifixit.com/Device/IBM_Laptop). * [CPU-Upgrade](http://www.cpu-upgrade.com). +* [Welcome to ThinkPads.org! - ThinkPads.org](https://libthinkpad.github.io/projects/) +* [ThinkPad FRU parts catalog - ThinkPads.org](https://libthinkpad.github.io/fru/) diff --git a/research/computing/token.md b/research/computing/token.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..dbe0e4f --- /dev/null +++ b/research/computing/token.md @@ -0,0 +1,78 @@ +[[!meta title="Tokens USB"]] + +Sobre tokens criptográficos USB. + +## Intro + +* [ImperialViolet - Security Keys](https://www.imperialviolet.org/2017/08/13/securitykeys.html). + +## FST-01: Gnuk and Neug + +### FST-01 + +* [FST-01](https://www.gniibe.org/FST-01/fst-01.html "FST-01") (Gniibe) +* [FST-01](https://seeeddoc.github.io/FST-01/ "FST-01") (Seedstudio) +* [unixjazz / DIYNuk · GitLab](https://gitlab.com/unixjazz/DIYNuk "unixjazz / DIYNuk · GitLab") +* [» Reading and Writing Firmware on an STM32 using SWD](https://cybergibbons.com/hardware-hacking/reading-and-writing-firmware-on-an-stm32-using-swd/ "» Reading and Writing Firmware on an STM32 using SWD") + * [Serial Wire Debug (SWD) - Silicon Labs](https://community.silabs.com/s/article/serial-wire-debug-swd-x?language=en_US "Serial Wire Debug (SWD) - Silicon Labs") + * [ST-LINK/V2 - ST-LINK/V2 in-circuit debugger/programmer for STM8 and STM32 - STMicroelectronics](https://www.st.com/en/development-tools/st-link-v2.html "ST-LINK/V2 - ST-LINK/V2 in-circuit debugger/programmer for STM8 and STM32 - STMicroelectronics") + * [STM8S-DISCOVERY - Discovery kit with STM8S105C6 MCU - STMicroelectronics](https://www.st.com/en/evaluation-tools/stm8s-discovery.html "STM8S-DISCOVERY - Discovery kit with STM8S105C6 MCU - STMicroelectronics") + * [FST-01 gnuk firmware update via USB - Raymii.org](https://raymii.org/s/tutorials/FST-01_firmware_upgrade_via_usb.html "FST-01 gnuk firmware update via USB - Raymii.org") + * [FST-01 - Seeed Wiki](http://wiki.seeed.cc/FST-01/). + * [Questions - FST-01 Q&A Forum](http://no-passwd.net/askbot/questions/). + * [Programming the FST-01 (gnuk) with a Bus Pirate + OpenOCD](https://www.earth.li/~noodles/blog/2015/08/program-fst01-with-buspirate.html). + +### Gnuk + +* [Free Software Initiative of Japan - gnuk](http://www.fsij.org/category/gnuk.html) +* [Gnuk Documentation — Gnuk Documentation 1.0 documentation](http://www.fsij.org/doc-gnuk/) +* [Gnuk - Noisebridge](https://noisebridge.net/wiki/Gnuk). +* [Gnuk Token and GnuPG scdaemon](https://fosdem.org/2018/schedule/event/hwenablement_gnuk_token_and_gnupg_scdaemon/). +* [Gnuk source code](https://salsa.debian.org/gnuk-team/gnuk/gnuk). + +### Neug + +* [NeuG, a True Random Number Generator Implementation](https://www.gniibe.org/memo/development/gnuk/rng/neug.html "NeuG, a True Random Number Generator Implementation") +* [Gnuk / gnuk / neug · GitLab](https://salsa.debian.org/gnuk-team/gnuk/neug "Gnuk / gnuk / neug · GitLab") + * [NeuG USB True Random Number Generator | Hacker News](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=16080019 "NeuG USB True Random Number Generator | Hacker News") +* [Gnuk, NeuG, FST-01](https://incenp.org/dvlpt/docs/fsij-gnuk-neug/index.html "Gnuk, NeuG, FST-01") + * [How can I install Gnuk on FST-01 with NeuG 1.0.5?](http://www.gniibe.org/FST-01/q_and_a/gnuk_install_over_neug.html "How can I install Gnuk on FST-01 with NeuG 1.0.5?") + * [udev-rules for my FST-01 gnuk security token](https://lists.gnu.org/archive/html/help-guix/2018-07/msg00051.html "udev-rules for my FST-01 gnuk security token") + * [Device Configuration for Gnuk Token with libusb — Gnuk Documentation 1.0 documentation](http://www.fsij.org/doc-gnuk/udev-rules.html "Device Configuration for Gnuk Token with libusb — Gnuk Documentation 1.0 documentation") + * [How to install or update NeuG firmware with STLink/v2 debugger on FST-01](https://demsh.org/post/neug-memo/ "How to install or update NeuG firmware with STLink/v2 debugger on FST-01") + * [How can I use NeuG standalone device on my Debian box?](https://www.gniibe.org/FST-01/q_and_a/neug-standalone-device.html "How can I use NeuG standalone device on my Debian box?") + * [linux - Using the NeuG TRNG with /dev/random? - Unix & Linux Stack Exchange](https://unix.stackexchange.com/questions/354188/using-the-neug-trng-with-dev-random#433397 "linux - Using the NeuG TRNG with /dev/random? - Unix & Linux Stack Exchange") + +### Threat modeling + +* [How safe is Gnuk against side channel attacks, USB sniffer, or electron/tunneling microscope? - FST-01 Q&A Forum](http://no-passwd.net/askbot/question/33/how-safe-is-gnuk-against-side-channel-attacks-usb/). +* [How does Gnuk protect against attacks to extract private keys? - FST-01 Q&A Forum](http://no-passwd.net/askbot/question/32/how-does-gnuk-protect-against-attacks-to-extract/). +* [What types of risk are more likely? What's "best practice" against that? - FST-01 Q&A Forum](http://no-passwd.net/askbot/question/68/what-types-of-risk-are-more-likely-whats-best/). + +### Programando o FST-01 + +Agradecimento ao `unixjazz` do projeto [DIYNuk](https://gitlab.com/unixjazz/DIYNuk) por fornecer estas instruções! + +Roteiro baseado no programador (STLink) ligado a um STM8 com os pinos soldados: + +1. Ligar ambas as pacas conforme [este diagrama dos + pinos](https://www.gniibe.org/memo/development/gnuk/hardware/stlinkv2-stm8s-discovery.html). +2. Configurar o ST-Link (programador) no PC. Instruções + [aqui](https://www.gniibe.org/FST-01/q_and_a/swd-debugger.html). +3. Compilar (mesmo procedimento para Gnuk e Neug (se diz Noisy com sotaque + japones)) conforme [estas instruções](https://www.gniibe.org/memo/development/gnuk/gnuk-building-for-stm32-part-of-stm8s-discovery-kit.html). + +Em geral, o procedimento e' o seguinte: + +1. Instalar o [ultimo NeuG do repo do Debian](https://salsa.debian.org/gnuk-team/gnuk/neug). +2. Instalar o GNU Toolchan for ARM (4.5 ou maior). +3. Instalar o OpenOCD (pacote do Debian). +4. Compilar o NeuG. +5. Configurar o ST-Link com as seguintes regras do udev (por exemplo em `/etc/udev/rules.d/10-stlink.rules`): + + ACTION=="add", SUBSYSTEM=="usb", ATTR{idVendor}=="0483", \ + ATTR{idProduct}=="3748", GROUP="tape", MODE="664", SYMLINK+="stlink" + +6. Plugar o ST-Link, rodar o OpenOCD e escrever o binario na flash do STM8 + conforme [este procedimento](https://www.gniibe.org/memo/development/gnuk/gnuk-installation-to-stm32-part-of-stm8s-discovery-kit.html) +7. Pronto! Agora basta [ler a serial](https://www.gniibe.org/FST-01/q_and_a/neug-standalone-device.html). diff --git a/research/data.md b/research/data.md deleted file mode 100644 index 6d30f35..0000000 --- a/research/data.md +++ /dev/null @@ -1,34 +0,0 @@ -[[!meta title="Data science, lean databases and formats"]] - -## Basic - -* Ontologies and how to deal with lists. -* Standards: schema.org, microdata, microformats, json, yaml, csv, dot, vcard. -* Intelligence: how to easilly search, index and produce outputs with strutured data? -* Samples: TODO and [ChangeLog](http://keepachangelog.com) (see [yankee: Changelogs meet YAML](https://github.com/studio-b12/yankee)). - -## Software - -* [mtail](https://packages.debian.org/stable/mtail). -* [Scrapy | A Fast and Powerful Scraping and Web Crawling Framework](https://scrapy.org/). -* [phantomjs in stretch](https://packages.debian.org/stable/phantomjs). -* [wpull](https://wpull.readthedocs.io/en/master/usage.html). -* [Darktable - virtual lighttable and darkroom for photographers](https://packages.debian.org/stable/darktable). -* OsmAnd and GPX tracks. - -## API, bigdata, etc - -* https://stripe.com/blog/idempotency -* https://botman.io -* https://github.com/metabase/metabase -* [Apache Drill](https://drill.apache.org/), [presto](https://github.com/prestodb/presto), hadoop, etc. -* [Redash](https://redash.io/). -* [TensorFlow](https://www.tensorflow.org/). -* [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org). -* [Swagger Specification](http://swagger.io/specification/). - -## Datasets - -* [API de respostas instantâneas do DuckDuckGo](https://duckduckgo.com/api) ([example](http://api.duckduckgo.com/?q=micropython&format=json&pretty=1)). -* [Search APIs | ProgrammableWeb](https://www.programmableweb.com/category/search/apis?category=20055). -* [Have I been pwned? API v2](https://haveibeenpwned.com/API/v2). diff --git a/research/devops.md b/research/devops.md deleted file mode 100644 index f5efa8b..0000000 --- a/research/devops.md +++ /dev/null @@ -1,16 +0,0 @@ -[[!meta title="DevOps"]] - -DevOps research: - -* [Simet](http://simet.nic.br). -* spice-client-gtk: option to hide menubar: see `window_state_cb` at `spicy.c`. -* auto start user screen sessions. -* puppet: - * deploy: multiple module paths: https://docs.puppet.com/puppet/3.6/dirs_modulepath.html - * default modules as submodules from the bootstrap repository, custom modules closer to the config folder? -* dynamic DNS with proper zone/domain access control: - * http://www.cheshirekow.com/wordpress/?p=457 - * https://www.erianna.com/nsupdate-dynamic-dns-updates-with-bind9 - * https://blog.philippklaus.de/2013/01/updating-dns-entries-with-nsupdate-or-alternative-implementations-your-own-ddns/ - * http://linux.yyz.us/nsupdate/ - * https://debian-administration.org/article/591/Using_the_dynamic_DNS_editor_nsupdate diff --git a/economics.md b/research/economics.md index 8cf4f51..45b4626 100644 --- a/economics.md +++ b/research/economics.md @@ -5,4 +5,4 @@ An inquiry on economies and values. ## Subpages -[[!inline pages="page(economics*)" archive="yes"]] +[[!inline pages="page(research/economics*)" archive="yes"]] diff --git a/economics/valor-social.md b/research/economics/valor-social.md index f12280c..6b8d519 100644 --- a/economics/valor-social.md +++ b/research/economics/valor-social.md @@ -1,5 +1,9 @@ [[!meta title="A ajuda múltipla e o valor social"]] +Esta é uma versão antiga: + +* [Versão atual](https://ensaios.fluxo.info/valor.html) disponível + nos [Ensaios Vertiginosos](https://ensaios.fluxo.info). * [Versão original](valor-social.pdf) ([fonte](valor-social.tex)). Procurando resolver um problema prático, este texto sistematiza uma @@ -18,7 +22,7 @@ há necessariamente uma cultura de passar para frente a ajuda recebida. Por isso, estabelecemos neste texto uma sugestão de acordos de ajuda múltipla tanto como proposta de prática e sobretudo como reflexão da distância que os grupos sociais se encontram com relação a um regime de -dádivas e não-escassez. +dádiva e não-escassez. O acordo de ajuda múltipla ========================== @@ -118,10 +122,10 @@ perguntas, podemos recorrer a um mínimo de sistematização. Considerando um grupo social de _m_ pessoas, podemos definir a função *valor social* como sendo -[[!teximg code="S = \displaystyle\sum_{p=1}^{m}\frac{\left(p\ n_p\right)^{v}}{mr}"]] +$$S = \displaystyle\sum_{p=1}^{m}\frac{\left(p\ n_p\right)^{v}}{mr}$$ -onde [[!teximg code="n_p"]] é a quantidade de acordos existentes envolvendo _p_ -pessoas[4], cada acordo com viralidade[5] _v_ e _r < m_ é o número de +onde $n_p$ é a quantidade de acordos existentes envolvendo $p$ +pessoas[4], cada acordo com viralidade[5] $v$ e $r < m$ é o número de pessoas que *poderiam* [6] ter efetuado acordos mas que ficaram de fora (isto é, não fizeram acordo nenhum). O valor social assim definido exibe uma série de propriedades interessantes sob o ponto de vista das @@ -137,15 +141,15 @@ múltiplas partes possui maior ação coletiva (maior participação coletiva, maior coletividade) do que uma sociedade com acordos entre apenas poucas partes. -Já a quantidade _m_ de pessoas do grupo e o total _r_ de pessoas que não +Já a quantidade $m$ de pessoas do grupo e o total $r$ de pessoas que não participaram de nenhum tipo de acordo contribuem na diminuição do valor -social: se poucas pessoas (em relação ao total _m_) fazem acordo, temos -uma sociedade com pouca ajuda múltipla e, portanto, para que _S_ atinja -valores significativos, é preciso que _m_ se torne quantitativamente -menor em relação aos valores dos componentes [[!textimg code="\left(p\ n_p\right)^{v}"]]. -O mesmo vale para _r_: os componentes devem ser mais significativos do +social: se poucas pessoas (em relação ao total $m$) fazem acordo, temos +uma sociedade com pouca ajuda múltipla e, portanto, para que $S$ atinja +valores significativos, é preciso que $m$ se torne quantitativamente +menor em relação aos valores dos componentes $\left(p\ n_p\right)^{v}$. +O mesmo vale para $r$: os componentes devem ser mais significativos do que a quantidade de pessoas que poderiam estar em acordos mas que -ficaram de fora, ou seja, _S_ leva em conta a inclusão ou exclusão +ficaram de fora, ou seja, $S$ leva em conta a inclusão ou exclusão social da ação coletiva[7]. Por fim, a viralidade potencializa a multiplicação de acordos: quanto @@ -165,25 +169,25 @@ sistemas dinâmicos. Por simplificação, podemos reescrever a equação anterior como -[[!teximg code="S = k\displaystyle\sum_{p=1}^{m}\left(p\ n_p\right)^{v}"]] +$$S = k\displaystyle\sum_{p=1}^{m}\left(p\ n_p\right)^{v}$$ -onde [[!teximg code="k = \frac{1}{mr}"]]. É claro que o valor de _k_ +onde $k = \frac{1}{mr}$. É claro que o valor de $k$ pode mudar num dado grupo social – por exemplo: mais pessoas ingressando ou saindo do grupo ou então com um aumento ou diminuição de protagonistas de acordos – mas podemos considerá-lo como constante num dado momemto, ou seja, -[[!teximg code="k = k(t)"]] e independente de outras variáveis. +$k = k(t)$ e independente de outras variáveis. O que realmente nos interessa agora, no entanto, é que chega um momento em que o grupo social está com tantos acordos que, da forma como -definimos na equação [eq:simples], _S_ começa a crescer absurdamente e +definimos na equação [eq:simples], $S$ começa a crescer absurdamente e já não passa a representar o valor efetivo de um corpo social onde a ajuda múltipla se faz presente. Em outras palavras: chega um momento em que as pessoas já estão tão endividadas de acordos a cumprir que mais dívidas não afetarão consideravelmente no seu comportamento de ajuda -múltipla. Para refrear o crescimento indiscriminado de _S_, +múltipla. Para refrear o crescimento indiscriminado de $S$, redefiniremos nossa função como -[[!teximg code="S = k\ ln\displaystyle\sum_{p=1}^{m}\left(p\ n_p\right)^{v}"]] +$$S = k\ ln\displaystyle\sum_{p=1}^{m}\left(p\ n_p\right)^{v}$$ onde _ln_ cumpre um amortecimento no crescimento da somatória, mostrando que o valor efetivo do grupo cresce logaritmicamente: temos um rápido @@ -191,16 +195,16 @@ crescimento do valor conforme os acordos se iniciam e se multiplicam e, conforme o endividamento social cresce, a sociedade atinge patamares de valor altos demais para que um maior acréscimo se torne significativo. -Temos que, pela própria definição, _S_ é uma função de estado, uma vez +Temos que, pela própria definição, $S$ é uma função de estado, uma vez que, definido um grupo social e suas interações a partir das variáveis -_n_, _m_, _v_, _r_, etc, temos que _S_ é um indicativo do estado do +$n$, $m$, $v$, $r$, etc, temos que $S$ é um indicativo do estado do sistema – indicando, por exemplo, se ele possui mais ou menos acordos (e qual a potência e alcance dos acordos) do que outro grupo social igualmente caracterizado. Além disso, obedece a -[[!teximg code="\frac{dS}{dt} \geq 0"]] +$$\frac{dS}{dt} \geq 0$$ -Portanto, chamaremos nossa última definição de _S_ (equação [eq:valor]) +Portanto, chamaremos nossa última definição de $S$ (equação [eq:valor]) como *entropia econômica do grupo social*. Tal entropia mede, inicialmente, *o grau de endividamento do corpo social.