Community

Geek As Citizen: A Statement Of Hope

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Sunrise

So, as I’ve been writing on Geek Citizenry, I’ve been focusing on areas we can be good citizens, and areas that we as geeks (both in general and as that ephemeral mass of geek culture) can improve in as citizens. It’s been awhile, and I’d like to make a statement.

I have hope, great hope really, that we Geeks, we technophiles and makers and cosplayers, can be really great citizens of our cities and countries and indeed the world. Many of us are already pretty good at it, and it seems that we’re trying to improve who we are. I catch that improvement in geek charities, in discussions of our culture and its problems, in reflections on the importance of technology.

I guess I believe in us on a gut level.

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Geek As Citizen: Imagine There’s No Heaven

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Sky Clouds Heaven

When discussing Geek Citizenship and our involvement in communities, there’s something that comes up again and again – and not just in geek citizenship. It’s an issue that pops up repeatedly when you’re dealing with issues of people being part of society versus cutting themselves off.

The desire to Get Away To Where Everything’s Perfect.

It’s the idea that we’re going to someday be rich enough nothing will bug us (even if some things should bug us). It’s the idea that we can get away from those people or maybe even, you know, get rid of them or isolate them – and then the world is perfect. It’s the idea that there’s something out there that can solve everything and make everything great forever, and if we just keep at it and give up everything else we’ll get there.

It’s an idea of Heaven, and it’s not so much a theological concept as the idea that somehow we’ll reach a perfect state where it’ll all be OK.

This idea is not just B.S. on many levels, it’s pathological because it leaves us always running and manipulating and cutting ourselves off. In short, I’m saying Heaven is a pretty terrible idea, even when we gussy it up with economic talks and technology dreams. In fact, it makes us worse citizens, and I’d like to think we can do better.

Not Perfect of course. Perfect Is The Problem.

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Geek As Citizen: Ties To The Community

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Saint Nicholas Charity

I’m sure you’re familiar with the issues of “techies” in San Francisco and the surrounding area. They’re supposedly obnoxious, driving up home prices, Google buses are getting a free pass and blocking traffic, the startup ideas are stupid, etc. If you haven’t heard about it . . . well I live in Silicon Valley and I hear a lot about it.

Though admittedly being south of San Francisco, some of it is probably a sort of bias – there seems to be a kind of SF/San Jose area split here.

Now there are issues of changes in San Francisco and the surrounding areas, but in reality none are as simple, clean cut, or frankly tech related as many people may think.  A lot of attempts to cover it are sadly over simplified and over generalized.  I myself have my own issues with some of what’s going on in San Francisco, but feel a lot of it is blown out of proportion – and population shifts, economic changes, and the like are part and parcel of big cities.

That being said, there’s concerns – and when you get a lot of people moving into an area there is going to be a sense of distance and alimentation. The new population could be totally great people, but they’re still outsiders – and that’s not helped when money and expense is a major issue, and even more so in this economy.

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