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TECHNOPHOBIA -by Bernadette le Goullon ------------ It's not the computers, it's the capitalists that claim that they own the bulk of our capital equipment and the resources used to manufacture them. It's not the computers, it's the bourgeoisie that set up large labour exploitative factories that manufacture a machine that you could build in your own backyard if provided with the technical education. It's the Patriarchs that create an elite male dominated hierarchy based on the computer language. It's the schools that tell women they cannot understand logic and thus bar them from the possibility of an unlimited communication network. It's computer phobic governments like the U.S. that employ companies like IBM to standardise encryption, so the world cop can listen in on what is happening. It's capitalists that take computers out of the hands of ordinary people by making them prohibitively expensive. Children that are not exposed to computers will be amongst the socially disadvantaged. They will be known as the computer illiterate and this will help to entrench the class system. It's poor public and private sector management that disempowers employees with mindless repetitive work and unhealthy working conditions.Computers speed up functional processes which should be used to make life easier. Occupational health should always be considered regardless of whether computers or bone thumping typewriters are used. Remember computers are simply a tool. Tools can be used for good or ill. Some of us don't drive cars but very few of us can say that they have never used a car. Cars cause a lot more pollution. Computers can even be used to monitor environmental safeguards. Many of the arguments presented against computers could be used against photocopy machines which at present are not even recyclable and yet I see anticomputer propaganda produced using one. Photocopy machines have CPU chips. There is an argument that computers have created an information hierarchy. This gives me hope because we are still at the stage where we can get hold of these information resources. If we fail to emancipate ourselves, we remain the ignorant victims of the computer age. We will become its slaves. The luddites learnt about the technology which was being abused in their time. They worked on the cotton gin machines and were skilled technicians. They understood that it was the power of a useful machine but the power of thosewho mismanaged it that they were fighting. One more point why bother attacking the petty bourgeoisie companies for providing parts for the proletariat to fix their own computers? Why not go for the right-wing big boys like Ross Perot who have made their fortunes developing military technology. Go straight for the source of the information monopoly - boycott IBM.