Fwd: Revolution OS - Tonight (about open source)

Tonight ArgusFest is hosting a special screening “Revolution OS”. This intensely philosophical and entertaining documentary examines the “Open Source” software movement that creates digital commons where information sharing is practiced for the betterment of the community vs. proprietary corporations like Microsoft, that aggressively work towards ownership and control for maximum profit. You do not need to know about computer programming to become deeply engaged in this film and the arguments it makes transcend into so many other aspects of our society. This screening is part of an effort to raise money for a documentary project I am working on about internet freedom and accessibility.

The public is virtually in the dark about the current threats to the internet and their long-term importance. A lot is happening right now that is extremely urgent and if the public doesn’t quickly get educated and involved in the fight for the internet they want, it will cease to be the open and somewhat level playing field that it is today. Evidence suggests that the net is becoming closed off by digital checkpoints and soon will be tightly controlled by governments and monopolistic corporations. Not absolutely but to a far greater degree than most people imagine is possible. The future Internet may consist of two tiers where only the super-rich will have access to contribute content to the fast lane and everyone else who wishes to add their voice will be relegated to a slow lane. The immediate future of all mass media rests within the Internet and if the artists and activists peppered throughout the masses do not have access (particularly in regards to new fast high definition video streaming technologies) then a revolutionary opportunity for human advancement will be lost and totalitarianism will gain devastating ground in my opinion. Read more about the issues I’m exploring at the bottom of this email.

MARK YOUR CALANDARS, Independent journalist Dahr Jamail will be speaking at the Oriental Theater on Sunday, March 12^th. You won’t want to miss this event, see details below….

Thanks,

Jason Bosch

Upcoming ArgusFest Events:

Revolution OS
Dahr Jamail: Independent Journalist on War & Occupation in Iraq

Revolution OS

Thursday, March 2

7:00 pm

Mercury Cafe

2199 California St, Denver

(22^nd & California)

Suggested donation: $5

No one turned away

REVOLUTION OS tells the inside story of the hackers who rebelled against the proprietary software model and Microsoft to create GNU/Linux and the Open Source movement.

On June 1, 2001, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said "Linux is a cancer that attaches itself in an intellectual property sense to everything it touches."

Microsoft fears GNU/Linux, and rightly so. GNU/Linux and the Open Source & Free Software movements arguably represent the greatest threat to Microsoft's way of life. Shot in cinemascope on 35mm film in Silicon Valley, REVOLUTION OS tracks down the key movers and shakers behind Linux, and finds out how and why Linux became such a potent threat.

REVOLUTION OS features interviews with Linus Torvalds, Richard Stallman, Bruce Perens, Eric Raymond, Brian Behlendorf, Michael Tiemann, Larry Augustin, Frank Hecker, and Rob Malda.

Dahr Jamail: Independent Journalist on War & Occupation in Iraq

Dahr Jamail

Independent Journalist on

War & Occupation in Iraq

Sunday, March 12

7:00 pm

Oriental Theater

4335 W. 44^th Ave, Denver

(44^th & Tennyson)

Suggested donation: $5 - $20

No one turned away

Join ArgusFest for this rare chance to see and hear independent journalist Dahr Jamail speak about the on-the-ground realities stemming from the U.S. war and occupation in Iraq. Dahr Jamail is a leading unembedded reporter who has reported extensively from and on the Iraq war. He will discuss torture, the use of white phosphorus and other illegal munitions, Fallujah and current living conditions for Iraqis. He will also speak on the state of Iraq’s health care system to illustrate the lack of reconstruction and the harsh effects on Iraqis lives.

Below are some topics currently being explored for my new documentary film:

Net Neutrality

“Network neutrality” is a voluntary but guiding principle of the Internet which ensures that all users are entitled to access content and services or run applications and devices of their choice. In other words, network neutrality ensures an end-to-end network whereas the intelligence resides at the edge of the network; the wires in between simply pass information between individual users. The network’s only job is to move data — not to stifle user innovation by selecting which services to privilege with higher speeds. However, without safeguards against corporate meddling, the Internet’s open road to innovation will become a closed hi-way for big media and their self-selected allies. Cable and telephone companies like Comcast, Verizon and others are plotting to become the gatekeepers of the internet by blocking access to competitor sites and diverting you to those that they themselves own. Read: http://www.freepress.net/deadend/=netfears

