From: antonsen-AT-alf.nbi.dk
Subject: Re: tract  
Date: Tue, 12 Nov 96 12:29:13 +0100


Stuart wrote

>1. "We have lost the battle for the preservation of the 
>wilderness...." Yes and no. I thought the battle still goes on. 
>Certainly it has to if we are to survive. The nature of wilderness 
>changes, some kind of free land, still wild must continue to exist.

Others have pointed this out too but not this clearly. I completely agree
with what has been said.

>2. The metaphor of wilderness applied to virtual space seems to me 
>false. Cyber space is not virgin territory, it was born out of 
>governmental communication, became  a commodity when it was made 
>available to us, the public. It is not some pure place being sullied 
>by commercialism.

Yes, it is probably much better to say that cyber space has _become_
wild, i.e. has _escaped_.

>I think the tract is trying to say too much in too little space, and 
>it looks a bit as if it confuses government control and the control 
>of a commodity. I would be happy to see it expand if it can work 
>towards clarity and comprehensiveness.
>
>That being said, I think Frank has done a good job in drafting the 
>thing in the first place. I was in two minds whether to bother with 
>the thing until I saw the draft, and I now think it has some 
>potential. But it needs to become more pointed before it becomes 
>worth distributing.

Oh yes. It was merely intended to be a _raw_ draft, I was somewhat
dissapointed when nobody made any major changes to it....

Now, can somebody else take all the suggestions into account and draft the next 
version?

Frank