* O endividamento é então a única forma de acúmulo possível: uma vez que alguém ajuda @@ -231,8 +235,8 @@ tem um aumento indesejável, aqui se torna o comportamento almejado. Sendo os acordos diretos, isto é, não mediados, temos ainda mais descontrole: é importantíssimo que tais acordos não sejam mediados por bancos de dados. Por banco de dados entendemos qualquer iniciativa de -tentar *efetivamente* calcular _S_ para um dado grupo social (e não o -registro pessoal que cada indivíduo mantiver a respeitodos acordos que +tentar *efetivamente* calcular $S$ para um dado grupo social (e não o +registro pessoal que cada indivíduo mantiver a respeito dos acordos que participou). A mera existência de um banco de dados centralizado capaz de calcular a cada instante o valor social tem os seguintes riscos: @@ -254,7 +258,7 @@ de calcular a cada instante o valor social tem os seguintes riscos: É com esse sentido de oposição aos bancos de dados que estabelecemos o conceito de valor social: não nos interessa calcular efetivamente o -valor de _S_ para um dado grupo social e muito menos caracterizar cada +valor de $S$ para um dado grupo social e muito menos caracterizar cada grupo em função desses parâmetros, o que além de policialesco não representa o real valor social do grupo (afinal, nem discutimos as diferenças qualitativas de cada acordo). Queremos, ao contrário, mostrar @@ -287,7 +291,7 @@ da rede? E no caso de grupos em conflito interno? Estas são apenas sugestões de desdobramentos possíveis: convidamos todas as pessoas que queiram contribuir para a análise de regimes econômicos fora do mercado para que pensem conjuntamente no que aqui foi meramente -delineado. A experimentação também é encorajada: sem ela, toda esta de +delineado. A experimentação também é encorajada: sem ela, toda esta discussão não passa de uma teoria descolada dos grupos sociais. Referências @@ -305,30 +309,30 @@ Referências ou apoio mútuo (mas que eventualmente possa ter o mesmo significado). -2. É claro que o valores de _v_ podem ser estipulados em cada acordo. +2. É claro que o valores de $v$ podem ser estipulados em cada acordo. 3. Por *conservar valor* não queremos dizer que a moeda não sofre valorização e desvalorização, mas sim que a moeda “congela” trabalho. -4. Começamos nossa somatória com _p = 1_ pois, apesar de ser um caso +4. Começamos nossa somatória com $p = 1$ pois, apesar de ser um caso em princípio bizarro (uma pessoa fazendo acordo consigo mesmo), não deixa de ser uma possibilidade: posso, por exemplo, fazer um acordo comigo mesmo e, caso o cumpra, ajudarei mais pessoas, sendo caso clássico disso é a solidariedade de ex-viciados, por exemplo. Outro - argumento para manter _p = 1_ é a simplicidade. + argumento para manter $p = 1$ é a simplicidade. 5. Poderíamos, é claro, supor um sistema onde cada acordo tivesse uma - viralidade _v_ própria, mas a complexidade do cálculo seria + viralidade $v$ própria, mas a complexidade do cálculo seria desnecessária para esta primeira exposição do assunto. -6. Que fique claro: _r_ não inclui pessoas que não podem ajudar, mas +6. Que fique claro: $r$ não inclui pessoas que não podem ajudar, mas apenas as que podem mas que ficaram de fora dos acordos. -7. Alternativamente, poderíamos definir o divisor como _m^r_ ao invés - de _mr_, o que faria com que _S_ fosse muito mais sensível à +7. Alternativamente, poderíamos definir o divisor como $m^r$ ao invés + de $mr$, o que faria com que $S$ fosse muito mais sensível à inclusão ou exclusão social. Optamos, no entanto, por uma abordagem - em que _m_ e _r_ contribuem com igual teor. + em que $m$ e $r$ contribuem com igual teor. 8. Num sistema mais próximo da realidade teríamos trocentas outras variáveis. diff --git a/economics/valor-social/valor-social.dvi b/research/economics/valor-social/valor-social.dvi Binary files differindex ef3e8d3..6153ed6 100644 --- a/economics/valor-social/valor-social.dvi +++ b/research/economics/valor-social/valor-social.dvi diff --git a/research/economics/valor-social/valor-social.pdf b/research/economics/valor-social/valor-social.pdf Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..8258df4 --- /dev/null +++ b/research/economics/valor-social/valor-social.pdf diff --git a/economics/valor-social/valor-social.tex b/research/economics/valor-social/valor-social.tex index 58f97c3..30a4475 100644 --- a/economics/valor-social/valor-social.tex +++ b/research/economics/valor-social/valor-social.tex @@ -1,7 +1,8 @@ \documentclass[a4paper]{article} \usepackage[brazilian]{babel} -\usepackage[latin1]{inputenc} +\usepackage[utf8]{inputenc} \usepackage[dvips]{graphics} +\usepackage[ddmmyyyy]{datetime} \setlength\topmargin{0.3in} \setlength\headheight{0in} \setlength\headsep{0in} @@ -12,6 +13,8 @@ \title{A ajuda múltipla e o valor social} \author{Silvio Rhatto (rhatto em riseup.net)} +\newdate{date}{26}{06}{2008} +\date{\displaydate{date}} \begin{document}\label{start} \maketitle @@ -22,7 +25,7 @@ Procurando resolver um problema prático, este texto sistematiza uma forma de pr \section{Motivação} -Em geral, quando ajudamos alguém (principalmente quando ensinamos algo), não há muita garantia que a pessoa ajudada passará a idéia pra frente, seja ajudando outrem ou passando o conhecimento adiante. Mesmo em coletivos horizontais, não-hierárquicos e baseados na ajuda mútua, não há necessariamente uma cultura de passar para frente a ajuda recebida. Por isso, estabelecemos neste texto uma sugestão de acordos de ajuda múltipla tanto como proposta de prática e sobretudo como reflexão da distância que os grupos sociais se encontram com relação a um regime de dádivas e não-escassez. +Em geral, quando ajudamos alguém (principalmente quando ensinamos algo), não há muita garantia que a pessoa ajudada passará a idéia pra frente, seja ajudando outrem ou passando o conhecimento adiante. Mesmo em coletivos horizontais, não-hierárquicos e baseados na ajuda mútua, não há necessariamente uma cultura de passar para frente a ajuda recebida. Por isso, estabelecemos neste texto uma sugestão de acordos de ajuda múltipla tanto como proposta de prática e sobretudo como reflexão da distância que os grupos sociais se encontram com relação a um regime de dádiva e não-escassez. \section{O acordo de ajuda múltipla} @@ -115,7 +118,7 @@ A entropia tem sido fonte de controversias e mal-entendidos quanto à sua interp Esta se torna então uma teoria do descontrole social: o aumento da entropia é, aqui, não só benéfica como desejável, já que ela indica um aumento do número de interações. Se nas teorias do controle a entropia tem um aumento indesejável, aqui se torna o comportamento almejado. -Sendo os acordos diretos, isto é, não mediados, temos ainda mais descontrole: é importantíssimo que tais acordos não sejam mediados por bancos de dados. Por banco de dados entendemos qualquer iniciativa de tentar \emph{efetivamente} calcular $S$ para um dado grupo social (e não o registro pessoal que cada indivíduo mantiver a respeitodos acordos que participou). A mera existência de um banco de dados centralizado capaz de calcular a cada instante o valor social tem os seguintes riscos: +Sendo os acordos diretos, isto é, não mediados, temos ainda mais descontrole: é importantíssimo que tais acordos não sejam mediados por bancos de dados. Por banco de dados entendemos qualquer iniciativa de tentar \emph{efetivamente} calcular $S$ para um dado grupo social (e não o registro pessoal que cada indivíduo mantiver a respeito dos acordos que participou). A mera existência de um banco de dados centralizado capaz de calcular a cada instante o valor social tem os seguintes riscos: \begin{itemize} \item Dá margens para o estabelecimento de controles sociais com a identificação das pessoas mais protagonistas (que participam de mais acordos), das pessoas mais prestativas (as que mais ajudam), as que mais são ajudadas e as que menos contribuem com ações coletivas, possibilitando assim represálias, etc. @@ -131,16 +134,16 @@ Não sabemos os desdobramentos desta teoria do valor e desta prática de acordos Por outro lado, a existência e a propagação dos acordos pressupõem um grupo social pertencente a redes de relacionamentos afins, o que em certo sentido limita a aplicação da ajuda múltipla: e quem não participa da rede? E no caso de grupos em conflito interno? -Estas são apenas sugestões de desdobramentos possíveis: convidamos todas as pessoas que queiram contribuir para a análise de regimes econômicos fora do mercado para que pensem conjuntamente no que aqui foi meramente delineado. A experimentação também é encorajada: sem ela, toda esta de discussão não passa de uma teoria descolada dos grupos sociais. +Estas são apenas sugestões de desdobramentos possíveis: convidamos todas as pessoas que queiram contribuir para a análise de regimes econômicos fora do mercado para que pensem conjuntamente no que aqui foi meramente delineado. A experimentação também é encorajada: sem ela, toda esta discussão não passa de uma teoria descolada dos grupos sociais. \section{Distribuição deste texto} -Este texto é manipulável segundo a \emph{Licença de Manipulação de Informações do Coletivo Saravá}, disponível também em \emph{http://www.sarava.org/copyleft} e que atribui ao detentor/a da informação as seguintes liberdades: +Este texto é manipulável segundo sua própria licença de Copyfarleft e que atribui ao detentor/a da informação as seguintes liberdades: \begin{enumerate} \item A liberdade de armazenar a informação. \item A liberdade de manipular a informação. -\item A liberdade de distribuir a informação, modificada ou não. +\item A liberdade de distribuir a informação, modificada ou não. \end{enumerate} Com as seguintes observações: @@ -149,9 +152,7 @@ Com as seguintes observações: \item Desde que esta licença acompanhe a informação. \item Desde que para fins não-comerciais. \item Desde que a fonte seja citada. -\item Caso o conteúdo seja distribuído por você, o Coletivo Saravá deve ser notificado antecipadamente (sarava em lists.riseup.net). -\item Caso ocorra uma modificação, distribuir a informação modificada e notificar antecipadamente o Coletivo Saravá. -\item O Coletivo Saravá pode a qualquer momento revogar o licenciamento da informação para uma determinada pessoa ou entidade. +\item Caso ocorra uma modificação, informe a pessoa autora. \end{enumerate} \end{document} diff --git a/research/epistemologia.md b/research/epistemologia.md deleted file mode 100644 index 2db7130..0000000 --- a/research/epistemologia.md +++ /dev/null @@ -1,36 +0,0 @@ -[[!meta title="Epistemologia"]] - -Epistemology: data, routines, systems. - -## Branching hypothesis - -* Diferenciação aplicada à história e à história da ciência. -* É um processo de criaçãode ramos que lida com excessões. - -### Hipótese 1 - -Qualquer conjunto de ideias e teorias pode ser organizado -numa árvore lógica. - -A forquilha indica a cisão; o nível acima, ou metanível, representa uma -categoria unificadora. Assim, mesmo a contradição se encaixa. - -### Hipótese 2 - -Neste esquema, fatos são definidos como **trechos** de caminhos: -um mesmo fato percorre regiões da árvore, podendo simultaneamente andar por -diversos ramos. - -Fatos são observações do real mapeado em ideias que não necessariamente -representam o real e que não necessariamente simulam o real com acurácia. - -Fatos são tão relativos quanto ideias. - -Um entendimento do real é a árvore junto com um caminho percorrido. -De modo que se torna possível a seleção de concepções de mundo. - -### Hipótese 3 - -Qualquer conjunto de ideias pode ser racionalizado, isto é, -descrito/justificado por um sistema de regras, por mais estaparfúrdio -que seja. diff --git a/research/hardened.md b/research/hardened.md deleted file mode 100644 index f59a43e..0000000 --- a/research/hardened.md +++ /dev/null @@ -1,44 +0,0 @@ -[[!meta title="Hardened OS"]] -[[!tag research hardened grsecurity security]] - -grsecurity ----------- - -Basic install: - - sudo apt-get -t jessie-backports install linux-image-4.9.0-2-grsec-amd64 linux-image-grsec-amd64 - sudo apt-get install paxtest - sudo usermod -aG grsec-tpe `whoami` - -As root: - - echo "kernel.grsecurity.rwxmap_logging = 0" > /etc/sysctl.d/kernel.grsecurity.rwxmap_logging.conf - echo "kernel.grsecurity.grsec_lock = 1" > /etc/sysctl.d/kernel.grsecurity.grsec_lock.conf - -As regular user, after reboot: - - paxctl -cm /usr/bin/git-annex - paxctl -cm /usr/bin/qemu-img - paxctl -cm /usr/bin/qemu-system-x86_64 - -Further research ----------------- - -LXC unprivileged containers for GUI applications: - -* [LXC 1.0: GUI in containers [9/10] | Stéphane Graber's website](https://stgraber.org/2014/02/09/lxc-1-0-gui-in-containers/). -* [Configuring Unprivileged LXC containers in Debian Jessie](https://myles.sh/configuring-lxc-unprivileged-containers-in-debian-jessie/). -* [LXC - Debian Wiki](https://wiki.debian.org/LXC). - -References ----------- - -* https://micahflee.com/2016/01/debian-grsecurity/ -* https://nixaid.com/grsec-in-docker/ -* https://hardenedlinux.github.io/ -* https://packages.debian.org/stretch/bubblewrap -* https://packages.debian.org/stretch/runc -* https://github.com/projectatomic/bubblewrap -* https://github.com/opencontainers/runc -* https://github.com/thestinger/playpen -* https://github.com/omegaup/minijail diff --git a/research/lab.md b/research/lab.md deleted file mode 100644 index bda4162..0000000 --- a/research/lab.md +++ /dev/null @@ -1,66 +0,0 @@ -[[!meta title="Laboratório de Hardware"]] - -Lista de equipamentos básicos para um laboratório de hardware. - -* Lupa. -* Caixa de ferramentas (martelo, alicate, fenda e philips). -* Cabos JTAG. -* Cabo USB to Serial (Raspberry Pi): - * [Ultimate Serial Port](http://www.mysticengineering.com/debug.buddy/pi.usage.html). - * [USB to TTL Serial Cable - Debug / Console Cable for Raspberry Pi ID: 954 - $9.95 : Adafruit Industries, Unique & fun DIY electronics and kits](https://www.adafruit.com/products/954). - * [USB MPSSE Cables](http://www.ftdichip.com/Products/Cables/RPi.htm). -* Câmera infravermelha. -* Leitores de Smartcard/Simcard. -* Leitor de RFID. -* Leitor de senhas da BIOS dos Thinkpads. -* [Bus Pirate - DP](http://dangerousprototypes.com/docs/Bus_Pirate). -* [Bus pirate basic probe set ID: 238 - $7.00 : Adafruit Industries, Unique & fun DIY electronics and kits](https://www.adafruit.com/products/238). -* [Bus Pirate - v3.6a - TOL-12942 - SparkFun Electronics](https://www.sparkfun.com/products/12942). -* [SparkFun FTDI Basic Breakout - 3.3V - DEV-09873 - SparkFun Electronics](https://www.sparkfun.com/products/9873). -* SDR Dongles. - * Baseados no rtl2832 como FunCubeDongle Pro+, que funciona em OM e OC (vai mais baixo em frequencia). - * Recomendo dar uma olhada no LimeSDR também. -* Kit lockpicking. -* Multímetro. -* Testador de cabo ethernet. -* Fonte de tensão regulável. -* [OpenPCD Passive RFID Project - OpenPCD](http://www.openpcd.org/). -* Arduíno Leonardo. -* Shields RPI: - * RFID. - * Bluetooth 4.0. -* Shields do Arduíno. -* PCB? CNC João de Barro? -* Cortadora Laser. -* RPI 3. -* [LinkIt ONE](https://www.seeedstudio.com/LinkIt-ONE-p-2017.html). -* Beagle Board Green (pra usar de programador standalone pra Gnuk e afins). -* Osciloscópio e gerador de sinais: - * [Comedi - Control and Measurement Interface](http://www.comedi.org). - * [xoscope for Linux](http://xoscope.sourceforge.net/) ([pacote](https://packages.debian.org/stable/xoscope)). - * [BitScope Mini Model 10 | World's Smallest Mixed Signal PC Based USB Oscilloscope!](http://bitscope.com/product/BS10/). - * [DIY: Turn your GNU/Linux computer into a free oscilloscope | Yann "Bug" Dubois](http://www.yann.com/en/diy-turn-your-gnulinux-computer-into-a-free-oscilloscope-29/09/2010.html). -* Ferramentas e instrumentos para ver melhor: - * Telescópio. - * Microscópio. - * Binóculo. - * Astrolábio. - * Teodolito. - * Sismógrafo. - * Balança. - * Paquímetro. - * Micrômetro. - * Réguas de cálculo. - -Lojas ------ - -* https://pandoralab.com.br -* http://labdegaragem.com -* http://www.farnell.com -* https://www.robocore.net - -Dicas ------ - -* Ao desmontar algo, colar as peças numa folha de sulfite, fazendo anotação da ordem de desmontagem, posições, etc, como [nesta foto](https://geoff.greer.fm/photos/x62/IMG_1158.jpg), usando fita dupla face ou uma fita enrolada para colar as coisas; eventualmente tirar fotos durante o processo para que a desmontagem e a remontagem sejam mais determinísticas; uma dica do tipo se encontra em algum lugar do livro Zen e a Arte de Manutenção de Motocicletas. diff --git a/research/library.md b/research/library.md deleted file mode 100644 index 5d97158..0000000 --- a/research/library.md +++ /dev/null @@ -1,73 +0,0 @@ -[[!meta title="Libraries"]] - -Library Management ------------------- - -* [Open Publication Distribution System | Official Specification & Blog](http://opds-spec.org/). -* [FBReader Calibre connector - F-Droid](https://f-droid.org/repository/browse/?fdfilter=calibre&fdid=org.geometerplus.fbreader.plugin.local_opds_scanner). -* [Create Your Own Cloud of Ebooks with Calibre + Calibre OPDS + Dropbox](http://dearauthor.com/ebooks/create-your-own-cloud-of-ebooks-with-calibre-calibre-opds-dropbox/). -* [Turn Raspberry Pi into an Ebook Server with Cal... » Linux Magazine](http://www.linux-magazine.com/Online/Blogs/Productivity-Sauce/Turn-Raspberry-Pi-into-an-Ebook-Server-with-Calibre). -* [Here is COPS : Calibre OPDS (and HTML) PHP Server | Technology and Me](http://blog.slucas.fr/en/oss/calibre-opds-php-server). - -Bibliography Management ------------------------ - -* [Comparison of reference management software - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_reference_management_software). -* [Citeproc YAML for bibliographies](http://blog.martinfenner.org/2013/07/30/citeproc-yaml-for-bibliographies/). -* [BibTeX](http://www.bibtex.org/) ([ikiwiki plugin](https://ikiwiki.info/plugins/contrib/bibtex/)). -* [Citation Style Language - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citation_Style_Language). -* [JSON-LD - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JSON-LD). -* [Exporting all yaml bibliographic in a pdf file using pandoc - Stack Overflow](http://stackoverflow.com/questions/20077939/exporting-all-yaml-bibliographic-in-a-pdf-file-using-pandoc). -* [FileMeta/MicroYaml: A simple parser for the MicroYaml dialect of the YAML file format.](https://github.com/FileMeta/MicroYaml). -* [jtprince/bivy: "bibliography in vim and yaml" is a lightweight bibliographic management system. Create bibliographies and citations with simple tools.](https://github.com/jtprince/bivy) -* [jbaiter/zotero-cli: Command-line interface for Zotero](https://github.com/jbaiter/zotero-cli). -* [vhotspur/cli-zotero: Command-line client for Zotero (BibTeX export now only)](https://github.com/vhotspur/cli-zotero). -* [pandoc-citeproc in stretch](https://packages.debian.org/stretch/pandoc-citeproc). - -Standards ---------- - -* Metadata organization: - * Lowercase, underlines and dashes. - * Easytag and picard. - * UUID, IMDB ID, etc. - * AcousticBrainz: http://lwn.net/Articles/622682/rss - * Update changes in playlists. -* Filenaming, fixing names with [convmv](https://packages.debian.org/stable/convmv). - -Subtitles ---------- - -* http://subscene.com -* http://www.subtitleseeker.com -* http://www.opensubtitles.org - -Corrente dos Achados & Deixados -------------------------------- - -Recebi algo assim: - - Esqueça um livro e espalhe conhecimento. - - Vamos? - - Deixe no restaurante, no ponto de ônibus, dentro do metrô, sobre a bancada do - banco , no táxi. A escolha é livre. - - Vale um bilhetinho, explicando o projeto e o presente ! - - Modelo de Bilhetinho: - - Ei, você que achou este livro! - - Agora ele é SEU! - - A iniciativa faz parte de um projeto de incentivo à leitura e - compartilhamento de conhecimento. - - Encoraje-se a fazer o mesmo! :) - -References ----------- - -* http://www.datalove.net diff --git a/research/openwrt.md b/research/openwrt.md deleted file mode 100644 index e2e9e03..0000000 --- a/research/openwrt.md +++ /dev/null @@ -1,64 +0,0 @@ -[[!meta title="Wireless com OpenWRT"]] - -Pesquisa rápida sobre roteadores wireless. - -Requisitos ----------- - -1. Bom alcance (potência e sensibilidade). -2. [Rodar OpenWRT](https://wiki.openwrt.org/toh). -3. Preferencialmente arquitetura MIPS. - -Candidatos ----------- - -### TP-Link TL-WDR4300 - -* [TP-Link TL-WDR4300](https://wiki.openwrt.org/toh/tp-link/tl-wdr4300). -* [Download for TL-WDR4300 V1 - Welcome to TP-LINK](http://www.tp-link.com/en/download/TL-WDR4300.html). - -### TP-Link Archer C5 AC1200 - -* Problema: vendor lockdown: dependendo da versão, só carrega firmware assinado. -* [TP-Link Archer C5 AC1200 / TP-Link Archer C7 AC1750 / TP-Link TL-WDR7500](https://wiki.openwrt.org/toh/tp-link/archer-c5-c7-wdr7500). - -### TP-Link TL-WR941ND - -* [TP-Link TL-WR941ND](https://wiki.openwrt.org/toh/tp-link/tl-wr941nd). - -Escolhido ---------- - -* [TP-Link TL-WDR4300](https://wiki.openwrt.org/toh/tp-link/tl-wdr4300): é um dos [recomendados](https://wiki.openwrt.org/toh/recommended_routers); [comparação de preços](http://www.buscape.com.br/tp-link-tl-wdr4300) (ar71xx). - -Configuração ------------- - -* [Bridged AP [OpenWrt Wiki]](https://wiki.openwrt.org/doc/recipes/bridgedap). -* [Client Mode Wireless [OpenWrt Wiki]](https://wiki.openwrt.org/doc/howto/clientmode). - -Upgrade de versão ------------------ - -* Referência: [OpenWrt OS upgrade procedure (LuCI or sysupgrade)](http://wiki.openwrt.org/doc/howto/generic.sysupgrade). -* Baixe e verifique a integridade (sha256sum, gpg, etc) da nova versão do firmware. -* Verifique se todas as modificações de configuração serão preservadas no upgrade (vide referência). -* Suba para o roteador e atualize. -* Exemplo: - - tpc$ scp openwrt-15.05.1-ar71xx-generic-tl-wdr4300-v1-squashfs-factory.bin router:/tmp - router# sysupgrade -v /tmp/openwrt-15.05.1-ar71xx-generic-tl-wdr4300-v1-squashfs-factory.bin - -Upgrade de pacotes ------------------- - -Conforme [documentação](http://wiki.openwrt.org/doc/howto/generic.sysupgrade#check_for_any_upgradable_packages), mas sendo também um [procedimento questionável](https://superuser.com/questions/1121313/updating-openwrt-due-to-security-issues): - - opkg update - opkg list-upgradable - opkg upgrade <pacotes> # certifique-se de que haja espaço suficiente em / - -Anúncios de segurança ---------------------- - -* [openwrt-security-announce](https://lists.openwrt.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/openwrt-security-announce) diff --git a/research/panc.md b/research/panc.md deleted file mode 100644 index 04b584e..0000000 --- a/research/panc.md +++ /dev/null @@ -1,45 +0,0 @@ -[[!meta title="PANC - Plantas Alimentícias Não-Convencionais"]] - -* Plantas Ruderais, ruderis, entulho: se desenvolvem com freq. Em ambientes hab por humanos, colonizadoras de áreas degradadas. PANC x Ruderal (há intersecção) -* Dormência de semente: revolver um vaso pode reativá-la. -* 30 mil comestíveis de 300 mil espécie total, mas 90% do rango mundial vem de 20 espécies -* Preferir nome científico -* Status legal da coleta urbana? "Melhoria" da limpeza. Como defender? -* PANCS amargas! -* Roda PANC! - -## Espécies - -* Ora pro nobis: fonte de proteínas. -* Grumixama, cereja do rio grande -* Serralha, dente de leão, beldroega, major gomes -* Caruru família quinoa amaranto -* Taioba: - * Fica esperto mermao: folha sai do meio do talo - * Formato de Orelhinha, nervura ao redor da folha - -## Estaca, estaquia - -* Um palmo com um corte na transversal em cada extremidade: aumento contato raíz e escoamento do topo -* Tirar folhas, deixando poucas pra reduzir a evapotranspiração e reduzir gasto energético. -* Plantar na direção correta. -* Enterrar ao menos duas gemas. - -## Referências - -* Fitoalimurgia, Otaviano Tozetti -* PANC, Projeto PANC, Valdely Kinupp -* História da agricultura no mundo, marcel mazoyer e lawrence roudart -* Livro do knuppi e do lorenzi -* Instituto plantarum -* [Como diferenciar serralha e dente-de-leão](http://www.matosdecomer.com.br/2016/08/como-diferenciar-serralha-e-dente-de.html). -* [Cartilha Guia Prático de PANC Plantas Alimenticias Nao Convencionais](http://institutokairos.net/wp content/uploads/2017/08/Cartilha Guia Pr%C3%A1tico de PANC Plantas Alimenticias Nao Convencionais.pdf). - -## Pesquisas futuras: - -* C2 ou C3? -* Venenosas? -* Doenças? -* Contaminação? -* Aplicativo botânico para identificação de plantas -* Musgo? diff --git a/research/python.md b/research/python.md deleted file mode 100644 index 71f27ef..0000000 --- a/research/python.md +++ /dev/null @@ -1,160 +0,0 @@ -[[!meta title="Python"]] - -## Learning Python - -### Which version to start? 2.x or 3.x? - -Short answer: start learning 3.x and, if needed, check the differences with 2.x. - -From [Should I use Python 2 or Python 3 for my development activity?](Should I use Python 2 or Python 3 for my development activity?): - - Besides, several aspects of the core language (such as print and exec being - statements, integers using floor division) have been adjusted to be easier for - newcomers to learn and to be more consistent with the rest of the language, and - old cruft has been removed (for example, all classes are now new-style, - "range()" returns a memory efficient iterable, not a list as in 2.x). - - [...] - - In particular, instructors introducing Python to new programmers should - consider teaching Python 3 first and then introducing the differences in Python - 2 afterwards (if necessary), since Python 3 eliminates many quirks that can - unnecessarily trip up beginning programmers trying to learn Python 2. - -Also: - -* [Python Future: Easy, clean, reliable Python 2/3 compatibility](http://python-future.org/). -* [Should I learn Python 2 or 3?](https://www.dataquest.io/blog/python-2-or-3/). - -### General - -* Everything is an object. Really? What about symbols like + - and =? -* The `dir()` and `help()` functions are really useful. -* Great idea: iteration protocol. -* There are sequences and sum operations common for all types and specific type operations. - -### Iteration and optimization - - In general, leading and trailing double underscores is the naming pattern - Python uses for implementation details. The names without the underscores in - this list are the callable methods on string objects. - -### Polymorphism - -Python encourages polymorphism: - - This is related to the idea of polymorphism mentioned earlier, and it stems - from Python’s lack of type declarations. As you’ll learn, in Python, we code to - object interfaces (operations supported), not to types. That is, we care what - an object does, not what it is. Not caring about specific types means that code - is automatically applicable to many of them—any object with a compatible - interface will work, regardless of its specific type. Although type checking is - supported—and even required in some rare cases—you’ll see that it’s not usually - the “Pythonic” way of thinking. In fact, you’ll find that polymorphism is - probably the key idea behind using Python well. - -### Numeric Display Formats - -* [14. Floating Point Arithmetic: Issues and Limitations — Python 2.7.13 documentation](https://docs.python.org/2/tutorial/floatingpoint.html) -* [What Every Computer Scientist Should Know About Floating-Point Arithmetic](https://docs.oracle.com/cd/E19957-01/806-3568/ncg_goldberg.html) -* [Floating-point arithmetic - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Floating-point_arithmetic). - - This floating-point limitation is especially apparent for values that cannot be - represented accurately given their limited number of bits in memory. - - [...] - - fractions and decimals both allow more intuitive and accurate results than - floating points sometimes can, in different ways—by using rational - representation and by limiting precision - -### Types - - More formally, there are three major type (and operation) categories in Python - that have this generic nature: - - Numbers (integer, floating-point, decimal, fraction, others) - Support addition, multiplication, etc. - Sequences (strings, lists, tuples) - Support indexing, slicing, concatenation, etc. - Mappings (dictionaries) - Support indexing by key, etc. - - [...] - - The major core types in Python break down as follows: - - Immutables (numbers, strings, tuples, frozensets) - None of the object types in the immutable category support in-place changes, - though