

TECHNOPHOBIA               -by Bernadette le Goullon ------------

It's not the computers, it's the capitalists that claim that they
own  the  bulk of our capital equipment and the resources used to
manufacture them. It's not the computers,  it's  the  bourgeoisie
that  set up large labour exploitative factories that manufacture
a machine that you could build in your own backyard  if  provided
with the technical education.  It's the Patriarchs that create an
elite male dominated hierarchy based on  the  computer  language.
It's the schools that tell women they cannot understand logic and
thus bar them from the possibility of an unlimited  communication
network.   It's  computer  phobic  governments like the U.S. that
employ companies like IBM to standardise encryption, so the world
cop  can  listen  in  on what is happening. It's capitalists that
take computers out of the hands of ordinary people by making them
prohibitively   expensive.  Children  that  are  not  exposed  to
computers will be amongst the socially disadvantaged.  They  will
be  known  as  the  computer  illiterate  and  this  will help to
entrench the class system. It's poor public  and  private  sector
management  that  disempowers  employees with mindless repetitive
work  and  unhealthy  working   conditions.Computers   speed   up
functional  processes  which  should be used to make life easier.
Occupational health should always  be  considered  regardless  of
whether computers or bone thumping typewriters are used. Remember
computers are simply a tool. Tools can be used for good  or  ill.
Some  of us don't drive cars but very few of us can say that they
have never used a car. Cars cause a lot more pollution. Computers
can even be used to monitor environmental safeguards. Many of the
arguments presented  against  computers  could  be  used  against
photocopy  machines  which at present are not even recyclable and
yet I see anticomputer propaganda produced using  one.  Photocopy
machines have CPU chips. There is an argument that computers have
created an information hierarchy. This gives me hope  because  we
are still at the stage where we can get hold of these information
resources.  If we fail to emancipate  ourselves,  we  remain  the
ignorant  victims of the computer age. We will become its slaves.
The luddites learnt about the technology which was  being  abused
in  their  time.  They worked on the cotton gin machines and were
skilled technicians. They understood that it was the power  of  a
useful  machine but the power of thosewho mismanaged it that they
were fighting. One more point  why  bother  attacking  the  petty
bourgeoisie  companies for providing parts for the proletariat to
fix their own computers? Why not go for the right-wing  big  boys
like  Ross Perot who have made their fortunes developing military
technology.  Go  straight  for  the  source  of  the  information
monopoly - boycott IBM.


