INFORMATION IS THE GREAT EQUALIZER

It could possibly be the greatest irony of these modern times. While we are already in the midst of the “Information Age”, the greater majority of the people all over the world still have no access to information. Some scholars have referred to this phenomenon as the “Digital Divide”. While I do not have any objections to this terminology, I believe on the other hand that the “Digital Divide” is only a consequence or a manifestation of the bigger problem which is the “Economic Divide”. Not that I have suddenly become ambitious, but somehow I believe that it is possible to build a “Digital Bridge” that would close the gap between the two sides of the “Economic Divide”. If only this could be done, then the great irony would end, because by then, the vast infrastructure of the “Information Age” would be used to increase public access to information everywhere.
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There is another phenomenon that happened practically overnight, largely unnoticed for the most part. This is the sudden transition from the old “PC supremacy” that used to dominate the digital world, into the new “CP supremacy” that now dominates the same digital world. For most people perhaps, the distinction between the two is not that important, but I believe that this shift is very significant, because it opens up more opportunities to bridge the “Economic Divide” further, along with its offspring, the “Digital Divide”. Some would also say that the differentiation between the two is meaningless, because cell phones are still dependent on computers at the backend in order to function, but to that I say that by comparison, it is still the front end that is more important, and that is the point where most people would experience difficulties in having access to information.
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In analyzing the impact of computers and cell phones on human civilization, I would liken it to the impact created by automobiles, airplanes and other forms of transportation. Most people do not understand how and why automobiles and airplanes work, even if all of them appreciate the convenience of being transported from one place to another. Similarly, most people do not understand how and why computers and cell phones work, even if they would swear that they could no longer survive without these two technologies. Taking the comparison further, it does not matter how old or low tech these devises are, for as long as they function, just like in the case of automobiles and airplanes.
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By definition, the internet is a “network of networks”. What this means is that it is not a single network by itself, because it is actually composed of many networks that are interconnected with each other, working with each other through sets of communications protocols. In technical terms, the internet does not have a central “mother” server, because it runs on the power of multiple servers each performing its own purpose. By comparison, there is no integrated network that combines all the mobile networks all over the world, although there are already existing ways of integrating mobile functions with the internet, for example through Yahoo Messenger or Chikka Messenger.
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By now, everyone could see that mankind was able to harness the usefulness of automobiles and airplanes in the service of human civilization, but sad to say, we could not say the same thing yet in the case of computers and cell phones. While it could be argued that computers and cell phones are already being used in beneficial commercial applications, there is apparently a huge vacuum as far as its social applications are concerned. I think that the true measure of this challenge is the test of whether individual owners of computers and cell phones are already able to use their devices to do their share in combating poverty and criminality, for instance.
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Will the time ever come when everyone who has access to computers and cell phones will become daily “warriors” against poverty and criminality, using the devices that are in their hands? I do not know how far we are from this ideal goal, but I do know that the infrastructure for this purpose is already available and is waiting to be used, and it is only the human component that needs to move in order to make it happen.
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Just to put matters in their proper perspective, it is not really necessary for everyone to become fanatical activists in pursuit of social causes. As a common activity for most people, it is already enough to gather and pass on information that would be useful in combating social problems. Information is the start of everything, in bridging the “Economic Divide”.