Seven Mile

http://valleywag.com/tech/web-2′0-to-english/why-facebook-is-bad-for-the-internet-311717.php

Great piece in the Wag;

Quote: “”…think about all the social-network information and messages flying around Facebook, MySpace and AIM …stored and retrieved through proprietary systems — at the whim of the proprietor, …   It’s a sharp contrast to the email, Usenet groups and IRC channels of yore, which were generally open networks with many points of access.”" [and]  “..Facebook can change the terms of the deal for competitive advantage anytime..”

These days we live in are a rhyme on the 1970’s.. the populace back then endured a long war in Vietnam, Karen Carpenter Songs, soaring Oil/Gold prices and double-digit inflation.  The populace today has been at war since 9-11, has endured James Blunt songs, soaring Oil/Gold prices and ‘real’ double-digit inflation, until it’s magically adjusted off the books because it showed up somewhere inconvenient like ’food’ or ’energy’.

Nothing like the comfort of a walled garden in our online lives to make us all feel better..  Facebook is extending a hand for us to hold as we make our way through the garden maze of the Internet. Unfortunately that hand can (and will) be used to smack us if we step out of line.

Human nature and the desire for freedom preclude that type of thing lasting..  I expect some 1980’s punk revival or new-wave movement to eventually shake the dust and complacency off. Voices like Harvard’s Jonathan Zittrain’s are the leading edge of that movement.