Poets and fanatics will be known

May 4, 2013 4:11 AM

Security alert: notes from the frontline of the war in cyberspace Jon Ronson interviews Andrew Auernheimer aka weev, Kim Dotcom, 'Troy' from Anonymous and Mercedes Haefer
posted by fearfulsymmetry (17 comments total)

Are all US federal prisons run internally by racially-segregated gangs? I.e., is Auernheimer going to have to join the Aryan Nation for his own protection, and come out with swastika tattoos and unsavoury loyalties?
posted by acb at 6:29 AM on May 4, 2013

Lol no. That's a TV-fueled fantasy. Jail is tough and he will probably get beat up a couple of times, but it's not like Oz.
posted by Potomac Avenue at 6:37 AM on May 4, 2013 [1 favorite]

Anyway, great reporting by Ronson, as usual. Captures the spectrum of the folks the US gov is prosecuting right now from pure capitalists like Dotcom, overthetop activists like Auernheimer, angry working class dudes like Troy, and mildly confused but righteous college kids like Mercedes. Out of all of these, the working class men and women (like Sabu mentioned in the article as well) hacking out of frustration and a desire to protest meaningfully have most of my sympathy, as they did in the Occupy movement. There needs to be more measured speech from mainstream politicians about internet freedom and its importance to our basic liberties, because I agree with a lot of what Auernheimer says but BURN IT DOWN AND SAY THE NWORD LOL is not really a workable solution. Someone like a Elizabeth Warren for the internet.
posted by Potomac Avenue at 6:44 AM on May 4, 2013 [1 favorite]

Calling weev an "activist" is awfully fucking generous.
posted by kmz at 6:50 AM on May 4, 2013 [3 favorites]

I mean in the sense that Black separatists, yippies and Westboro are activists. Doesn't mean he's particularly focused or founded on a coherent ideology.
posted by Potomac Avenue at 6:56 AM on May 4, 2013

Interesting article, but "the frontline of the war in cyberspace"? Weev and Dotcom? I hope this is the editor's headline.
posted by RobotVoodooPower at 7:53 AM on May 4, 2013 [1 favorite]

Yeah, the story of computer security these days is no longer the lone genius hacking into NASA to gain geek-cred. It's about China training over 30,000 computer PhD's to harvest intellectual property from American corporations so that the country can be more competitive against the USA. The stories about DotCom and Auernheimer are quaint relics of another era, romanticism, like 1930s gangsters. Things are much bigger and more serious now. The press apparently isn't good at keeping up with what's going on. Suggest checking out America the Vulnerable: Inside the New Threat Matrix of Digital Espionage, Crime, and Warfare by a former NSA administrator who saw it all.
posted by stbalbach at 7:55 AM on May 4, 2013

And yet the prosecution uses weev's Reddit bio "I hack code in 11 different languages on a regular basis" as a statement against him. Sigh.
posted by RobotVoodooPower at 8:04 AM on May 4, 2013 [1 favorite]

The bestest thing of all about this is that "Gayniggers from Outer Space" is available in full on youtube. As a lover of bad movies, I am watching it now, and can instantly recommend it.
posted by marienbad at 8:11 AM on May 4, 2013 [1 favorite]

I recall reading an interview where weev begged for people to mail him books and other things that would make his life in prison more tolerable. I know it would be impossible to send him things that would make his life in prison more intolerable, much as I'd like to. Perhaps we can start a campaign to send things to all the other inmates that have to put up with his shit, and make their lives more tolerable.
posted by charlie don't surf at 8:56 AM on May 4, 2013 [1 favorite]

weev is just the human incarnation of 4chan. It may be incredibly ugly, but it still needs to exist, if only to drag the overton window back to more progressive discussion.
posted by SomaSoda at 12:15 AM on May 5, 2013

people like weev depress me because i disagree with them on a lot of shit which means i get fucked over if i try to help them with the stuff i do agree with
posted by This, of course, alludes to you at 4:11 AM on May 5, 2013

Foreign Affairs: Don't Underestimate Cyber Spies
posted by the man of twists and turns at 10:09 AM on May 6, 2013

LulzSec Hackers Sentenced to Prison by London Court
posted by homunculus at 3:35 PM on May 16, 2013

Why are the LulzSec hackers being locked up? A chance to put these young hackers' skills to better use goes wasted, while gangs who rob for personal gain go unpunished
posted by homunculus at 11:07 AM on May 17, 2013

The Feds Are Making It Hurt in Every Way Possible for Weev, But for What?
posted by homunculus at 4:53 PM on May 20, 2013

But for What?

For the lulz.
posted by charlie don't surf at 5:37 PM on May 20, 2013