I don’t know very much about technology. When I was in University, I received a D in an Introduction to the Internet course. The bottom line is, the course was worth it. Even though the professor was very hard on me, I learned a thing or two.
OK two…
One of them was what open code is (in the 'Computerish' language). Open code enables users to share and update information online and to work together.
Let’s say that I am writing a program that... I don’t know, helps you find a parking space in a large city. Let’s say that I’m not an Israeli and not trying to get rich from it. Let's say I want it to be the best and most efficient program in the world and I’m willing to take advice from others. Let’s just say...
Let’s say that I am writing a program that... I don’t know, helps you find a parking space in a large city. Let’s say that I’m not an Israeli and not trying to get rich from it. Let's say I want it to be the best and most efficient program in the world and I’m willing to take advice from others. Let’s just say...
So, if all of the above was true, then I could write my program in open code online. That way, any programmer, no matter where they are on the planet, would be able to add functions/information to my program and make it better.
Wow, this whole sharing thing is totally cool and efficient at the same time!
Most of us know 'that open code thing' as Wikipedia. It’s awesome and genius that everyone on the planet can share their wisdom and knowledge with the rest of the world, and anyone can read and gain from that knowledge. Man, this is insane! Imagine how smart we can become, there is no limit!
But what is the definition of the word Wiki. Does anyone even know what that means? I didn’t know either . . . so I looked it up on Wikipedia. Wiki means fast in Maldivian (the language of the Maldivian Island natives). Nice….
Most of us know 'that open code thing' as Wikipedia. It’s awesome and genius that everyone on the planet can share their wisdom and knowledge with the rest of the world, and anyone can read and gain from that knowledge. Man, this is insane! Imagine how smart we can become, there is no limit!
But what is the definition of the word Wiki. Does anyone even know what that means? I didn’t know either . . . so I looked it up on Wikipedia. Wiki means fast in Maldivian (the language of the Maldivian Island natives). Nice….
But wait a minute- someone defined wiki in Wikipedia! Who wrote that? How do they know it’s true? Where are the Maldive Islands? That is exactly the problematic point with sharing information using open code online. You don’t always know where the information came from or how true it is.
Hmmmm... that is a problem… So, the Internet with its open code and celebrating sharing information can be misleading and instead of making us smarter, it can actually make us totally dumb. Wiki is basically counting on the ideal notion of “if someone will write something wrong, eventually someone who knows the the truth, will correct it”. Sounds way too optimistic for the online world. But, even if we think the Internet is chaotic and uncontrollable, there are still powers that can balance the information and supervise it. In Wikipedia, the information to a very large extent. is supervised and does not go live immediately.
The problem is not the Internet. The problem is on the street- on campus, in real life. But it turns out that the real world is not that far from the online world. Whoever wants to challenge Israel's legitimacy, figured that out a long time ago, a really long time ago.
For the public who might not know very much, it voluntarily gives information about the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. Posters that say “Stop the massacre in Gaza”, bus ads that state “Israel War Crimes, Your Tax Dollar at Work”, articulate speakers that provide half stories in the best case, and in the worst case, concocted truths.
This is how you rewrite public opinion and world perception that is open to updates - life's open code.
Whoever does support Israel in the Diaspora also understands that public opinion is an open code. We figured it out much later than our haters, but at least we did. We are doing everything we can to combat the misinformation that has been presented for many years. We are doing our best to defend the truth but we are too little and too late. This is an effort that anyone who has Israel in his mind or liberalism and democracy in his heart, should be a part of.
It's hard for me, you know, as an Israeli to even hear the question “Why are you Israelis committing genocide?” I am shocked!! They don't ask “Is it true that you commit genocide?” or “Are you committing genocide?”. Their question is “Why?” The lie/fact that Israel commits genocide is already a certainty in their mind.
Our haters are rewriting life's open code, updating, working hard, and trying to be as creative as possible- just like the fast world of the Internet. Or, as you say in Maldivian wiki.
Israel doesn’t seem to understand the rules of this game. Israel tries to fight that battle by printing encyclopedias. You know- encyclopedia that is certified, checked, and approved, ensuring there is no doubt about the facts. Unfortunately, it's also the thing that no one buys/reads or remembers it even exists.
Here is a clip that says what I am saying in better language and nicer accent-
Oh, and by the way, Wiki means 'fast' in Hawaiian. Not in Maldivian. In the Maldives Islands, they speak Dibahi. There is no such language as 'Maldivian' at all.
If I had not told you that, and someone asked you what language is spoken in the Maldives Islands, you would have answered confidently "Maldivian" because you read it somewhere, sometime...
You could have found the information that you just read in my blog really cool and tell a friend, “Ah, you know what Wiki means? It's 'fast' in Maldivian, man.” And he would reply, “No way?!” And you would have said, “for sure man, I just read it yesterday !”
It's that simple to make us believe that something is the truth.
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