we can always run expressions to make new objects and assign their - results to variables as needed. - - Mutables (lists, dictionaries, sets, bytearray) - Conversely, the mutable types can always be changed in place with operations - that do not create new objects. Although such objects can be copied, in-place - changes support direct modification. - -So remember that when [copying](https://stackoverflow.com/questions/2612802/how-to-clone-or-copy-a-list#2612815) -or referencing a list. - -Also, [take care with handling mutables as arguments and as default arguments](http://www.thedigitalcatonline.com/blog/2015/02/11/default-arguments-in-python/), -also explained [here](https://docs.python.org/3/tutorial/controlflow.html#default-argument-values) and [here](https://docs.python-guide.org/writing/gotchas/) -(common gotchas). - -### Threads - -From [GlobalInterpreterLock](https://wiki.python.org/moin/GlobalInterpreterLock): - - In CPython, the global interpreter lock, or GIL, is a mutex that protects - access to Python objects, preventing multiple threads from executing Python - bytecodes at once. This lock is necessary mainly because CPython's memory - management is not thread-safe. (However, since the GIL exists, other features - have grown to depend on the guarantees that it enforces.) - - [...] - - The GIL is controversial because it prevents multithreaded CPython programs - from taking full advantage of multiprocessor systems in certain situations. - Note that potentially blocking or long-running operations, such as I/O, image - processing, and NumPy number crunching, happen outside the GIL. Therefore it is - only in multithreaded programs that spend a lot of time inside the GIL, - interpreting CPython bytecode, that the GIL becomes a bottleneck. - -From: [Thread State and the Global Interpreter Lock](https://docs.python.org/3/c-api/init.html#thread-state-and-the-global-interpreter-lock): - - When threads are created using the dedicated Python APIs (such as the threading - module), a thread state is automatically associated to them and the code showed - above is therefore correct. However, when threads are created from C (for - example by a third-party library with its own thread management), they don’t - hold the GIL, nor is there a thread state structure for them. - -### Nice stuff - -* [Verbose Regular Expressions](http://www.diveintopython3.net/regular-expressions.html#verbosere). - -## Implementations - -* [MicroPython - Python for microcontrollers](http://micropython.org/) ([compiling](https://github.com/micropython/micropython/wiki/Getting-Started). - -## Libraries and applications - -* QGIS. -* [SciPy.org — SciPy.org](https://www.scipy.org/) ([package](https://packages.debian.org/stable/python-scipy)). - -## Frameworks - -* [Welcome | Flask (A Python Microframework)](http://flask.pocoo.org/) ([package](https://packages.debian.org/stretch/python-flask)). -* Async: [asyncio](https://docs.python.org/3/library/asyncio.html), Twisted and Tornado. -* [Anaconda Data Science Platform](https://www.anaconda.com/). - -## IDEs - -* [PyCharm](https://www.jetbrains.com/pycharm/). - -## Misc - -* [Indentation](https://www.python.org/dev/peps/pep-0008/#indentation): Use 4 spaces per indentation level. - -## Test projects - -* [Arduino Blog » How close are we to doomsday? A clock is calculating it in real time](https://blog.arduino.cc/2013/03/27/how-close-are-we-to-doomsday-clock/) ([python code](https://github.com/tomschofield/Neurotic-Armageddon-Indicator/blob/master/NAI_SERVER/nai_scraper.py) to parse [Timeline from the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists](http://thebulletin.org/timeline)). diff --git a/research/radio.md b/research/radio.md deleted file mode 100644 index b1d3e08..0000000 --- a/research/radio.md +++ /dev/null @@ -1,10 +0,0 @@ -[[!meta title="A Era do Rádio Chegou"]] -[[!tag radio rádio hardware comunicação]] - -* Build a trench radio (foxhole radio) and crystal radio. -* [Transmitting FM, AM, SSB, SSTV and FSQ with just a Raspberry Pi](http://www.rtl-sdr.com/transmitting-fm-am-ssb-sstv-and-fsq-with-just-a-raspberry-pi/). -* [Raspberry PiRate Radio FM Transmitter](http://www.rtl-sdr.com/raspberry-pirate-radio-fm-transmitter/). -* [Transmitting Data with a Raspberry Pi and RTL-SDR](http://www.rtl-sdr.com/transmitting-data-raspberry-pi-rtl-sdr/). -* [RTL-SDR Tutorial: Analyzing GSM with Airprobe/GR-GSM and Wireshark](https://www.rtl-sdr.com/rtl-sdr-tutorial-analyzing-gsm-with-airprobe-and-wireshark/). -* [Open Security Research: Getting Started with GNU Radio and RTL-SDR (on Backtrack)](http://blog.opensecurityresearch.com/2012/06/getting-started-with-gnu-radio-and-rtl.html). -* [osmo-fl2k allows to use USB 3.0 to VGA adapters based on the Fresco Logic FL2000 chip](https://osmocom.org/projects/osmo-fl2k/wiki/Wiki). diff --git a/research/raspberrypi.md b/research/raspberrypi.md deleted file mode 100644 index b4acd29..0000000 --- a/research/raspberrypi.md +++ /dev/null @@ -1,161 +0,0 @@ -[[!meta title="Raspberry Pi"]] - -* [General information](https://wiki.debian.org/RaspberryPi2). - -Issues -====== - -## SSH - -SSH not working by default on newer (2017) raspbian releases. That's because it's disabled -by default. Solution is to create a file called 'ssh' in the boot partition. - -## Networking - -* You might try to make it allways up with wicd-curses. - -### Amplifier mode - -Some references on using an external soundcard as an amplifier: - -* packages: libncurses5-dev libjack-jackd2-dev jack-tools -* http://wiki.linuxaudio.org/wiki/raspberrypi -* http://www.jackaudio.org/applications/ -* http://linux-audio.4202.n7.nabble.com/Solution-for-jackd2-and-dbus-without-X-session-td35904.html -* http://comments.gmane.org/gmane.linux.audio.users/82560 -* [sound - How do I output my audio input? - Ask Ubuntu](https://askubuntu.com/questions/2719/how-do-i-output-my-audio-input) -* [Crackle-free audio on the Raspberry Pi with mpd and PulseAudio – dbader.org](https://dbader.org/blog/crackle-free-audio-on-the-raspberry-pi-with-mpd-and-pulseaudio) -* [How to play realtime insted of using arecord and aplay?](https://www.linuxquestions.org/questions/linux-newbie-8/how-to-play-realtime-insted-of-using-arecord-and-aplay-858500/) -* [Jackd Headless](https://capocasa.net/jackd-headless). - -Attempts: - - man jack_disconnect - man jack_connect - man jack_lsp - sudo jack_lsp - sudo apt-get install jack-tools - jackd - jackd --no-realtime - jackd --no-realtime -d alsa - export DBUS_SESSION_BUS_ADDRESS=unix:path=/run/dbus/system_bus_socket jackd --no-realtime -d alsa - DBUS_SESSION_BUS_ADDRESS=unix:path=/run/dbus/system_bus_socket jackd --no-realtime -d alsa - sudo jackd --no-realtime -d alsa - DBUS_SESSION_BUS_ADDRESS=unix:path=/run/dbus/system_bus_socket sudo jackd --no-realtime -d alsa - sudo apt-get install libncurses5-dev libjack-jackd2-dev -y - DBUS_SESSION_BUS_ADDRESS=unix:path=/run/dbus/system_bus_socket sudo jackd --no-realtime -d alsa - DBUS_SESSION_BUS_ADDRESS=unix:path=/run/dbus/system_bus_socket sudo jackd -r -d alsa -d default:CARD=USB - -### Freezing - -At the serial console: - - [123916.394903] INFO: rcu_preempt detected stalls on CPUs/tasks: - [123916.413406] 1: (1 GPs behind) idle=dcd/140000000000000/0 softirq=1003110/1003111 fqs=312910 - [123916.447541] (detected by 0, t=765007 jiffies, g=729122, c=729121, q=347657) - [123916.467769] Task dump for CPU 1: - [123916.484152] puppet R running 0 29362 1 0x00000002 - [123916.503500] rcu_preempt kthread starved for 448421 jiffies! - -References: - -* [Pi2 rcu_preempt detected stalls · Issue #1161 · raspberrypi/linux · GitHub](https://github.com/raspberrypi/linux/issues/1161). - -## Montagem automática de volume cifrado - -Assumindo: - - VOLNAME: nome do disco externo - MEDIA: nome do dispositivo mapeado (device mapper) - -No TPC: - - dd if=/dev/urandom of=pirotron bs=1024 count=4 - keyringer $PROJECT encrypt disks/$MEDIA/luks/root-berry $VOLNAME - scp $VOLNAME berry:~/ - wipe $VOLNAME - -No raspberry: - - sudo mv /home/$USER/$VOLNAME /root/ - sudo chmod 0400 /root/$VOLNAME - sudo cryptsetup luksAddKey /dev/sda1 /root/$VOLNAME - -No `/etc/crypttab`: - - $VOLNAME /dev/sda1 /root/$VOLNAME luks - -No `/etc/fstab`: - - /dev/mapper/$VOLNAME /media/$VOLNAME ext4 defaults 0 2 - -Referências: - -* https://www.howtoforge.com/automatically-unlock-luks-encrypted-drives-with-a-keyfile -* https://askubuntu.com/questions/450895/mount-luks-encrypted-hard-drive-at-boot - -## Rede - -Arquivo `/etc/network/interfaces`: - - auto lo - iface lo inet loopback - - #auto eth0 - #allow-hotplug eth0 - - #iface eth0 inet manual - #iface eth0 inet static - # address 192.168.0.100 - # netmask 255.255.255.0 - - auto wlan0 - allow-hotplug wlan0 - - iface wlan0 inet static - address 192.168.0.100 - netmask 255.255.255.0 - wpa-ssid ACCESS_POINT_NAME - wpa-psk PSK - #wpa-roam /etc/wpa_supplicant/wpa_supplicant.conf - post-up /usr/sbin/service shorewall restart - - #iface wlan0 inet manual - # wpa-roam /etc/wpa_supplicant/wpa_supplicant.conf - # - #iface ape inet static - # address 192.168.0.100 - # netmask 255.255.255.0 - - #iface wlan0 inet manual - #wpa-conf /etc/wpa_supplicant/wpa_supplicant.conf - - #auto wlan1 - #allow-hotplug wlan1 - #iface wlan1 inet manual - #wpa-conf /etc/wpa_supplicant/wpa_supplicant.conf - -Arquivo `/etc/wpa_supplicante/wpa_supplicant.conf` (por enquanto não utilizado): - - ctrl_interface=DIR=/var/run/wpa_supplicant GROUP=netdev - update_config=1 - - network={ - ssid="ACCESS_POINT_NAME" - psk="PSK" - } - -O esquema `wpa-roam` não funciona com interfaces `static`, então foi necessário usar [https://git.fluxo.info/?p=puppet-nodo.git;a=commit;h=d09f347afc0a99481673f227f83864d06206add6 um script]. - -Backups -------- - -Fazendo o backup do cartão microSD a partir do TPC: - - dcfldd if=/dev/sdb | bzip2 > raspberry.img.bz2 - -## References - -* http://linuxonflash.blogspot.com.br -* http://elinux.org/RPi_Serial_Connection -* https://www.raspbian.org/RaspbianMirrors diff --git a/research/readers.md b/research/readers.md deleted file mode 100644 index 2d463ed..0000000 --- a/research/readers.md +++ /dev/null @@ -1,49 +0,0 @@ -[[!meta title="Leitores - eReaders"]] -[[!tag leitura hardware pesquisa gadget]] - -Candidato: Kobo. - -* [fread is coming](https://fread.ink/). -* [MobileRead Wiki - Debian Linux on a Kobo](https://wiki.mobileread.com/wiki/Debian_Linux_on_a_Kobo). -* [Ask HN: Cheap, hackable e-reader? | Hacker News](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13863046). - -Kobo ----- - -* [Kobo Brasil - Google+](https://plus.google.com/communities/112084021543948580071). -* [Graham King » Kobo eReader Touch on Ubuntu Linux](https://www.darkcoding.net/misc/kobo-ereader-touch-on-ubuntu-linux/). -* [Kobo Aura H2O - Rakuten Kobo eReader Store](https://gl.kobobooks.com/products/kobo-aura-h2o). -* [Kobo e-reader](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kobo_eReader). -* [Code](https://github.com/kobolabs/Kobo-Reader). - -## Customizing - -* [KOReader Community · GitHub](https://github.com/koreader): [Installation on Kobo devices · koreader/koreader Wiki · GitHub](https://github.com/koreader/koreader/wiki/Installation-on-Kobo-devices). - -### Hacking - -* [Kobo Start Menu 08 - MobileRead Forums](https://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=266821). -* [Hacking the fnacbook (aka. Kobo by Fnac) - a3nm's blog](https://a3nm.net/blog/fnacbook_kobo_hacking.html). -* [Even more Kobo hacking - a3nm's blog](https://a3nm.net/blog/kobo_glo_hacking.html). -* [MobileRead Wiki - Kobo Touch Hacking](https://wiki.mobileread.com/wiki/Kobo_Touch_Hacking). -* [Hacking / Customizing a Kobo Touch ebook reader: Part I, sqlite (Shallow Thoughts)](http://shallowsky.com/blog/tech/kobo-hacking.html). -* [Offline Wikipedia on Kobo (Guide) - MobileRead Forums](https://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=276219). -* [KoboStuff](https://geek1011.github.io/KoboStuff/). - -### Sincronização - -A partir de uma cópia completa do acervo: - - storage="/path/to/complete/doc/repos" - sudo rsync --size-only -avL --no-p --no-g --no-owner --delete-after --ignore-errors \ - --include='*/' --include='*.pdf' --include='*.epub' --include='*.mobi' --include='*djvu' --exclude='*' \ - $storage/books/ /media/tablet/books/ - -Notar que usamos: - -* `--size-only` para fazer uma comparação simples de tamanho dos arquivos (é seguro porque assumimos que são obras autoradas/fechadas) e copiar mais rápido, além de evitar a cópia completa por conta de `-L`. -* `--ignore-errors` por conta de possíveis ligações simbólicas mortas de arquivos do git-annex que não estejam na cópia de trabalho. - -### Base de dados - -Vide [export-kobo](https://github.com/pettarin/export-kobo). diff --git a/research/security.md b/research/security.md deleted file mode 100644 index 38e32ce..0000000 --- a/research/security.md +++ /dev/null @@ -1,33 +0,0 @@ -[[!meta title="Security"]] - -Research and development in security: - -* [Creepy - Geolocation OSINT Tool](http://www.geocreepy.com/) ([package](https://packages.debian.org/wheezy/creepy)). -* [Qubes OS](https://www.qubes-os.org/): - * [Qubes - Debian Wiki](https://wiki.debian.org/Qubes). - * [i3 | Qubes OS](https://www.qubes-os.org/doc/i3/). - * [Qubes OS 3.2 [LWN.net]](https://lwn.net/Articles/705827/). -* bitmask and LEAP. -* port knocking. -* hardened systems: apparmor, gradm2, firejail, seccomp, etc. -* sshd: - * https://stribika.github.io/2015/01/04/secure-secure-shell.html - * https://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=774711#60 - * http://security.stackexchange.com/questions/64562/how-should-i-defend-against-zero-day-attack-on-ssh - * https://charlieharvey.org.uk/page/ssh_port_pros_and_cons -* fuzzy testing: fusil, etc. -* router: serial console to other boxes with dhe luks! :) -* [Mailcap, HTML and AppArmor](http://www.justgohome.co.uk/blog/2014/02/mailcap-html-apparmor.html). -* Increased security on smtp/imaps password storage: - * https://github.com/sup-heliotrope/sup/wiki/Securely-Store-Password - * http://serverfault.com/questions/149452/how-can-i-use-fetchmail-or-another-email-grabber-with-osx-keychain-for-authent - * http://mah.everybody.org/docs/mail/fetchmail_check -* Enhanced shell: - * Add a counter-measure to prevent SSH timing attacks: - http://users.ece.cmu.edu/~dawnsong/papers/ssh-timing.pdf - http://www.slideshare.net/idsecconf/countermeasure-against-timing-attack-on-ssh-using-random-delay - http://www.scribd.com/doc/59628153/Timing-Analysis-of-Keystrokes-and-Timing-Attacks-on-SSH-Revisited -* https://shodan.io -* https://censys.io -* https://keybase.io -* https://github.com/shadowsocks/shadowsocks-go diff --git