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Until the late 1990s, individuals interested in
Austrian economics, U.S. constitutional history, and libertarian philosophy had
few sources of information. They had to spend hours scouring used book stores
or the back pages of obscure libertarian periodicals to find the great works
of Mises, Rothbard,
Hayek, and other giants of liberty. Local library and university collections ignored
libertarian politics and economics.
Today, however, the greatest classics of libertarian
thought, libertarian philosophy, and libertarian economics are available
instantly to anyone with internet access. Thanks to the internet, it is
easier than ever before for liberty activists to spread news and other
information regarding the evils of government power and the benefits of
freedom. For the first time in human history, supporters of liberty around
the world can share information across borders quickly and cheaply. Without
the filter of government censors, this information emboldens millions to
question governments and promote liberty.
This is why liberty-minded Americans must do everything
possible to oppose-- and stop-- government attempts to censor or limit the
free flow of information online.
One such attempt is known as "CISPA", or the Cyber
Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act. This bill will create a
monstrous coalition of big business and big government to rob Americans of
their protections under the 4th Amendment of the Constitution.
CISPA permits both the federal government and private
companies to view your private online communications with no judicial
oversight, provided they merely do so in the name of "cybersecurity." But America is a constitutional
republic, not a surveillance state-- and the wildly overhyped need for
security does not trump the Constitution.
"Cybersecurity" is
the responsibility of companies that operate and make money in cyberspace,
not taxpayers. Those
companies should develop market-based private solutions to secure their
networks, servers, cloud data centers, and user/customer information. The
role of the US intelligence community is to protect the United States from
military threats, not to provide corporate welfare to the private sector.
Much like the TSA at the airport, CISPA would socialize security costs and
remove market incentives for private firms to protect their own investments.
Imagine security-cleared agents embedded at private
companies to serve as conduits for intelligence information about their
customers back to the US intelligence community-- while enjoying immunity
from any existing civil or criminal laws. Imagine Google or Facebook
reporting directly to the National Security Agency about the online activity
of US citizens. Imagine US government resources being wasted on a grand scale
to "assist" private companies in the global market. All of this
would become reality under CISPA.
As of this writing, it appears that the House and
Senate will not agree on a final version of CISPA this year. However, the
Obama administration seems ready to impose provisions of this bill by
executive order if Congress does not act soon.
The past five years have seen an explosion in the
liberty movement, fueled in large part by the internet. Preserving that
freedom is crucial if the liberty movement is to continue its progress.
Therefore, all activists in the liberty movement have a stake in the battle
for internet freedom. We must be ready to come together to fight any attempt
to increase government's power over the internet, regardless of the supposed
justifications. We must resist voices from both the political right and left
which alternatively seek to legislate morality or
enforce political correctness with force. Copyright protection, pornography, cyberterrorism, gambling, and "hate speech" are
merely excuses for doing what all governments have done throughout human
history: increase their size, scope, and power.
Once we understand this, we understand the critical
link between internet freedom and human freedom.
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