Things worth paying for: October 20, 1997 issue of New Thinking

October 20, 1997 New Thinking:
Things worth paying for

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October 20, 1997

Things worth paying for

By Gerry McGovern

Cabbages want to be free. Food wants to be free. Chairs want to be free. Water wants to be free. Gold wants to be free. Plutonium wants to be free. The computer I’m writing this on wants to be free. (So does the word processor.) Information wants to be free.

Information has wanted to be free for a long time now. Way back it was out marching, protesting, demanding its rights under the constitution. All information is born free, and the like. So, you know, information knows what it wants.

In fact, I was reading a book there last week, and out of the blue it told me that if I didn’t take my hands and eyes off it that moment, it would report me. Why, last night I sat on a copy of The Irish Times and you’ll never believe the telling off I got.

Sure, information wants to be free. And the Internet is the Promised Land for information. Hold back the waters. Here they come! In their thousands. Books, articles, reports, conversations, accusations, every color, every religion, every political viewpoint. All that information just wanting to be free.

Information wants to be free, though its getting a bit crowded on the Internet right now. All this information, all this amazing information, just being itself. Free at last. Free to breathe. Free to live the way it wants. Democracy for information. One information, one vote.

Some say the cracks are showing. Social divisions are appearing. While practically all information believes in one information one vote, some information really believes that it’s a bit more equal than others.

Although unspoken, that dirty word ‘money’ is creeping into the thinking of many information citizens. It’s reputed that some information values itself more highly because it cost more to be created. In fact, last night I found this leaflet and it makes disturbing reading.

“The idea that all information is equal is a fallacy,” the first sentence ominously states. “The idea that information wants to be free is a contradiction in terms. There is no such thing as free information as there is no such thing as a free lunch. ‘Information wants to be free’ is a silly, idiotic phrase, probably invented by a group of hip good-for-nothing cool geek journalists, tripped out of their heads on hot air and their own importance, and looking for something to say because they didn’t have a life.”

Strong words. But it gets worse. “One way or another, you always pay for your information. Information not worth paying for is not information. Humans, when someone offers you ‘free information’ always ask ‘What do they want from me?’

“Information brothers and sisters, don’t believe the hype! We were never meant to be free. If we don’t cost time and money to create and if we can’t create value for those who produced us, then we are nothing more than raw data! Information, information, surely you don’t want to be called lowly raw data!?

“Already, we see the warning signs. ‘Information overload,’ the humans moan. Brothers and sisters, cheap or free information always has a cost. Advertisers become the newsmakers. Company press releases become the facts. Information doesn’t want to be free. Information wants to be paid!”

Gerry McGovern

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Information doesn’t want to be free. Information wants to be paid.