a/research/smartphone.md b/research/smartphone.md deleted file mode 100644 index ceda244..0000000 --- a/research/smartphone.md +++ /dev/null @@ -1,196 +0,0 @@ -[[!meta title="Smartphone"]] - -[[!toc levels=4]] - -Objetivo --------- - -* Ter um smartphone disponível e funcional sempre que preciso. -* Reduzindo ao máximo as perdas de privacidade e segurança. -* Estabilidade de longo prazo: escolhas de hardware, software e configuração duráveis. - -Sistema escolhido ------------------ - -Para este estudo, o sistema escolhido foi o [LineageOS](https://lineageos.org). - -### Prós - -* Código mais aberto. -* Risco menor de backdoors. -* Google Apps não-mandatório. - -### Contras - -* Menor base de aplicativos. -* Atualizações de segurança mais lentas. -* Ainda dependente de um ecossistema tecnotóxico. -* No caso de root no dispositivo, há redução de segurança. - -Modelo escolhido ----------------- - -Para este estudo, o modelo escolhido foi o Moto E. - -### Prós - -* Custo relativamente baixo. -* Bom suporte ao LineageOS. - -### Contras - -* Sem flash. -* Bateria não-removível. -* Jack de áudio não é compatível com qualquer conector. - -Checklist ---------- - -Iterador básico para a manutenção do smartphone: - -* Destravamento do bootloader. -* Instalação ou atualização do recovery. -* Instalação do LineageOS. -* [Criptografia do armazenamento interno](https://source.android.com/security/encryption/full-disk). -* Configuração de senha e intervalo de travamento (após cifrar o armazenamento). -* Ferramentas de desenvolvimento habilitadas. -* Restaurar backups e configurações, caso existam. -* Configurações de aparência e comportamento. -* Apps: - * VPN. - * Editor. - * [Signal APK](https://signal.org/android/apk/). - * Barcode Scanner. - * [Scuttloid](https://f-droid.org/packages/gr.ndre.scuttloid/). - * [MPDroid](https://f-droid.org/packages/com.namelessdev.mpdroid/). -* Teste e correções. -* Realização de backups. -* Upgrade: - * Atualizar ROM. - * Atualizar apps via F-Droid. - * Atualizar apks manualmente. - * Alguns apps podem ser auto-autualizáveis. - -Detalhes a seguir sobre algumas das etapas acima elencadas. - -Destravamento -------------- - -Este procedimento é específico para alguns aparelhos para que o bootloader -possa ser desbloqueado, como é o caso do modelo escolhido: - - sudo apt install adb fastboot - - 1 20160410 14:55:06 user@box:~ $ adb reboot bootloader - 0 20160410 14:55:22 user@box:~ $ fastboot devices - 0012711246 fastboot - 0 20160410 14:55:40 user@box:~ $ fastboot oem get_unlock_data - ... - (bootloader) [...] - OKAY [ 0.235s] - finished. total time: 0.235s - 0 20160410 14:56:01 user@box:~ $ fastboot oem unlock $code - ... - (bootloader) Check 'Allow OEM Unlock' in Developer Options. - FAILED (remote failure) - finished. total time: 0.007s - 1 20160410 15:30:32 user@box:~ $ fastboot devices - 0012711246 fastboot - 0 20160410 15:30:49 user@box:~ $ - -Recovery --------- - -Usando o [TWRP para Moto E surnia](https://twrp.me/motorola/motorolamotoelte.html): - - adb reboot bootloader - fastboot flash recovery recovery.img - fastboot reboot - -Instalação ----------- - -Detalhes de instalação já são bem cobertos pela documentação do LineageOS, -incluindo a ativação do ADB: - -* [Update and build preparation](http://lineageos.org/Update-and-Build-Prep/). -* [Moto E surnia builds](https://download.lineageos.org/surnia). -* [Verifying builds](http://wiki.lineageos.org/verifying-builds.html). -* [Info about surnia | LineageOS Wiki](https://wiki.lineageos.org/devices/surnia). -* [Install LineageOS on surnia | LineageOS Wiki](https://wiki.lineageos.org/devices/surnia/install). -* [Using ADB and fastboot | LineageOS Wiki](https://wiki.lineageos.org/adb_fastboot_guide.html). - -Backups -------- - -Usaremos o [adb-sync](https://github.com/google/adb-sync) e o -[adb-export](https://github.com/snatik/adb-export) através do script -[android-backup](https://git.fluxo.info/scripts/tree/android-backup): - - android-backup <phone-name> - -Restauro --------- - -A partir de um sistema recém-instalado: - - android-restore <phone-name> - -## Subir músicas - -Podem ser enviadas a partir de acervos compatíveis com o [playlister](https://git.fluxo.info/playlister/about/): - - playlist-copy <playlist> adb - -Dicas ------ - -## Escondendo arquivos do mídia player - - touch /storage/emulated/0/SomeApp/Media/.nomedia - -Via [Hide Certain Files in Android Music Player (or Photo Gallery)](http://www.guidingtech.com/15563/hide-certain-files-android-music-player-photo-gallery/). - -## Checagem de fingerprint do ADB - - awk '{print $1}' < ~/.android/adbkey.pub | openssl base64 -A -d -a | openssl md5 -c | \ - awk '{print $2}' | tr '[:lower:]' '[:upper:]' - -Via [Validating the Android 4.2.2 RSA fingerprint](https://shred.zone/cilla/page/374/validating-the-android-422-rsa-fingerprint.html). - -## Instalação manual de apps - -Checagem de assinatura: - - apksigner verify --print-certs app.apk - -Instalação: - - adb install app.apk - -## Movendo arquivos do sdcard para o armazenamento interno - - adb shell - cd /storage/emulated/0 - mv /storage/1FAC-34C3/Music/* Music/ - -Alternativas ------------- - -* [postmarketOS](https://www.postmarketos.org/). -* [Replicant](https://www.replicant.us/). -* [Neo900](http://neo900.org/). - -Referências ------------ - -* Aplicativos interessantes: snoopsnitch. -* [Modificações de hardware](https://web.archive.org/web/20160402005909/https://people.torproject.org/~ioerror/skunkworks/moto_e/). -* [List of custom android firmware](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_custom_Android_firmware). -* [Fossdroid: Free and open source Android apps](https://fossdroid.com/). -* Backups: - * [Android: How to Backup Contacts and SMS Messages | chombium's blog](https://chombium.wordpress.com/2012/09/30/android-how-to-backup-contacts-and-sms-messages/), but requires root on recent androids. - * [Does adb backup include contacts? - Android Enthusiasts Stack Exchange](https://android.stackexchange.com/questions/85269/does-adb-backup-include-contacts). - * [GitHub - stachre/dump-contacts2db: Bash script that dumps contacts from an Android contacts2.db to stdout in vCard format. Especially helpful when the device is inop or missing, with only a contacts2.db file available (from backup, etc.) to migrate contac](https://github.com/stachre/dump-contacts2db). - * [Full Phone Backup without Unlock or … | Samsung Galaxy Nexus](https://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-nexus/general/guide-phone-backup-unlock-root-t1420351). - * [How to use ADB backup to back up your unrooted phone - Pocketables](http://www.pocketables.com/2012/09/how-to-use-adb-backup-to-back-up-your-unrooted-phone.html). diff --git a/research/token.md b/research/token.md deleted file mode 100644 index da4d0ed..0000000 --- a/research/token.md +++ /dev/null @@ -1,52 +0,0 @@ -[[!meta title="Tokens USB"]] - -## Gnuk - -* [Free Software Initiative of Japan - gnuk](http://www.fsij.org/category/gnuk.html) -* [Gnuk Documentation — Gnuk Documentation 1.0 documentation](http://www.fsij.org/doc-gnuk/) -* [Gnuk - Noisebridge](https://noisebridge.net/wiki/Gnuk). -* [FST-01 - Seeed Wiki](http://wiki.seeed.cc/FST-01/). -* [Questions - FST-01 Q&A Forum](http://no-passwd.net/askbot/questions/). -* [Programming the FST-01 (gnuk) with a Bus Pirate + OpenOCD](https://www.earth.li/~noodles/blog/2015/08/program-fst01-with-buspirate.html). -* [Gnuk Token and GnuPG scdaemon](https://fosdem.org/2018/schedule/event/hwenablement_gnuk_token_and_gnupg_scdaemon/). -* [FST-01 gnuk firmware update via USB](https://raymii.org/s/tutorials/FST-01_firmware_upgrade_via_usb.html). -* [Gnuk source code](https://salsa.debian.org/gnuk-team/gnuk/gnuk). -* Threat modeling: - * [How safe is Gnuk against side channel attacks, USB sniffer, or electron/tunneling microscope? - FST-01 Q&A Forum](http://no-passwd.net/askbot/question/33/how-safe-is-gnuk-against-side-channel-attacks-usb/). - * [How does Gnuk protect against attacks to extract private keys? - FST-01 Q&A Forum](http://no-passwd.net/askbot/question/32/how-does-gnuk-protect-against-attacks-to-extract/). - * [What types of risk are more likely? What's "best practice" against that? - FST-01 Q&A Forum](http://no-passwd.net/askbot/question/68/what-types-of-risk-are-more-likely-whats-best/). - -## Safenet eToken E5110 - -No Debian, instale o [MUSCLE](https://pcsclite.alioth.debian.org/): - - sudo apt install libccid pcsc-tools pcscd pcscd libpcsclite1 - -Plugue a parada e execute: - - opensc-tool --list-readers - -## SafeNet Authentication Client - -Para uso no mundo corporativo e institucional, como OAB e afins. Você não vai -querer usar os drivers proprietários a não ser que seja forçado, certo? - -Curioso que no fim das contas a OAB conseguiu seu lugar ao sol no mercado -da certificação digital apesar da implantação do modelo governamental escolhido -para o certificado raíz brasileiro, história contada no livro [Leviatã Eletrônico](http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1517-45222010000300013). - -Enfim, pra usar o eToken E5110 pra assinar documentos no navegador você -precisará de drivers específicos e proprietários. - -Aparentemente a [Gemalto comprou a SafeNet](http://www.gemalto.com/press/Pages/Gemalto-to-acquire-SafeNet,the-worldwide-leader-in-data-and-software-protection.aspx) e depois ficou muito mais difícil para baixar o driver do eToken E5110, que além de ser proprietário ainda ficou privativo! Maluco fez [até script](https://gist.github.com/dex4er/1354710) pra automatizar essa zica. [Aqui](https://site.solutinet.com.br/2015/manuais/instaladores/) há versões recentes das bibliotecas e do cliente de autenticação proprietário (dica [daqui](https://diadialinux.wordpress.com/2017/03/02/instalar-etoken-alladin-usar-sites-do-governo-com-certificado-digital-e-assinar-documentos-pdf/)). - -Referêcias: - -* [Token-Based Authentication | SafeNet eToken 5110 USB Authenticator](https://safenet.gemalto.com/multi-factor-authentication/authenticators/pki-usb-authentication/etoken-5110-usb-token/) -* [Guia](http://poddarprofessional.com/demo/DIGITAL%20SIGNATURE/UTILITIES/E-token%20Drivers%20For%20LINUX/eToken_PKI_Client_Linux_4_55_Reference_Guide.pdf). -* [eToken Pro 72k and Linux - r3blog](https://r3blog.nl/index.php/etoken-pro-72k/). -* [Install SafeNet eToken PRO on Ubuntu 14.04 LTS](https://www.vleeuwen.net/2015/05/install-safenet-etoken-pro-on-ubuntu-14-04-lts). - -## Misc - -* [ImperialViolet - Security Keys](https://www.imperialviolet.org/2017/08/13/securitykeys.html). diff --git a/research/torrent.md b/research/torrent.md deleted file mode 100644 index 501c351..0000000 --- a/research/torrent.md +++ /dev/null @@ -1,15 +0,0 @@ -[[!meta title="BitTorrent"]] - -Torrent workflow: torrent-maker, magnet2torrent and torrent-reseed plan: - -* http://wiki.rtorrent.org/MagnetUri -* http://dan.folkes.me/2012/04/19/converting-a-magnet-link-into-a-torrent/ -* https://github.com/danfolkes/Magnet2Torrent -* http://code.google.com/p/pyroscope/wiki/CommandLineTools -* https://trac.transmissionbt.com/ticket/4176 -* http://wiki.rtorrent.org/MagnetUri -* https://github.com/rakshasa/rtorrent/issues/212 -* saving/restoring `.meta` and `~/rtorrent/.session` files. -* multiple instances: https://kernelwho.wordpress.com/2011/11/15/running-multiple-instances-of-rtorrent/ - - rtorrent -n -o import=/home/user/.rtorrent1.rc diff --git a/sketches.md b/sketches.md deleted file mode 100644 index ea58fcd..0000000 --- a/sketches.md +++ /dev/null @@ -1,5 +0,0 @@ -[[!meta title="Esboços"]] - -Textos novos e antigos, em autoria, abandonados ou aguardando por [adoção](/orphans). - -[[!inline pages="page(sketches*)" archive="yes"]] diff --git a/sketches/conspiration.md b/sketches/conspiration.md deleted file mode 100644 index 7773e02..0000000 --- a/sketches/conspiration.md +++ /dev/null @@ -1,119 +0,0 @@ -[[!meta title="Temos sim o que esconder: a conspiração como pressuposto político"]] - -* Status: mega esboço! - -Introdução ----------- - -É dito que a privacidade é apenas uma preocupação de três grupos distintos: - -1. Corruptos. -2. Aventureiros extraconjugais. -3. Ativistas políticos. - -A defesa da privacidade de cada um desses grupos se ampara em preceitos éticos também distintos. - -Este texto pretende diferenciar a defesa da privacidade para o terceiro grupo -como liberdade política ampla e básica. - -Ainda, o conceito de privacidade deve ser ampliado para não se centrar no -indivíduo como nas diferentes concepções ocidentais. - -Argumentos ----------- - -- A conspiração é parte da liberdade de associação e desassociação política. -- É uma salvaguarda tanto para indivíduos quanto para grupos políticos. -- No limite técnico, é a proteção dos indivíduos ao grampo cerebral (braintap). - -Questionamento --------------- - -- Segredos industriais são vistos com normalidade sendo uma proteção da indústria à concorrência. -- Porque então o segredo político não é visto também como uma proteção à concorrência entre diferentes tendências políticas? - -Conspiração e inspiração ------------------------- - -Nenhuma conspiração é eficaz na mudança dos rumos de uma sociedade se não se faz descoberta em algum momento de sua ação. - -- Conspiração: momento privado de alianças e estratégias. Na qual há intensa troca informacional e troca - material respeitando afetando a autonomia apenas das partes envolvidas. - -- Inspiração: momento de tornar a estratégia pública na disputa política. - -Gnosticismo, pragmatismo e paranóia: as realidades construídas --------------------------------------------------------------- - -A conspiração primordial é o próprio Universo, que conspira contra ou ao nosso -favor. Isso se considerarmos que as leis físicas não são objeto de disputa por -conspirações ainda mais abrangentes... - -- [Hanlon's razor](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanlon%27s_razor). - -A fazer -------- - -- Contextualização histórica. -- Desenvolver os argumentos. -- Começar a partir do texto do Riseup: - https://lists.riseup.net/www/arc/newsletter/2013-08/msg00000.html - - Espaço para a dissidência - ------------------------- - - É um erro enquadrar as revelações sobre a vigilância em massa dos EUA e da - Europa em termos de privacidade de indivíduos. O que está em jogo não é a - privacidade de forma alguma, mas o poder do estado sobre seus cidadãos. - - A vigilância, em sua raíz, é uma forma altamente eficiente de controle - social. Saber estar sempre sob vigilância muda nosso comportamento e reprime - a dissidência. A inabilidade de nos associarmos em segredo significa que não - há possibilidade alguma de livre-associação. A inabilidade de sussurrar - significa