Anonymous – the radical decentralised online community ostensibly associated with the goal of ‘free speech’ – has caused controversy by issuing a statement sympathising with the UK riots.
It is yet another example of action by the organisation that damages the vital cause of internet freedom. A cause which the organisation claims to defend.
The Anonymous collective has become increasingly prominent. It is most famous for its DDoS attacks which bombard a target webserver with so many requests that it is forced to shut down. The Mastercard and Visa websites have been victims.
Frost readers will know how much I believe in the freedom of the internet and it pains me to see the cause tarnished in this way. It was always wrong for Anonymous to take criminal action. Their actions only give governments further justification to clamp down on the internet further. This is now more the case than ever following their recent statement.
For a supposedly decentralised community, the comments on the UK riots were pretty categorical, worryingly and obviously so. There is an elite within Anonymous that has its own agenda. http://pastebin.com/V00tbr01
The comments can only be interpreted as seeking to incite a revolution, saying: ‘Your politicians mask the extent to which a significant section of society is stuck in an impoverished way of life with little hope for the future.
“It is time to take a stand and realise that solutions will not be found in today’s corrupt political landscape.”
Anonymous called for people to join them in a day of action on October 15th. Although Anonymous made clear it did not condone the violence, it was sympathetic to the rioters. It suggested the riots were as a result of political anger and resentment. Let’s get real here. These riots had no political point (save perhaps the initial riot in Tottenham), and everybody knows that. These riots were about self-gratifying violence and greedy opportunism.
Anonymous will point to the government response to the riots, potentially regulating and controlling social media sites. They will argue this makes it a legitimate target. Undoubtedly, the government is disgracefully jumping on the riots as an excuse for further regulation. No one truly blames twitter for the looting.
That doesn’t mean anarchy is the answer. It doesn’t make it right to incite a revolution. Internet regulation doesn’t have anything to do with anti-cuts protests or unions and it doesn’t mean ‘justice is only for the wealthy’. You have gone beyond your remit, Anonymous.
A revolution might sound romantic, but we only need to look back a few years to see the true horror they bring. They also never end in free speech.