DocumentCode
3449821
Title
Industrial society as Hubbard´s pimple. Is this the Unabomber´s manifesto?
Author
Robbins, Jeff
Author_Institution
Ford Motor Co., Long Beach, NY, USA
fYear
1996
fDate
21-22 Jun 1996
Firstpage
410
Lastpage
418
Abstract
This paper is not about the Unabomber; it is about his indictment of the entire techno-industrial enterprise as expressed in his 35,000-word “manifesto” published under threat of further mail bombings by The Washington Post in joint arrangement with The New York Times. The Unabomber´s claim is that as it grows exponentially, the industrial engine that technology drives creates the myth of empowering human life. With the exception of elites, the reality, he says, is exactly the opposite. While many, if not most, practitioners-the experts whose livelihoods and careers depend on continuing technical/industrial evolution-would acknowledge it has produced some unfortunate side-effects, environmental degradation being the most salient and recognized, the progress of technics, on balance, is a positive force. It enriches and empowers far more than it enslaves, disenfranchises and degrades. The system certainly needs guidance and tweaking-sometimes extensive-not dismantling, even if it were possible, which it is not. The Unabomber says no, the system cannot be tweaked, corrected or reformed. Out-of-Control Technics has turned into a virus that is killing its host. To get his message across, he mailed 16 bombs over a period of 17 years that resulted 3 deaths and 23 injuries. If he´s wrong, no real problem: business as usual. But, if he´s right, what if anything can be done? Can an anti-virus be found before time runs out?
Keywords
socio-economic effects; weapons; Hubbard´s pimple; Out-of-Control Technics; Theodore J. Kaczynski; Unabomber´s manifesto; anti-virus; empowerment; environmental degradation; industrial society; mail bombing threats; technical evolution; techno-industrial enterprise; Cities and towns; Clocks; Companies; Degradation; Engines; Humans; Injuries; Postal services; Watches; Weapons;
fLanguage
English
Publisher
ieee
Conference_Titel
Technology and Society Technical Expertise and Public Decisions, 1996. Proceedings., 1996 International Symposium on
Conference_Location
Princeton, NJ
Print_ISBN
0-7803-3345-4
Type
conf
DOI
10.1109/ISTAS.1996.541178
Filename
541178
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