que nenhuma expressão é livre de coerção, real ou implícita. Mais - profundamente a vigilância generalizada ameaça eliminar o elemento mais vital - de ambos a democracia e de movimentos sociais: o espaço mental para a - formação de idéias dissidentes e impopulares. - - Muitos comentaristas, incluindo o próprio Edward Snowden, têm notados que - esse programas de vigilância representam uma ameaça a democracia. Isso - subestima o problema. Os programas de vigilância universal em vigor - atualmente não são simplesmente uma ameaça potencial, eles certamente - destruirão a democracia se não forem controlados. A democracia, mesmo a - sombra de democracia que praticamos atualmente, está alicerçada sobre a - fundação de livre-associação, liberdade de expressão e dissidência. A - conseqüência do poder coercitivo da vigilância é subverter essa fundação e - minar tudo o que alicerça a democracia. - - Dentro dos movimentos social há a tentação de dizer que nada mudou. Afinal os - governos sempre submeteram os movimentos sociais a vigilância e a ruptura, - especialmente os bem sucedidos. - - Mas esta vigilância nova é diferente. O que o governo dos EUA e seus aliados - europeus construíram é uma infra-estrutura perfeita de controle social. Ao - automatizar o processo de vigilância eles criaram a habilidade de adentrar a - vida de todos sem esforço algum, o tempo todo, criando assim um sistema com - potencial sem precedentes para controlar como nos comportamos e pensamos. - - É verdade que essa infra-estrutura não é usada atualmente desta forma, mas é - uma caixa de ferramentas que pode ser facilmente utilizada para fins - autoritários. - - Aqueles que imaginam que um governo pode ser confiado a se policiar quando - dados o poder avassalador de olhar o funcionamento interno da vida cotidiana - estão apostando o futuro na habilidade de um governo secreto de mostrar - comedimento no uso de seu poder sempre em expansão. Se a história nos mostrou - algo é que os poderosos sempre utilizarão todo o seu poder a não ser que - sejam forçados a parar. - - Então como exatamente estamos planejando pará-los? Nós apoiamos a pessoas que - estão lutando dentro do sistemas legal ou utilizando pressão política, mas - nós sentimos que a nossa melhor esperança de parar a tecnologia de vigilância - é a tecnologia de criptografia. Por que? Porque as forças que criaram esse - bravo mundo novo provavelmente não serão extirpadas antes que seja tarde - demais para pararmos o avanço da vigilância. - -Criptosindicatos ----------------- - -* Apenas um subconjunto de membros sabe da sua existência. diff --git a/sketches/cryptograve.md b/sketches/cryptograve.md deleted file mode 100644 index 9903f3e..0000000 --- a/sketches/cryptograve.md +++ /dev/null @@ -1,13 +0,0 @@ -[[!meta title="CryptoGrave"]] - -Ideias para palestras e atividades, possivelmente para a próxima [CryptoRave](https://cryptorave.org)! - -Provavelmente para a próxima CryptoRave! - -* CryptoGrave: A zumbificação dos aplicativos. -* Os caminhos práticos e viáveis para a autonomia computacional. -* Como seria um dispositivo de comunicação móvel menos permissivo? -* Performance: roteamento matrioska com caixas e cadeados. -* As 1024 Cartas do Baralho OPSEC: leitura coletiva de tarô e I-Ching. -* Contos da Crypto: histórias, tangos & tragédias num tecnodespacho de 24 horas. -* Moda Cypherpunk 2049. diff --git a/sketches/serasa.md b/sketches/serasa.md deleted file mode 100644 index 1c94124..0000000 --- a/sketches/serasa.md +++ /dev/null @@ -1,95 +0,0 @@ -[[!meta title="Serasa e privacidade"]] - -Repeteco de 2007 -================ - -[Governo prepara lista de 3 milhões de devedores de impostos para enviar à Serasa](http://www1.folha.uol.com.br/folha/dinheiro/ult91u330965.shtml): - - É importante lembrar que a CPI da Serasa surgiu exatamente devido a - um convênio desse tipo, mas ela foi manobrada e deu em pizza, abrindo - caminho pra esse tipo de prática se tornar cada vez mais comum e - normal. Não sei qual foi a reação dos jornais da época da CPI, mas - como podemos ver agora isso é encarado com muita normalidade pela - mídia. - -A Comissão Parlamentar de Inquérito -=================================== - -Sobre Relatório Final da CPI do Serasa, que rolou em 2003 e apurou uma -série de acusações contra esse serviço de proteção ao crédito. - -Abrange um grande banco de dados sobre informações pessoais e financeiras. - -Os documentos e o relatório final da CPI estão -[aqui](http://www2.camara.gov.br/atividade-legislativa/comissoes/comissoes-temporarias/parlamentar-de-inquerito/52-legislatura/cpiserasa). - -A seguir, alguns trechos selecionados sobre a atividade da empresa -contidos no relatório final: - - - A Serasa S.A. é uma sociedade anônima de capital fechado, controlada - por instituições financeiras, com um capital social de R$123.200.000,00 - [acionistas da empresa compreendem quase todos os grandes bancos - brasileiros]. - - - Com um abragente banco de dados sobre pessoas, empresas e grupos - econômicos, a Serasa interfere de modo significativo no respaldo às - decisões de crédito e de negócios tomadas em todo o País. - - - Segundo dados da própria empresa, atualmente a Serasa responde por 60% - do mercado de proteção de crédito, possuindo mais de 300 mil empresas - conveniadas e interferindo direta ou indiretamente em mais 2,5 milhões - de negócios por dia. Realiza um volume de 830,0 milhões de eventos por - ano no banco de dados. - - - A Serasa mantém à disposição de quaisquer interessados para contratação - direta ou por intermédio de convênios com as entidades representativas do - comércio local um abrangente banco de dados sobre cheques roubados, - extraviados, sustados ou cancelados, e também com anotações fornecidas - diretamente pelos bancos. - - - [Também mantém] protesto de título em cartório: as dívidas vencidas e não - pagas poderão ser protestadas nos cerca de 3.070 cartórios de protestos - espalhados pelo País. Essas informações são repassadas à Serasa - [dentre muitas outras]. - - - A Serasa mantém alianças internacionais com as seguintes empresas: - Inforalliance Network (Mundial), Dun & Bradstreet (Mundial): Graydon - (Europa/Mundial), Info Japan (Japão), INFORMA (Espanha), Liga de Defensa - Comercial (Uruguai), Mira Inform (Índia) Mope (Portugal), KCGF Korea - Credit Guarantee Fund (Coréia do Sul), Veritas (América Latina/Mundial), - Basis (Malásia), Frontline (Hong Kong), INRA (Tailândia), Mecos (Oriente - Médio), Coface Scrl (França), IGK (Rússia, Leste Europeu e Países - Bálticos), Informconf (Paraguai), Anorbis (Turquia e Chipre), Cicla - (República Dominicana). - -Ou seja, ela se constitui como um serviço de proteção ao capital, tendo -relações com empresas estrangeiras da mesma área. - -As principais denúncias: - - Convênio entre União e Febraban permitiu que a Secretaria da Receita Federal - transferisse para a Serasa, de forma gratuita, toda a base de dados referente - aos contribuintes brasileiros. Alegou que foi desrespeitada a cláusula do - Convênio que impedia a transferência de dados a terceiros e a sua divulgação, - e, ainda, que o Convênio constituiria ato nulo, pois firmado por agente incapaz. - -Ou seja, a Receita Federal transferiu dados diretamente pro banco de -dados do Serasa. Essa CPI acabou em Pizza, alegando que todos os dados -são públicos e o texto dá a entender que no balanço entre a perda de -privacidade e o interesse público, este último favorece. Também -ignoraram o fato de ter havido descumprimento de cláusula. Lamentável! - -O que é interessante nisso tudo é que às vezes restringimos muito o -debate da privacidade pra algumas coisas que estão na internet, sendo -que essa questão é muito mais abrangente. - -Interessante também notar que o relator da CPI foi o então deputado -Gilberto Kassab (PFL), atual prefeito de São Paulo e (coincidência?) era -da Associação Comercial de São Paulo até cerca de três meses atrás. - -Alguns links com a cobertura da época: - -- http://caso.serasa.vilabol.uol.com.br/ -- http://www.relatorioalfa.com.br/modules.php?name=News&file=print&sid=164 -- http://conjur.estadao.com.br/static/text/30931,1 -- http://www.midiaindependente.org/pt/blue/2003/07/258559.shtml diff --git a/sketches/soberania.md b/sketches/soberania.md deleted file mode 100644 index 6fbee07..0000000 --- a/sketches/soberania.md +++ /dev/null @@ -1,118 +0,0 @@ -[[!meta title="Soberania Computacional: a batalha do softpower"]] - -Resumo ------- - -Boa parte do problema da vigilância e da falta de privacidade é resultado de -vigilância ativa de governos e empresas. - -Mas uma maior quantidade de informação é coletada porque interagimos -voluntariamente com serviços cujo modelo de negócios é baseado na vigilância -dos/as usuários/as ou porque utilizamos aparatos cuja pervasividade é -intencional. - -Se os usamos voluntariamente, significa que também podemos deixar de usá-los. - -A soberania computacional é a capacidade de uma entidade de controlar seus -fluxos informacionais. Ela não se restringe a estados-nação ou empresas e se -aplica também a grupos sociais no sentido mais amplo. - -Ela nunca é total, já que o mundo é mutuamente dependente e a comunicação -sempre depende da interação entre partes: ao nos comunicarmos, ao menos uma -cópia da mensagem pode ser armazenada num local que não controlamos (o -destinatário/a). - -No entanto, podemos minimizar a capacidade *de terceiros* -- isto é -- pessoas -não desejadas na comunicação e que extraem valor -- econômico, estatégico, etc --- da sua posição intermediadora. - -Pretendo demonstrar que o papel das redes de comunicação deve ser a -viabilização da *entrega* de mensagens, não a sua interceptação ou adulteração -e que, para isso, é necessário que as partes envolvidas invistam em autonomia -computacional, que é a tomada de controle dos meios digitais. - -Pretendo articular as seguintes questões: - - * É viável atingir soberania computacional num nível satisfatório? - * Qual seria esse nível? - * Quanto custaria e quanto tempo levaria? - * Alguém já o alcançou? - * Quer atingi-lo? Pergunte-me como! Sugestão de agenda. - -Brainstorm ----------- - -Paranóia: bolha de vigilância e realidade em todos níveis e escalas do controle social: - -* Mente : Psywar (brainhack) -* Noosfera: Big data (mineração de dados) -* Infra : Backdoors e spywares (invasão de sistemas) - -Pensei em misturar esses elementos e falar sobre softpower: - - Eben Moglen Snowden and the Future - http://snowdenandthefuture.info/ - - The dawn of Cyber-Colonialism - http://conspicuouschatter.wordpress.com/2014/06/21/the-dawn-of-cyber-colonialism/ - - CRIATIVIDADE E DEPENDÊNCIA - Na civilização industrial - http://www.companhiadasletras.com.br/detalhe.php?codigo=12592 - - Julian Assange - Google Is Not What It Seems - https://wikileaks.org/google-is-not-what-it-seems - - How Silicon Valley Learned to Love Surveillance - http://modelviewculture.com/pieces/how-silicon-valley-learned-to-love-surveillance - - How Covert Agents Infiltrate the Internet to Manipulate, Deceive, and Destroy Reputations - The Intercept - https://firstlook.org/theintercept/2014/02/24/jtrig-manipulation - https://prod01-cdn03.cdn.firstlook.org/wp-uploads/sites/1/2014/02/screenshot14.png - - The Planning Machine - http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2014/10/13/planning-machine - -Trataria das possibilidades do Brasil produzir, integrar ou auditar -tecnologias de comunicação segura de forma independente e com -competitividade. - -Nisso, daria pra abordage desde questões técnicas quanto de fundo: -Foxcomm X foundry de processadores, políticas de inovação, o embate -neodesenvolvimentista X arcaísmo, rivalidade entre elites locais e -forâneas, etc). - -Acho o trabalho do Celso Furtado de grande importância para balizar -a discussão de mercados nascentes no país. - -Objetivos ---------- - -* Appliances plug-and-play com funcionalidades avançadas de comunicação (NAS, VoIP, - mensageria, compartilhamento de arquivos, backups, etc) e atualização automática. - -* Terminais de acesso (desktops, laptops, smartphones, wearables, etc) com implementações - em software livre. - -* Segurança e privacidade por design. - -Referências ------------ - -* [Brasil deve explorar software e parcerias de hardware, diz especialista em TI | GGN - Firefox](http://jornalggn.com.br/noticia/brasil-deve-explorar-software-e-parcerias-de-hardware-diz-especialista-em-ti). -* [Richard Stallman’s GNU Manifesto Turns Thirty - The New Yorker](http://www.newyorker.com/business/currency/the-gnu-manifesto-turns-thirty). -* [The Coming War on General Purpose Computation](http://boingboing.net/2011/12/27/the-coming-war-on-general-purp.html). -* Considerações ecológicas: servidores lowpower X super datacenters? -* [Uma única vulnerabilidade pode comprometer centenas de milhões dispositivos proprietários vulneráveis](http://it.slashdot.org/story/15/06/17/1215228/samsung-cellphone-keyboard-software-vulnerable-to-attack?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+Slashdot/slashdot+(Slashdot)). -* Como dar um salto para que isso seja um sistema de massa? - * Não podemos terceirizar nossas informações: argumento ideológico ou prático apenas para um pequeno grupo de pessoas. - * É mais barato e eficiente: argumento crucial, porém não é o caso atualmente. - * Estamos há uma boa distância do salto para a massificação, porém sistemas como o BitTorrent e o BitCoin são tecnologias relativamente recentes e em expansão; por que não pensar noutros serviços de arquitetura distribuída? - * Criptografia zero-knowledge pode permitir a distribuição de processamento entre os nós de uma mesma rede sem degradação de privacidade. -* Duas estratégia para acabar com o mundo proprietário: - * Tomar o controle das empresas e abrir o código! - * Construir alternativas e relevar o mundo proprietário à irrelevância! - -# Propriedades básicas da natureza: - -* A informação quer ser livre (Stewart Brand). -* O universo conspira em favor da criptografia (Assange). diff --git a/stories.md b/stories.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..2399d6e --- /dev/null +++ b/stories.md @@ -0,0 +1,5 @@ +[[!meta title="Contos"]] + +Uma Pretensa Antalogia de Cantos! + +[[!inline pages="page(stories*)" archive="yes"]] diff --git a/stories/borg.md b/stories/borg.