Anders Breivik’s rampage in Norway last week has intensified scrutiny of the EU’s attitude toward immigration. Many Europeans are increasingly vocal in declaring multiculturalism a failure and complaining that immigrants exploit their generous welfare systems without attempting to assimilate.
In 1971, this sentence started popping up on computer screens all across ARPANET, the network we recognize today as the ancestor of the modern Internet. The whimsical message, it soon emerged, was the work of “Creeper,” the first-ever self-replicating computer program. Created by a Massachusetts researcher, Creeper traveled from computer to computer, displaying its simple message before hopping to the next one. It didn’t delete any files, it didn’t snatch any personal information — it just said hello. Someone even developed a companion program, “Reaper,” that followed Creeper around, removing it from infected systems.
Today, this seems quaint. In the 40 years since Creeper and Reaper, a lot has changed. Just as ARPANET gave rise to the Internet and its constant innovation, Creeper was the first of a breed that includes every virus, every worm that ever caused us grief, stole our credit card numbers or invaded our email accounts.
The unrest that continues to grip the Middle East is, first and foremost, a reminder of a truth that is too often forgotten: The desire to live in dignity is more powerful than any dictator or army.
It’s also a reminder of another truth that most would prefer to overlook: our ability to discern the geopolitical signs of the times remains remarkably poor. Recent history is replete with examples of such failures — failures to predict as well as predictions that turned out to be incorrect, often egregiously so.
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