The Power of the Internet

           The Internet Has Empowered Us

     The Internet has an almost indescribable effect upon society. The venture capitalists, the stock holders and employees of many of the dot coms are whining about the downfall of the Internet. The downfall they bemoan is only to their pocketbooks. The impact of the Internet is permanent and lasting.

    The Internet has etched a lasting change upon society that we must identify and use in our efforts on indigent persons’ behalves.

    Quite naturally, the Internet speeds and broadens access to information. Along the way, the Internet has reinvented the way that we receive and share information. The under 25 year-old group of our society understands and avails itself of this advantage in larger numbers than the remainder of society. Unrecognized to the remainder of society, this younger group has seized power that could not have been attained without the resources of the Internet.

    As advocates for indigent persons, we must allow this younger group in society to assist us in advocating for indigent persons.

            The Internet Has Picked the Lock of Authority

 Understanding that the Internet provides new ways to affront authority is primary to understanding how you will and should use it. The Internet has increased by quantum leaps the ways that we can challenge authority.

 The Internet has shifted the balance of power in this country. Fourteen year-old kids have now taken on the role of chief family information providers in certain information areas. Twelve year-old kids are communicating world-wide about subjects that college students were first being introduced to only a few years ago.

The Internet has opened the doors of publishing to everyone; however, it has been people in the younger age groups that have been more innovative with their use of the Internet to gain power, i.e., freedom and independence, which would not otherwise be available to them.

The twenty-five and under age group, by virtue of its Internet-gained skills and knowledge, now have power and publishing skills never thought attainable by such a young age group. Stay-at-home parents have some of the same powers that we would never have expected them to have.

The local television station, the local radio station and the local newspaper are no longer the exclusive sources and distribution channels of information.

How, as lawyers for indigent persons, can we walk into the chamber of authority, which has had its lock picked by the Internet?

A Lawyer Without Broadband Internet Access is a per se Malpracticing Dinosaur who Deserves to be Exited from Indigent Defense and Certainly from Representing People whom the Government wishes to Execute

Not only must lawyers and all of their staff have access to Internet services 24/7, this access primarily needs to be broadband access.

Access is only starters for a lawyer’s Internet resources. Today’s effective advocate must be capable of both researching on the Internet and publishing to the Internet. The mechanical means of being able to both attain and distribute information is a relevant skill for advocates.

Not only must effective advocates know how to harness these skills for their use on offense, advocates must understand these skills in order to transgress information secreted by our opponents. In short, we must understand both computer and Internet technology, as the World Wide Web becomes integrated into our computers. We should think of the web as just another data base stored on a different type of drive on our computer.

            Attacking Techno-Phobia

    Twelve year-old kids do not have tons of money to invest in making their computers zoom in order that they can take full advantage of the vast resources awaiting their commands. Twelve year-old kids, for the most part, conquered this problem by learning about the components of a computer.

     Lawyers for indigent persons, in many respects, have the same financial restraints upon them as twelve year-old kids. Diligent lawyers for indigent persons have conquered the hardware problems by learning the “how-tos” of keeping good computers zooming.