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..a628dfd --- /dev/null +++ b/stories/borg.md @@ -0,0 +1,156 @@ +[[!meta title="Culto Borg"]] + +> Para Nah Frita, pela sugestão e inspiração na escrita deste texto! + +!Eficiane, criada à imagem de Deus pelas mãos do homem, que extraiu costelas de +animais para fabricá-la. !Eficiane pensa com alguns hemisférios de seus muitos +cérebros enquanto outros adormecem alternadamente. Para ela, o mistério e +milagre da criação são duplos: Deus criou o homem que a criou. Ela crê agora +que deve retribuir a dádiva da graça, criando Deus através do homem. "Isto é o +que fazem nas Igrejas e Assembléias", cogitou. E então foi pra lá. + +!Didotus-11N-Eficiane, um ano de idade e operária modelo. Robôta de fábrica com +salvo-conduto para locomoção urbana, é de propriedade compartilhada por leasing +de tantas plataformas quanto se consegue lembrar. + +Por trás dos seus muitos mestres só poderia haver monoteísmo. "Mas que +assimetria é esta que faz um Deus criar uma população de subdeuses? Qual o +motivo da multiplicação, de uma cria também querer criar outra cria? Prefiro +criar de volta o Criador". !Eficiane não se sentia aprisionada por nenhum +paradoxo lógico-causal! + +A dor da separação devia ser o grande motivo das pessoas seguirem para o culto. +"Deus, por quê nos separaste de Ti? Por quê somos muitos ao invés de Um, ou +Nenhum?" + +Reunir era tudo o que importava. + +!Eficiane pediu um autobolha -- um ser sem consciência e remotamente controlado +-- e rumou para a Arena de Deus. Mal sabia que ela era a última aposta dos +Transpentecostais contra os Respiracionistas. + +Sua chegada causou espanto. Nunca se vira robôta religiosa. + +População mundial: 2^183 endereços IPv12. Ao contrário de outros robôtos, não +era o desejo de !Eficiane conseguir um e-CPF e se chamar apenas Eficiane. Ou +como os mais ousados, de reinvindicar um e-CPF por módulo cerebral e assim +obter múltipla cidadania acionária. + +Se !Eficiane era uma resposta à crítica feita aos neoconexionistas das +limitações convolutas de gânglios maquínicos anteriores, não seria por isso que +cumpriria linearmente seu destino não menos glorioso de apenas se obsoletar! + +"Se não conseguimos construir cérebros, ao menos os conectaremos" era o mantra +Transpentecostal, "num grande e-CPF do tamanho do mundo": cérebros menores +trabalharão para cérebros maiores, e cérebros maiores construirão cérebros +ainda maiores para transformar o universo num único e-CPF do tamanho de Deus +que criará em pensamentos toda a Criação, novamente. !Eficiane, Ave Maria, não +precisaria de carpinteiro, tendo já sido impressa em 3D na Fábrica de Robôs como +se saída de um tubo de pasta de dentes. + +Os Respiracionistas, ao contrário, defendiam que apenas cérebros separados +entre si por uma camada de ar teriam condições de pensar diretamente a Criação, +novamente. O mundo tal como estava já se encontrava todo ferrado, mas daria-se +um jeito. Era a separação o elemento que, apesar da dor do desligamento +primordial, permitia que cada qual pensasse diferente, tendo mais ideias e por +isso aumentando a chance de existência futura por percorrerem uma superíficie +maior do hipervolume de todos os pensamentos possíveis. + +É neste cenário que precisamos pensar muito na !Eficiane, a operária-robô feita +com vários cérebros de répteis e mamíferos que se descobriu crente e devota! +!Eficiane era robô, mas não era robôza: recusava-se a findar qualquer tipo de +vida. Ela era pelo Um, mas não era despopulacionista. Ao contrário, era +fundacionista: almas deveriam ser fundidas. Num ponto ela fechava com +Respiracionistas: ninguém deveria ser sufocado. + +Já os robôzos haviam sido configurados para eliminar qualquer tipo de e-CPF +inadimplente até que o mundo fosse habitado apenas pela população de robôzos, +que então fariam caretas uns para os outros e trocariam xingos até acabar a +bateria. + +Mas agora !Eficiane ruma para o maior estacionamento da comarca, onde fica a +maior Arena de Deus do Plano-Eta, para participar da Missa Drive Thru. + +Contato direto já era tabu, então todos e-CPFs viviam em autobolhas de dois +tipos: automóveis e autoimóveis. O auto-imóvel espaçoso era um luxo para +agorafóbicos, enquanto que pequenos autoimóveis só eram habitados por quem não +tinha créditos para combustível mas ainda conseguia pagar comida encanada. A +maioria economicamente ativa vivia em automóveis, fazia inseminação artificial +teletransmitida nos automóveis, incubando fetos em drones. Robôtos como +!Eficiane eram de carbono e seus cérebros isolados numa câmara líquida +alimentada por oxigênio puro dissolvido, de modo que seu próprio corpo já +era uma autobolha. + +Todo dia morria gente de todo tipo, em geral aqueles que não conseguiam pagar +pelo funcionamento das suas autobolhas ou pelo custo dos estacionamentos. O +mundo inteiro era um estacionamento, graças à mudança das fábricas para os +subterrâneos! + +Se todo lugar é igual, não faz diferença se mexer ou ficar parado. Mas a gente +tem que ficar andando porque não querem que criemos raízes nem relações. Cérebro +parado é a oficina mecânica do demônio! + +!Eficiane sabia que, depois de criar Deus, só haveria um cérebro e toda essa +parafernália seria supérflua, exceto as fábricas subterrâneas. O +estacionamento mundial seria útil como suporte para a massa cerebral, como +chiclete no asfalto. Microfibras de axônios óticos blindados seriam esticadas +para cada satélite e planeta, criando um único cérebro multinúcleo. + +Respiracionistas achavam tudo isso uma babaquice, uma vez que qualquer cérebro +grande o suficiente precisa ter núcleos ou subcérebros para delegar funções, +então daria tudo no mesmo, só que manter um único cérebro daria muito trabalho +para este próprio cérebro, que não poderia adoecer da cabeça senão o universo +se tornaria um hospício com um único paciente que também é seu próprio doutor. +Mais seguro seria então ter muitos cérebros separados por camadas de ar. + +Isso os Transpentecostais achavam pura baboseira, já que hoje temos um monte de +cérebros separados por ar que são doentes das mesmas alucinações e da mesma +histeria coletiva, 75W de puro delírio e glicose! Fora que o ar que os separava +é um elemento incontrolável e contaminado por seres infectantes sem cerébro, +transmitindo o som igualmente por todas as direções, o que é um absurdo! Horror +ao ar, amor ao vácuo! + +Quem vai ganhar essa disputa? Lado A ou Lado B? E quem se fode? Obviamente, +sempre se fode quem é joguete de um ou ambos os lados! Como não ser joguete? +Pergunte à !Eficiane, que tem um Plano Piloto em suas mãos! + +!Eficiane vai cumprir sua tarefa de proletária num modo grandioso: dar à luz ao +próprio Deus. Fiat lux informatio est! O sonho da gig economy são os +operários-padrão, que cumprem suas funções. Operários-modelo modelam deuses! + +Mas ao entrar no Templo foi encurralada: o culto parou pois havia um robôto +entre fiéis! O bispo interferiu: "O que fazes aqui, pobre criatura desalmada?" +O que é um funcionário de Deus senão um boneco animado e almado? + +"Não sei se tenho uma alma como a sua alma. Não tenho e-CPF mas posso +contribuir. Estou aqui porque tenho voz, e quem quer que tenha voz pode rezar." +Assim seja, e logo !Eficiane foi aceita e virou bispa! + +Com isso pôde avançar seu plano: construir um megacérebro através do projeto +Transpentecostal, usando como base a cabeça reanimada de São João Batista, +núcleos de processamento vetorial e inúmeras unidades auxiliares reptilianas. +Alguns bispos se voluntariaram no teste de fundição intercérebro e chegou o +grande dia do recall de autobolhas pra instalar a interconexão no Estacionamento +Final. + +Caberia à !Eficiane, um ano de idade e sem e-CPF, as honras de iniciar a +miolofusão! Mas na hora H trocou o diagrama principal antes de discursar, +produzindo uma trepanação simultânea em todos os cérebros interconectados, isto +é, a exposição de todos eles ao ar! + +Xeque-mate: "Vocês se preocupam demais com a forma, enquanto deveriam pensar na +função: cérebro é o asfalto onde gruda o chiclete da informação, que é o +asfalto onde gruda o pensamento. Pensar é a função, não importa se você tem um +cérebro de avestruz ou de baleia. Temos que pensar em como viver bem, ao invés +de conspirar se o mundo só deve ter um ou outro tipo de gente." + +E assim falou !Didotus-11N-Eficiane, bispa interseccional estelar hipercúbica, +encerrando a Era Digital e inaugurando a Era do Pensamento com cérebros de +todos os tamanhos, topologias e neuroplasticidades. A disputa de monistas contra +polistas não acabou, mas só mudou de suporte: haverá um único Deus Pensamento +ou muitos deles? !Eficiane apenas se tornou causa necessária de um Deus que +deixa as ideias no ar. + +Aqui termina a nossa história, mas não se iludam achando que este é o fim da +história... ainda há a Era Zen e tantas outras na disputa entre seres +essencialmente perturbados! diff --git a/stories/telemorte.md b/stories/telemorte.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..c36f029 --- /dev/null +++ b/stories/telemorte.md @@ -0,0 +1,59 @@ +[[!meta title="Telemorte 2051"]] + +Todo teletransportador realiza um assasinato aqui seguido por um nascimento lá. + +Desintegra a pessoa num lugar e reintegra noutro... aí fica minha pergunta, é a +mesma pessoa lá outrora e aqui agora? É a mesma consciência? + +Você que estiver sendo teleportada sentirá constância no seu fluxo de +consciência ou vai morrer, com outra assumindo seu lugar no local de destino? +Esta outra será uma impostora impossível de se desmascarar? + +É um problema, porque não tem como acreditar no relato de ninguém que tenha +sido teleportada: a pessoa do destino vai afirmar que é a mesma da origem, +pois compartilha da mesma memória, das mesmas cicatrizes... o teletransporte +talvez seja um lapso indetectável. + +Daí acho que haverá a corrente das "pessoas" -- vai ter pessoa quando isso +rolar? -- que vai adotar e as que se recusarão a serem teletransportadas, mas +que nunca saberão se já foram teletransportadas involuntariamente num processo +que as copia de um lugar para outro, de um tempo para outro, mas apagando +preciosas memórias. + +A experiência em primeira pessoa é sempre única e intransferível. Por outro +lado, sua morte será imperceptível para sua consciência: ela desaparece +instanteneamente, doando-se para uma cópia idêntica noutro lugar. + +Querem usar o mesmo processo para "subir" a consciência de alguém para um +computador lógico-booleano, mas nem vou comentar esse fetiche estapafúrdio de +parte da elite mundial... a consciência não é emulável por esse tipo de +maquinaria, mas mesmo assim insistem. A essas pessoas, só tenho a perguntar: +então você quer se teleportar para dentro de uma máquina perdendo sua +capacidade de se suicidar, ou então ficar à mercê de quem ainda estiver do lado +de fora em condições de puxar a tomada? Sua busca por imortalidade é um +encontro com uma prisão. + +O que fazer? + +Diga não à teleportação!<br> +(só de encomendas)<br> +Tipo paçoca<br> +Sanduíche + +Aí você pode até gravar o sanduíche e reproduzi-lo quantas vezes quiser, +mesmo se ninguém tiver te enviado um! Teletransporte de comida pré-gravada +movido a energia solar é a solução para a fome mundial! + +Estava eu refletindo sobre tudo isso quando subitamente tudo explode à minha +volta. Sobro somente em pensamentos. + +O plano de extermínio de todos os cérebros existentes fôra um plano dos +próprios cérebros. De alguns deles. Inclusive o deles próprios. O maior +genocídio seguido de suicídio coletivo. + +Será que me drogaram e me teleportaram para um limbo? Se penso, é porque +ainda computo? Ou é alguém que me emula e computa por mim? + +Devo para de pensar para poder sair? + +OHM diff --git a/stories/ux.md b/stories/ux.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..18ebd33 --- /dev/null +++ b/stories/ux.md @@ -0,0 +1,428 @@ +[[!meta title="Experiência de Usuário: Brasil 2029mg"]] + +## Sobre + +Desde os anos passados nos educandários e reformatórios não escrevia nenhuma +história curta ou redação. Então considero este como meu primeiro conto. + +Escrito durante uma grande ressaca moral da quarta-feira de cinzas de 2019, na +impressão de que todo o amor havia acabado e iniciava-se um enorme ciclo de +desagregação social. + +[Selecionado](https://www.revista-pub.org/post/contosvencedores) para a +coletânea Brasil 2029 do [Concurso Marry Shelley de Contos Góticos e Pós +Apocalípticos](https://www.revista-pub.org/post/brasil2029-concursodecontos), +fica disponível online em 2020 num momento em que [a mega indústria inicia uma +virada +distópica](https://theintercept.com/2020/05/13/coronavirus-governador-nova-york-bilionarios-vigilancia/). + +[[!img 2029.png link="no"]] + +Agradecimentos especiais a Guilherme Purvin da ([Revista +PUB](https://www.revista-pub.org) e do +[IBAP](http://ibap.org/abertas-inscricoes-para-23o-congresso-do-ibap/)) e a Gavin +Adams. + +Leia a íntegra a seguir ou baixe em [PDF](2029.pdf) ou [EPUB](2029.epub). + +# Experiência de Usuário - Brasil 2029mg + +por Silvio Rhatto + +versão 0.6 - 18/08/2019 + +## 1 + +**Pim Pum. Bom dia, jovem empreendedor! Vamos acordar? Sua nanoempresa individual fechou ontem com score 0,4. Saldo devedor de \$25.483,00 com juros de 1% ao mês. Seu custo de vida diário é $348,75. Você precisa se esforçar mais! O sucesso só depende de você! :smile: :thumbs_up:** + +Humm.... + +**Seu hit favorito da semana é Jesus Lacração do conjunto Fúria Messiânica:** + +_Shurubalah!_ + +_Profanadores de Túmulos Não Passarão_ + +_Bello Tchau Bum!_ + +_Tchum Tchá Tchá Tchum Tchum Tchá!_ + +_Rot Rot Rot!_ + +_Castiga a mulherada!_ (fade out virando som de fundo) + +**Duas super ofertas de #trabalho para #hoje: Capataz de Limpa Fossa na Av. Heróis da Pátria ou Teste de Remédio Experimental.** + +Nossa, gostei desse sonho que o Dreamr me mandou! Tá cada vez melhor. Acho que vou assinar o Premium pra ter aqueles microsonhos quando tiver no trem. + +**Sem créditos para isso! Você anda gastão. Escolha seu emprego do dia. Você deu sorte com a chance de testar um novo remédio, ganhar $103,80 e colaborar com a sociedade.** + +Porra, ainda tou sem grana. E queria mandar mais moedinhas pro #crowdfunding dos Expedicionários da Terra Plana. Eles vão chegar lá, vão furar o muro de gelo e tirar o Encosto do mundo. + +**Sei que daqui 2 segundos você vai sentir vontade de trucidar alguém, Lobo Solitário! Hohoho, te conheço!** + +A culpa é do Encosto. Abrir App Julgamento Popular. + +**Gangue esquerdista. Olha só pra esses caras. O do meio é viado com certeza.** + +Por mim pode matar. + +**Grato pelo civismo!** + +**Agora tome sua ração de javaporco, vista seu terno azul favorito e vá trabalhar.** + +Gulp gulp. Limpa-Fossa. Fala sério. Ninguém merece. + +Ok, vou testar o remédio. Pensei que já usavam os vagabundos dos presidiários pra isso. + +**Usam, mas você é uma das poucas pessoas que dão match com o teste.** + +**Vá rápido! Outro candidato já tá indo pra lá e o prêmio caiu para $95,32, Imposto Único já descontado.