Military Electronic Warfare

In a recently declassified pentagon document entitled “The Information Operations Roadmap” the military speaks of “fighting the net”; implying that the internet is the equivalent of “an enemy weapons system.". The Pentagon’s plans for engaging in “virtual warfare” are impressive. As BBC notes: “The operations described in the document include a surprising range of military activities: public affairs officers who brief journalists, psychological operations troops who try to manipulate the thoughts and beliefs of an enemy, computer network attack specialists who seek to destroy enemy networks.” The White House has suggested that journalists who report stories such as Abu Ghraib and other embarrassing stories to the U.S. only help to encourage terrorism and journalist should “watch what they say”. Does this mean that news sites like Al Jazeera, which do not censor stories potentially damaging to the U.S. are legitimate targets in this “virtual war”? Could ArgusFest.org become a target? Who else?

Internet Censorship and Spying

In China, US companies like Google and Yahoo are already cooperating with the government to censor certain sites and inform on individuals seeking certain information. If these corporations are willing to do this in China, why not in the U.S.? On a positive note, Google is currently trying to resist efforts by the Justice Department to examine millions of users search results based on privacy grounds but this case is yet unresolved. The Electronic Frontier Foundation filed a class-action lawsuit against AT&T on January 31, 2006, accusing the telecom giant of violating the law and the privacy of its customers by collaborating with the National Security Agency (NSA) in its massive and illegal program to wiretap and data-mine Americans' communications.

Private Networks

More and more people are moving to sites like MySpace.com, Tribe.net and friendster.com for email, blogging, and general networking. The problem is that these are completely private and proprietary networks with the ability to censor or delete your account at any given time. For instance MySpace.com recently had automated censorship removing links to competitors sites from its member’s pages and the band Velvet Underground have had their entire account removed five times now. There’s more to this story and some changes have occurred but I think it is very relevant to the bigger picture.

Multi-tiered Class-based Internet

There currently exists a closed consortium that develops and deploys the most advanced network technologies and applications, mostly for high speed data transfer. This consortium, called Internet2 or UCAID (University Corporation for Advanced Internet Development) is currently being used primarily by universities but is expected to be opened to the public within the next few years. When this happens it is believed that it will not be like the current open system and all but the biggest corporate conglomerates will be relegated to passive consumers of content and denied the ability to contribute content themselves or severely restricted at best.

Spam Filters as Electronic Toll Booths

AOL and Yahoo are proposing a tax on email to ensure delivery. If this catches on it could severely limit poor organizations like ArgusFest to communicate with their constituents via email. In fact, AOL has already blocked emails from ArgusFest many times in the past without any apparently valid reason. According to Cindy Cohn of The Electronic Frontier Foundation, “Once a pay-to-speak system like this gets going, it will be increasingly difficult for people who don't pay to get their mail through. The system has no way to distinguish between ordinary mail and bulk mail, spam and non-spam, personal and commercial mail. It just gives preference to people who pay.”

Access and Community Internet

Movements are occurring around the world to create Wi-Fi connected cities where internet access is free and broadly available. Some city governments have even proposed offering free wireless access with great opposition from the Internet Service Providers.

ORGANIZATIONAL SUPPORT:

Through this film I also hope to raise money, support and awareness of several organizations that are working on these issues including:

The Electronic Frontiers Foundation

http://www.eff.org/

The Center for Digital Democracy

http://www.democraticmedia.org/

Free Press

http://www.freepress.net/

Center for Creative Voice in Media

http://www.creativevoices.us/

Institute for Network Cultures

http://www.networkcultures.org/

(They are out of Amsterdam and doing some great things. I’m currently reading their director Geert Lovick’s book “Dark Fiber” and it’s incredible.)

The Center for Democracy & Technology

http://www.cdt.org/

Hear Us Now

http://www.hearusnow.org/

Feel free to send me additional story ideas and other suggestions for this film project. I also need money so if you can donate, please do. Every amount helps! Checks should be made out to “ArgusFest”.

Thanks again,

Jason Bosch

303-669-7286

bosch@xxxxxxxxxxxxx

ArgusFest

11287 Osage Circle, Unit B

Westminster, CO 80234