The "Techie" Vote?

Ironica writes "This Los Angeles Times article discusses a compelling trend: techies are making their collective voice heard in politics. Quote from the article: "After years as political agnostics, the programmers and engineers who orchestrated the technological revolution of the 1990s are trying to reboot government...They have money, earned during the boom. They have time, found since the bust. And they are using their technological savvy to recruit even casual Internet users to their causes." Perhaps instead of "boxers or briefs," our next presidential candidate will have to answer "POP3 or IMAP?""

Comments

Makes me feel important

[henbane]

Nothing like being patronised by the mainstream media to make people feel relevant.

Boxers/IMAP

[Trigun]

This is not a big news story. The internet has given everyone a voice, but those who know how to speak are genreally understood more readily.

So we have this huge inter-connected network which spans the globe, now what do we do with it?

Hey! Let's talk to each other!

About what?

Politics...

Re:Boxers/IMAP

[milosoftware]

So we have this huge inter-connected network which spans the globe, now what do we do with it?

We could save the environment, we could find a cure for cancer, we could ...

NO! Let's use it to play games!

(free after an ancient 3DFx commercial...)

Age is the key

[janfarrell]

As any large and economically important collective, "Techies" have an influence in politics. As their experience, wealth, and age grows, so does their influence and interest in politics. Those important in Techie industry in the 1990s are now reaching an age where politics becomes atractive.

True, but...

[tds67]

...discusses a compelling trend: techies are making their collective voice heard in politics.

Yes, a little bit here, a little bit there, perhaps. Most techies don't talk directly about politics--they speak in code. Most have the drive to get involved, but when it comes right down to it, they act like mice. But they do monitor current trends, though. And when politicians make them angry, it does get filed in their memory, which is a key point to make here. Political shenanigans are a source of frustration for techies as well. Maybe it's time for techies to compile a list of good candidates that would be compatible with their viewpoints.

As a registered voter

[malus]

I'm going to be helping this former IT geek with his campaign:

http://www.EmmonsForCongress.com:81

this guy spent 18 years in the biz, only to have to train his 'less expensive' replacements.

I'm sure I'll be in the same boat sooner than later, however, I refuse train anyone. If upper-manglement wants to replace me with some cheap labor, THEY can figure my code out.

As /. has clearly shown

[sielwolf]

The tech community is a fractious bunch and thus completely useless as a political group. Why? Because "Speciality in IT" != Any political agenda. The camps of liberal, conservative, and libertarian thinking are wide and diverse. Hell, look at any thread on the RIAA. Probably the only platform all tech folks are for is rational copyright law (i.e. showing SCO who's the daddy). But other than that, there is no cohesion.

There's a reason why police unions, the AFL-CIO, and the Christian Right are all strong forces: they have a complete package of beliefs that they can get a large body of voters to agree on. Religion? Government? Taxes? The tech community could never get such a gestalt.

I think it is one of the great tech-urban legends that IT is a uniformly liberal RMS-style social group or ever was.

Re:As /. has clearly shown

[Liquorman]

I am not sure about the age range of the supposed geek vote, but I would put the upper limit higher by at least 10 years. (Don't discount us old geeks!) I believe that you are correct in general that it skews slightly young.

I also agree that many pols pay less attention to the younger demographic. However, this is at their own expense. Bill Clinton played to this demographic (MTV/Arsenio appearences) and they in large part supported him and helped him win two elections.

I also agree that much of the general population see geeks as, at best, smart weirdos; to be tolerated for their techie ability. This does not bode very well for support of a "geek agenda", if indeed there even is such a thing.

I think that the real story is the ability of technology to allow casual computer users the oportunity to have a voice, regardless of their political leanings. I have many non-geek friends who respect the internet as a tool for grass-roots sharing of ideology and a way to get many points of view that are outside of the corporate side of politics. This may be a more leftist idea by nature, but the technology is non-partisan.

Could be a good thing...

[ChuckDivine]

Then again, it might not.

I'm one of the older generation of techies who did get involved in politics as far back as the 1960s. In the 1970s I joined the now gone L5 Society because I thought space had a real role to play in human affairs. It still could.

But it would be helpful if today's political activists learned a bit from our mistakes. Practically all L5ers were political neophytes. We took up our cause with enthusiasm. For awhile we gathered some attention. So why aren't we all living in space colonies now? Here are some reasons I can think of:

• We didn't really connect with the larger society as much more than entertainment. People were intrigued -- but not motivated to part with real money.
• We relied too much on exposition of our ideas. Listening to what others wanted and seeing if we could tailor our activities to others' wants and needs seems important to me now.
• We underestimated the difficulties we faced.
• Initially we trusted too much in NASA and the aerospace establishment. Now, ironically enough, we might be trusting too little. That unfortunately is the consequence of dealing too much with an increasingly rigid hierarchy that has been becoming more and more dysfunctional.
• Techies are damned good with technology. We tend to have significant problems in dealing with people, though. Some of us are working to overcome that shortcoming.
• Broadening our horizons, listening more, seem like good ideas. Easier said than done, though. First step: ask people why they do things. Ask them why they are so concerned about technology and worry so much about things that we know are relatively minor problems.

These are just a few thoughts early in the morning. Others will probably be able to think of others.

Summing up, try to learn from our mistakes -- and from our successes. Politics isn't as neat and orderly like technology.

Techies, Slashdotters, and voting

[chia_monkey]

I was trying to figure out the significance of this all. I know ever since I started checking Slashdot every day I've become a bit more vocal and interested in politics. I asked myself why. I've got a little experience with the military, I've got a pretty decent education, but why did I wait?

I don't really think it's an issue of "techies", but more of "techies that care". Not just any clock-punching techie is going to be vocal on Slashdot (or any other "organization") and be interested in how this legislation will affect that privacy, how this bill will help Company A and screw Company B and how it all affects us and our economy. This transcends all groups though, not just techies. Your random worker at Kmart may care about gun laws a bit, but it's the member of the NRA that will follow the bills and legislations and try to have their voices heard. Same with your random citizen watching the war on TV as compared to someone with a family member in service...they've got more interest and thus are more apt to be vocal and take part in politics.

I think the techies are getting more coverage now though because it's finally socially acceptable to be a geek and know how to configure mom's computer after a crash. Computers are such a part of modern society and not just for the geeks anymore. It's easier to let it all out, speak your mind, and not be shunned.

Re:if only...

[Anne_Nonymous]

We mobilized to b!tch slap specific spammers.
We mobilized to protest Turbotax spyware.
We mobilized to protest the "Patriot" Act.

/.ers are probably never going to agree on a particular candidate, but that doesn't mean we don't attempt to change the world because of what we read here.

Or You Could Run Yourself!

[Cy Guy]

Like this techie is doing. "a 26-year-old high-tech programmer from Mountain View", who has already won the unofficial endorsement of Washington Post Writer Howard Kurtz, though this seems to be mostly based on her using cafepress to sell endorsed thong underwear as a fundraising tool. Regardless, she is using the net to propel her campaign to an extent that she is garnering press attention even among the strippers and pornographers and actors.

I think the Dean campaign shows that it is media access that makes the biggest difference in getting an unknown launched, and techs are the media of the 21st century.

Re:"We techies "

[turnstyle]

Dollars != Influence

Perhaps (Dollars != Influence) but certainly (Dollars >> Influence)

That doesn't necessarily mean bribing politicians -- it could mean paying for busses to transport people, paying to print flyers, and so on.