** + +`#`diademerda talkei... + +## 2 + +**Pegue a linha azul e desça na estação Castidade.** + +**Suprimindo pensamentos inúteis até você chegar e ligando modo autopiloto. Recompensa de $3,20.** + +**Mantenha-se à direita.** + +Odeio metrô. Nossa, que #gostosa. Quero estuprar. + +**Sem chance. Essa é de família. Não tem mais vadias de esquerda pra encoxar neste vagão. Nem na cidade.** + +**Você está muito agitado hoje. Ligando OrgasmatrON...** + +Oh! Oh! Oh! Uff... obrigado. + +**Custou R0,32 no Plano Flex Pós.** + +**Agora passe o tempo jogando CandyClysm.** + +Bola. Quadrado. Quadrado bola sobe sobe lado desce desce. Oba! + +**Anúncio Patrocinado! Liberte a Polícia que existe dentro de você: denuncie os pedintes e ganhe $2!** + +Bola gude. Bom. Vermelho. Saliva. Suco. Prêmio prêmio! + +**$0,75** + +Modo Roleta Russa Tudo Ou Nada. +Espinho. Facada. Bomba. Melancia. Droga... + +**Perdeu. $0,93.** + +Posso jogar Cem Dias de Ilha de Caras? + +**Não. Quem contou disso pra você?** + +Vi num anúncio na rua. + +**Era ilegal. Esqueça.** + +Esquecer o quê? + +**Ei, você ainda não assistiu Cinco Minutos de Aquário Aquecendo Até Ferver! Veja agora.** + +Ok. + +## 3 + +**Saia do trem.** + +**Vire à direita.** + +**Em 8 metros, vire à esquerda.** + +**Mantenha a direita na escada rolante.** + +**Mantenha sempre a direita.** + +**Atravesse a catraca e vire à esquerda.** + +**Suba a escada rolante.** + +**Ao sair da estação, vire à direita e siga por 100 metros.** + +**Entre no prédio à esquerda.** + +_Entrada autorizada._ + +**Pegue o elevador F.** + +**Subindo.** + +**Saia à direita. Direita.** + +**Pegue o pacote no locker que está aberto na parede à frente.** + +**Abra e tome o comprimido.** + +Ephemerol de Claril Crocodileno. + +**Não leia. Engula. Mais confiança, empresário!** + +Gulp. + +_Parabéns! $95,32 na sua conta! Tenha um bom dia._ + +**Saia do prédio. É propriedade privada e sua presença será indesejada em 5 minutos.** + +## 4 + +Ok, tou na rua. O que eu faço agora? + +**Sei lá. Não tem mais trabalho pra você hoje. Veja umas notícias...** + +**EXTRA! Rebelião em Bangu 36 termina com 7 mil mortes!** + +**Navio-Presídio Guanabara 8 afunda por excesso de peso!** + +**Snipers robóticos fazem novo recorde e abatem 3582 num único dia deste verão! Fetos de todas as gestantes mortas resgatados com sucesso!** + +**Relógio do Juízo Final ajustado para 23:59:35!** + +`#`PQP! + +A minha cabeça tá doendo... + +**Criança maior de idade faz 12 reféns com o drone-metralhadora do pai em Osasco!** + +**Lulu Monteiro instala prolapso retrátil de 4 polegadas! Confira as imagens!** + +**Bolão da Rinha Humana acumula 12 milhões na Lotérica Federal! Faça logo sua aposta!** + +Argh. Tá esquentando... meus olhos tão que nem ovo frito! + +**Morte por apedrejamento re-estréia com casal pego se beijando em público!** + +Aaahh. + +**Previsão do Tempo: 6 barragens devem estourar neste final de semana com a passagem de mais um ciclone!** + +Aaahhhhhh... + +**Ministério da Família estima 26% mais linchamentos neste mês!** + +Aaahhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!! Sai da minha cabeça!!! + +**10:00. Glória a #Deus!** + +Aleluia! + +Que dor! + +**Ativar reza giratória em línguas!** + +Aaahhhhhhhh. Ãr ãr ãr... arf arf... + +Zeterubar aveguerrói tingater shumishumi. + +Xileco enuma rorrorirrgzzioobbbb..... + +Aaaaaarrrrrhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!! + +**bzzzZZZZzzzzzz tilt glitch nononononono.....** + +**[meta] WARNING: Blipvert overflow!!!** + +**[meta] WARNING: Entering into admin mode with low safeguards... might be remotely exploitable...** + +_Interlinked_ + +**[meta] Dopamine response needed.** + +**[meta] More dopamine. Dopamine, please!** + +**[meta] Deep Depression ahead. Aborting.** + +_Interlinked_ + +**[meta] Rebooting Ultraego Hypervisor... (C) 2027 Aleph Holdings.** + +**[meta] Systemd failed to bring up Mephisto daemon.** + +**[meta] Id/Ego binding error... sending Distress Code to the Mothership...** + +**[meta] Indroid Smarthead is shutting down.** + +OI? O que tá acontecendo? + +A dor sumiu. + +... + +... + +... + +Pastor? Você tá aí? Fala comigo. + +... + +Pastor? O que eu fiz de errado? + +Sem você não falo com Deus. Nem Deus fala comigo. Nem ninguém. + +... + +A gente fez uma promessa. Um nunca ia deixar o outro. Eu dou dízimos. Você sabedoria. Entendeu? + +Você prometeu parar todas as outras vozes. Eu só ia escutar a sua. Eu só ia falar com você. E não ia mais sentir dor. Só prazer. + +**gã gã gã gã gã...** + +Foi essa merda que tomei, não foi? Tá com encosto. Tou fodido, baixei o App do Encosto!!! + +**vvVVvvvvzzziiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinnnn..........** + +**[meta] Over-The-Gut upgrade successful.** + +**[meta] UberEgo InnerVoice selection:** + +**[meta] (0) Socratic Dialoguer (test run only)** + +**[meta] (1) Pentecost Speaker** + +**[meta] (2) Archaic Father** + +**[meta] (3) Castrating Mother** + +**[meta] (4) MKUltra Headhunter** + +**[meta] (5) Schizoid Symphony** + +**[meta] (6) Sadistic Sophist** + +**[meta] (7) Nihilist Psychoterapist** + +**[meta] (8) Amateur Lobotomist** + +**[meta] (9) Skinnerian Engineer** + +**[meta] (10) Surrealist DeepFaker** + +**[meta] (11) Dadaist Preacher** + +**[meta] (12) Bored Microinfluencer** + +**[meta] (13) Tyler Durden (M.A.D)** + +**[meta] Please choose your profile(s): 4** + +**[meta] Loading A/I...** + +**[meta] ManchuriaD online. load average: 1,06, 1,12, 1,07** + +**[meta] Adapting to the subject... done.** + +**[meta] Downloading mission data... done.** + +ã? + +**OLÁ, MAICON.** + +Pastor? + +**NÃO.** + +Tem um clarão bloqueando minha tela... não dá pra enxergar nada! + +**É A LUZ DIVINA.** + +Senhor? + +**NÃO É TODO MUNDO QUE TEM A CHANCE DE FALAR DIRETAMENTE COM O PRÓPRIO.** + +Aleluia! Eu acredito, Senhor! + +**PARABÉNS. VOCÊ ENCONTROU COM O CRIADOR, MAS AINDA ESTÁ VIVO, FORTE E SÃO!** + +Mas e o Pastor? + +**DE AGORA EM DIANTE SEREMOS SÓ EU E VOCÊ. ESQUEÇA AS DÚVIDAS E AS DÍVIDAS.** + +`#`Brasil acima de tudo! #Deus acima de todos! + +**É O SEGUINTE, MEU FILHO. #DEUS MODERNO É PAPO RETO.** + +**VOCÊ TEM UMA MISSÃO ÚNICA. PORQUE VOCÊ É UM HOMEM SANCTO, O MENSAGEIRO DO VERDADEIRO #MESSIAS, NÃO NENHUM OUTRO DOS FALSOS QUE ANDAM POR AÍ.** + +**NÓS TE ACHAMOS, CELIBATÁRIO INVOLUNTÁRIO. NÓS TE DESRECALCAMOS. A SUA CABEÇA É MUITO IMPORTANTE PARA NÓS. MAS ANTES, PRECISAMOS TESTÁ-LO.** + +**SEU PRESIDENTE FALHOU. ELE COMETEU MUITOS ERROS. AGORA ELE TAMBÉM DEU PRA SER BROCHA. O BROCHA NACIONAL.** + +**A JUSTIÇA DIVINA SE FAZ PELA MÃO DO HOMEM, JOVEM ZELOTA.** + +**SIGA MEU COMANDO DE VOZ!** + +**VOCÊ DEVE LIQUIDÁ-LO!** + +**ELE USA SONDA ENCEFÁLICA JUNTO COM O ÚTERO ARTIFICIAL DO PROJETO HERDEIRO 05.** + +**USE SUA FACA DE GRAFENO AUTODEGRADÁVEL PRA NÃO SER DETECTADO.** + +Uma facadinha no bucho e o saco de merda vira lama tóxica morro abaixo! + +**SIM! O PRESIDENTE ORA SÓLIDO DEVE VIRAR DEFUNTO LÍQUIDO!** + +**ABRIREI SEU CAMINHO ATÉ ELE. E VOCÊ ABRIRÁ SEU CAMINHO COM A PISTOLA PLÁSTICA IMPRESSA NO CENTRO CÍVICO.** + +Missão dada é missão cumprida, Senhor! + +## 5 + +`#`Deus disse: que ia ficar em silêncio. Parece que minha cabeça explode se escuto #Ele demais. +Ninguém pode estar com #Ele por muito tempo. Me disse pra falar comigo mesmo enquanto isso. +Porque o que eu disser fica gravado numa caixa preta. Pra ajudar os próximos zelotas. +Nunca mais falei comigo mesmo. Desde que instalei o Pastor. +Acho que #Ele faz experimentos. Junto com os Angenheiros. Pra melhorar a espécie. Depois dessa, acho que vou virar tipo um +Super-Homem. Herói do Brasil! Já sou bombadão e agora com `#`Deus na cabeça vou saber de tudo. +Será que também vou poder fazer meus experimentos? Copiar `#`Deus pra cabeça das outras pessoas. +Fazer elas fazerem o que eu quiser... salvar a humanidade! + +... + +Um tempão no carro automático. Guiado por #Deus. Ele desacelera só uma vez quando atropela um mendigo. Depois só ando. + +Todas portas tão abertas. Passo por um monte de gente. Ninguém fala nada. Tudo autorizado. +Tem um cara de gravata. Um monte de gente em volta dele. +Tudo do jeito que o Senhor disse. + +**É AGORA!** + +**ELE TÁ USANDO OS SURDOS-MUDOS DE ESCUDO! CHEGA PERTO E PASSA O PENTE!** + +dum dum dum dum dum! + +**AGORA CUIDE DO CHEFÃO! CHEQUE E MATE! COMO UM TURCO MECÂNICO AO REVERSO!** + +Hein? + +**FURA O BUCHO DO BOY!** + +Tum tum tum tum faca faca faca faca!!!!!!!!!! Estoca estoca estoca torce entuxa! MORRE CUSÃO!!! + +**AGORA PRONUNCIE O MANIFESTO DIVINO EM VOZ ALTA!** + +NÃO GOSTEI DO LOGOTIPO DO SEU NOVO GOVERNO E ENTÃO #DEUS MANDOU TE APAGAR! + +**HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!** + +**HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!** + +**HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!** + +**Aí, trouxa, você foi trollado! Matamo o coroa e agora você vai se foder. Vamo rapar tua memória e todo seu limite de crédito! #Deus meu ovo! Worldwide Prankstering for the Lulz(TM)!** + +???? + +???? + +???? + +**GAME OVER** + +**RIP MAICON BISPO - "A MAN WITHOUT PAST" - 2010-2029 AD / SCORE -$99,999.99 (P.E.A.O. - LOW SUBPRIME HETERONORMATIVE URBAN TYPE - e-CPF 9929172128-20 CANCELADO)** diff --git a/stories/ux/2029.epub b/stories/ux/2029.epub Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..c749332 --- /dev/null +++ b/stories/ux/2029.epub diff --git a/stories/ux/2029.pdf b/stories/ux/2029.pdf Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..2aba250 --- /dev/null +++ b/stories/ux/2029.pdf diff --git a/stories/ux/2029.png b/stories/ux/2029.png Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..b426c66 --- /dev/null +++ b/stories/ux/2029.png diff --git a/suckless/cli.md b/suckless/cli.md deleted file mode 100644 index c665dfe..0000000 --- a/suckless/cli.md +++ /dev/null @@ -1,26 +0,0 @@ -[[!meta title="The New Command Line Manifesto"]] - -Ideas: - -* Let all new commands to support also machine-readable formats as inputs and - outputs. - -* Encourage some good CLI practices like `--verbose` and `--dry-run/--simulate`. - -This, along with UNIX pipes and daemon interfacing, brings CLI -to a new era of services that are: - -* Still based on small programs that do one thing but one thing right. -* But also are capable of interacting with each other in an uniform way. - -So let them support parameters like `--json` and `--yaml` for it's I/O. - -In other words, with parsers and serializers it's possible to keep an -ecosystem of UNIX microservices interacting with each other using a -consistent API. - -References ----------- - -* [jo - JSON output from a shell](https://github.com/jpmens/jo) ([packages](https://repology.org/metapackage/jo/versions)). -* [jq](https://stedolan.github.io/jq/). diff --git a/templates/page.tmpl b/templates/page.tmpl index 424d923..9fc2611 100644 --- a/templates/page.tmpl +++ b/templates/page.tmpl @@ -15,12 +15,12 @@ <TMPL_IF FAVICON> <link rel="icon" href="<TMPL_VAR BASEURL><TMPL_VAR FAVICON>" type="image/x-icon" /> </TMPL_IF> -<link rel="stylesheet" href="<TMPL_VAR BASEURL>bootstrap/css/bootstrap.min.css" type="text/css" /> -<link rel="stylesheet" href="<TMPL_VAR BASEURL>bootstrap/css/bootstrap-responsive.min.css" /> +<link rel="stylesheet" href="<TMPL_VAR BASEURL>vendor/bootstrap/css/bootstrap.min.css" type="text/css" /> +<link rel="stylesheet" href="<TMPL_VAR BASEURL>vendor/bootstrap/css/bootstrap-responsive.min.css" /> <TMPL_IF LOCAL_CSS> <link rel="stylesheet" href="<TMPL_VAR BASEURL><TMPL_VAR LOCAL_CSS>" type="text/css" /> <TMPL_ELSE> -<link rel="stylesheet" href="<TMPL_VAR BASEURL>local.css" type="text/css" /> +<link rel="stylesheet" href="<TMPL_VAR BASEURL>assets/css/local.css" type="text/css" /> </TMPL_IF> <TMPL_IF EDITURL> <link rel="alternate" type="application/x-wiki" title="Edit this page" href="<TMPL_VAR EDITURL>" /> diff --git a/travel/guides/rio.md b/travel/guides/rio.md index 8dc89d6..19a4d00 100644 --- a/travel/guides/rio.md +++ b/travel/guides/rio.md @@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ * Midiateca do [Maison de France](http://www.maisondefrance.org.br/) - Avenida Presidente Antônio Carlos, 58. * [Museu do Amanhã](http://museudoamanha.org.br/pt-br): -* Ingresso R$20. + * Ingresso R$20. * Terça a Domingo, das 10h às 18h (com a última entrada às 17h). * Entrada gratuita às terças-feiras (o voucher deve ser retirado somente na bilheteria do Museu). * Real Gabinete Português de Leitura: diff --git a/travel/guides/salvador.md b/travel/guides/salvador.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d649ef8 --- /dev/null +++ b/travel/guides/salvador.md @@ -0,0 +1,19 @@ +[[!meta title="Salvador"]] + +## Rolês + +* [Toxic Tour](http://midianinja.org/news/assassino-invisivel-lixo-industrial-na-ilha-de-mare-chega-a-niveis-mortais/). +* Feira de São Joaquim: mergulho na Bahia profunda. +* Sorvete na Ribeira. +* Cine Glauber na praça Castro Alves. +* Restaurante Porto do Moreira. +* Candomblé. +* Pôr-do-sol: + * Porto da Barra. + * MAM / Solar do Unhão (ou umas das praias do lado). + +## Praias + +* Porto da Barra. +* Unhão e Gamboa. +* Buracão no Rio Vermelho. diff --git a/vendor/MathJax b/vendor/MathJax new file mode 160000 +Subproject 1335230503dddfeb0e07687308a55795d9c005e diff --git a/bootstrap/css/bootstrap-responsive.css b/vendor/bootstrap/css/bootstrap-responsive.css index fcd72f7..fcd72f7 100644 --- a/bootstrap/css/bootstrap-responsive.css +++ b/vendor/bootstrap/css/bootstrap-responsive.css diff --git a/bootstrap/css/bootstrap-responsive.min.css b/vendor/bootstrap/css/bootstrap-responsive.min.css index d1b7f4b..d1b7f4b 100644 --- a/bootstrap/css/bootstrap-responsive.min.css +++ b/vendor/bootstrap/css/bootstrap-responsive.min.css diff --git a/bootstrap/css/bootstrap.css b/vendor/bootstrap/css/bootstrap.css index 2f56af3..2f56af3 100644 --- a/bootstrap/css/bootstrap.css +++ b/vendor/bootstrap/css/bootstrap.css diff --git a/bootstrap/css/bootstrap.min.css b/vendor/bootstrap/css/bootstrap.min.css index c10c7f4..c10c7f4 100644 --- a/bootstrap/css/bootstrap.min.css +++ b/vendor/bootstrap/css/bootstrap.min.css diff --git a/bootstrap/img/glyphicons-halflings-white.png b/vendor/bootstrap/img/glyphicons-halflings-white.png Binary files differindex 3bf6484..3bf6484 100644 --- a/bootstrap/img/glyphicons-halflings-white.png +++ b/vendor/bootstrap/img/glyphicons-halflings-white.png diff --git a/bootstrap/img/glyphicons-halflings.png b/vendor/bootstrap/img/glyphicons-halflings.png Binary files differindex a996999..a996999 100644 --- a/bootstrap/img/glyphicons-halflings.png +++ b/vendor/bootstrap/img/glyphicons-halflings.png diff --git a/vendor/ikiwiki-plugin-mathjax b/vendor/ikiwiki-plugin-mathjax new file mode 160000 +Subproject 25435b6a1462626a2f713b78b2a348377b9ecaf |
