Country hackers: October 19, 1998 issue of New Thinking

October 19, 1998 New Thinking:
Country hackers

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October 19, 1998

Country hackers

By Gerry McGovern

Real hackers don’t hack into computers. Real hackers don’t wear anoraks and beards. Real hackers hack into countries. Real hackers wear flashy suits, drive flashy cars and work the financial markets, and most of them are probably 24-years-old.

If the worldwide financial crisis of the last couple of months has shown anything it is that nobody really is in control and nobody really knows why things get broken and how to fix broken things. The signs are showing that an American recovery is in progress, but we all should be worried, very worried about the future.

They call it globalization. They say that the world is coming together. I believe that if the world doesn’t stop coming together, it will come apart.

I share the belief that the universe is a living entity, that the world is of itself a living, changing entity. I see humanity as being a living, changing entity. I believe there is a very good reason that through millions of years of evolution, we as humans have separated into a multitude of cultures.

You see, by keeping things in smaller units, we reduce instability and we allow for humans to more ably manage the situation. If one unit gets attacked by disease, war or whatever, the other cultural units can survive.

This great, complex globalization mass that we are creating may have some tremendous benefits, but it is so complex, has so many interdependencies, that it is essentially outside of the control of governments and multinationals. We might think we control it but really it hums to its own tune.

Where are the globalization ‘experts’ to tell us that things are in control and that we can predict and plan for the future? You would expect that economist, Paul Krugman of MIT would be one such expert. Not so. “Now suppose that you were to buy a copy of the best-selling textbook on international economics,” Krugman told the New Republic magazine recently. “What would it tell you about how to cope with a sudden loss of confidence by international investors? Well, not much. (Trust me – I’m the co-author of that textbook.)”

You would expect that Alan Greenspan, the chairman of the US Federal Reserve Board would be another expert. Not so. “Given the amazing communications facilities available around the globe,” Greenspan told the United States Congress recently, “trades can be initiated from almost any location… Any direct US regulation restricting their flexibility will doubtless induce the more aggressive funds to emigrate from under our jurisdiction.”

“Think about that statement for a minute,” Michael Elliot, wrote in Newsweek. “The most experienced financial regulator in the world’s most advanced economy just said that he can’t control a few hundred bond traders and mathematicians living (for the moment) in Greenwich, Connecticut. To the question “Who’s in control of the global economy?” we now have an answer. Nobody.”

The country hackers are in control, as they constantly probe nations and currencies for signs of weakness. They are ever ready to pounce to make a killing. They are what they are and they do what they do, and we cannot blame them. Expecting them to be concerned about the countries they destabilize is like expecting an Afghan trader to import razors. We are turning the switch of complexity to a point where we will not be able to turn it back.

Gerry McGovern

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The country hackers are in control, as they constantly probe nations and currencies for signs of weakness.