BH #1 - Who Are We?

Who Are We?

We are creatures, living in the 21st century. By day, we are the ones who fix your cable. We are the ones who answer, when you call helpdesk, begging for help with your computer. We are the ones who keep your VCR from blinking 12:00 and driving you crazy. We see you cringe at technology, and we rush in to rescue you, yet you follow us around in the store because you assume we are doing something criminal. Our appearance scares you because we dress differently. Our ideas worry you because they are different, or perhaps you fear others will listen.

We are the ones you teased in grade school. We are the ones you pushed around and cursed at. We are the one who went home with a bloody noses because we would not give in to your totalitarian tactics. We now hold your future in the palm of our hands. Your life, your job, your money,it is but a string of ones and zeros. You fear vengence. You have learned nothing in your years of growing up. We are not like you. We do not think like you. We will not act like you.

We believe quality products and software should be more important than making a buck. We point out the gaping holes in your "Security Through Obscurity" policies. We try to show you security the right way, even though we are mostly ignored. We take your products, and use them in ways they were never designed to be used, just to prove it can be done.We disassemble things to see how they work because we just have to know... This frightens you. You send armies of lawyers after us. You pass laws to turn us into criminals. You fear us...

We block your spam and report it to the appropriate authorities (even though most of the time they do not listen or you pay them off, violating many laws along the way) because we remember the days when the internet was used for freely shareing information. You stand there confused, because you are hated, and not wanted on the internet. You refuse to learn proper internet ettiquete, typing in all caps, and stuffing everyones e-mail boxes full of your garbage. You wander aimlessly into various chat rooms, spamming people. Even worse, you log into an IRC server with no clue of it's history, or it's own sub-culture, sending messages, collecting e-mail addresses to spam, and generally making a nuscience of yourself.

You get a job with a company running web servers, with barely a clue about them except the few tidbits you learned while glancing over the manual. We call you with a simple yes or no question, and it takes you days to answer it. You've wasted my time and your companies time, yet we are the ones who are useless to society. You are a poser. You are reason those with true skills are stuck with crap jobs.

The music we listen to seems alien to you. Our eyes are bloodshot and our skin is discolored color due to the ammount of time we spend in front of a computer screen. Our fingers are blistered and calloused because we actually use a keyboard, and enjoy it. We type faster than you can think. The poetry we write fills your head full of psychotic visions because you do not comprehend it's meaning, or it's purpose for being written. You point your finger and declare us insane. You fear new information, new ideas, new technologies. You are afraid it will dethrone you from your "superior" status in society.

You hate and fear us because we are different. Yes, we are different. We are also human. We are the dominant generation now. There were fewer before us, pioneers. We honor them. There will be many more after us. This is a proven fact. You can not stop it. Your corporate scandles will be uncovered, your crippled, inferior products will be shown to the masses. Because of people like us, one day everyone will see for themselves the kinds of crap you try to cram down their throats. One day people will begin to think for themselves again.
One day, you will be replaced. Your days are numbered. One day, there will be no future revisions of you. You are obsolete. Our kind will dominate. All educated. All respectful. All working to improve human kind, to improve the internet, to improve freedom, to expand knowledge. It is inevitable. This is evolution at it's finest...

-- Databat --