Martin Luther and Information Technology

The Man Left Us a Good Idea

Think Much about Information Technology?

Sure, of course you do. We all do, pretty much daily. Let us take a quick look at what has us fired up/afraid/hopeful in the world of information technology. It is an odd list of things that have long driven us nuts and some new stuff we are still trying to figure out.

We have long worried about security, ranging from loss of personal information to loosing control of our hardware. Social media is a two-headed entity, opening the world to us but also deluging us with lies and conflict.

Now we have the dramatic arrival of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in a blur of new capabilities and delivery means. We are at the very earliest stage of something that already can write beautifully, create art, and can replace people in many ways. Exhilarating and scary stuff all at once.

Martin Luther to the Rescue

How about we take a page from the Man from Wittenberg and pick up where he left off in 1517? How about we formulate a list of demands that can no longer be denied. We could nail that list on the doors of the IT sector, on academia, and of government?

Part of our problem, of course, is getting all those elements coordinated. If you have ever watched a Congressional hearing on any of this, you know the problem. I spend half the time while watching laughing, the other half crying. Much of the government is clueless. That was bad enough before, but with the building capacity of AI, we may find ourselves hopelessly behind the power curve. A lot is at stake.

The IT Theses to Nail on Those Doors

This is an over simplified list, to be sure, and not long enough, either. Still, let’s get serious about delivering the following. Hey, we’re not even doing 95 thesis here, Just a few.

  -Functional, non-extreme social media
-Safety from hostage attacks, especially for medical facilities
-Safety from viruses, infections
-Blocking phishing
-Help find real communities online. Facebook never did. Maybe Mastodon will
-Find balance between freedom of discussion and reckless marketing
-The ability to catch & destroy attackers. Bad guys should have risks to face
-Get Bitcoin and its brothers under control. Governments should control currency
-Make it really hard (and transparent) to sell our information and searches

Get It Right

We live in an information age, more so every day. Let’s stop accepting the excuses of the industry, academia, and government for why they are always behind events and capabilities. We wouldn’t accept such malfeasance in any other aspect of modern life. It is foolish and dangerous to keep accepting it here.

       Bill Clontz

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