Brave New World

A friend was telling me about a book were society has been transformed to a utopia where humans live in a perpetual state of happiness. But as the story advances the protagonist begins to realise that maybe being happy does not mean you are content.

So why do I bring this up you ask? Well, over the last week I have come across a number of statements on the web that proclaim the Internet as the medium to lead the world to a place where individuals are more empowered, more knowledgeable and more connected then ever before. My conclusion from such statements is that this inevitability means people can live more enriched and ultimately more happy lives. Two such sources that point to this are Seth Godin and a recent Trendwatching briefing.

An article in the New York Times quotes the new head of operations for Google in China, Kai-Fu Lee, who said on his website just prior to his appointment

"youth + freedom + equality + bottom-up innovation + user focus + don't be evil
= The Miracle of Google."

Now don't get me wrong, I am all for the Intranet becoming a tool and resource that gives a person access to information, other people, and products/services faster and more efficiently than if they did not have an Internet connection. I am for the Internet being used as a platform to change how companies operate, how business is conducted, how mainstream media presents "truth" and I am for Internet being used as vehicle to pressure governments to have greater transparency and be more socially responsible/accountable.

But I have some growing reservations about the user culture developing and the affects of some well intended people who are driving the evolution of Internet from web2.0 and beyond. Now that more people have the ability to reach others with their opinions and now that creating a web presence is far more achievable for the masses, why haven't we seen any major social actions transpire. There are really basic needs still not being met and I worry that the Internet may become to insular and disconnected from the world we must live in.

The Miracle of Google? The Google story is amazing. Without Google, the Internet may well have been dominated by a evil global organisation out to bleed dry every user by charging them subscriptions for search and advertising them to death, or worst, it could have been Microsoft. But seriously, I think that my children (if I ever have any) will naturally assume that the Google homepage is actually the front end of the Internet to which every site is attached to. But until the majority of global Internet users throw their weight behind movements like Make Poverty History and help to see these sorts of visions realised, we will not see a real miracle nor a higher function to which the Internet could elevate to.