4 ms·

The Internet's Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz (2014)

94 points by tslocum 6y ago

tslocum 6y ago
Submission statement: The story of programming prodigy, information activist and co-founder of reddit Aaron Swartz, who took his own life at the age of 26.
- rkt88edmo 6y ago
  While under duress from the threat of prosecution by the federal government for republishing academic research while MIT stood by silently.
pcdoodle 6y ago
This is a must watch if you haven't seen it. Thanks for adding it to the feed op.
chosen1111 6y ago
Unfortunately the openess of data he fought for would possibly be criticized as enabling accused malactors.
- derptron 6y ago
  malactors is not a word. You can just say bad actors.
lxe 6y ago
This is a must-watch. Made me furious and teary eyed the first time I've seen this and really understood his story.
fossuser 6y ago
One thing that bothered me about this documentary were his interviews on Russia Today. He didn't understand the extent to which he was being used by foreign adversaries to push a narrative favorable to them. That doesn't mean his arguments are wrong, but they're in a quite misleading context. If you go on RT you should do it like Yascha Mounk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cucX1IO78lM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cucX1IO78lM In hindsight, wikileaks was more an arm of Russian propaganda than Aaron understood. (Full comment from the other thread, just got buried: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=25734526 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=25734526) (meta: To those downvoting, the irony is if Aaron had lived to see today's political insanity - I suspect he would have regretted those interviews too. He seemed pretty introspective and thoughtful about politics.)
- antifreeze0 6y ago
  No, wikileaks was/is not Russian propaganda. Just because you don’t agree with the information it doesn’t make it false. Wikileaks did nothing more then dump emails for anyone to sort through during the 2016 election. Aaron was against big tech censoring information and I remember HN supported him in those views now you all look the other way because it doesn’t fit the narrative you like. If Aaron was still around you would be against him and try to de platform him for being against big corporations. Edit: Grammar.
MeinBlutIstBlau 6y ago
Just because you're a prodigy doesn't make you exempt from the rules that exist. On the scale of injustices, what he did is hardly an offense worthwhile by illegitimate means. He should've just gone about it the way the system is devised. Nobody likes it. But being noble doesn't get you anywhere nowadays.
- breck 6y ago
  > But being noble doesn't get you anywhere nowadays. It never did. You do it for the people that come after you.
  - MeinBlutIstBlau 6y ago
    Doing anything for the "greater good" doesn't get you anything besides being a folk hero. There are very few if any folk heroes that ever "triumphed" over the state.
- pm90 6y ago
  Being noble is only possible when you have power. When you know the right people, breaking the law like he did can be shrugged of as an ideological protest. His prosecution shows just how flawed the Criminal Justice system is in the US. Harsh laws, selectively applied and the weakest get the harshest sentences.
- kichimi 6y ago
  What he did was barely a criminal offense, breaking terms of service should not warrant jail time. If it does then we are ALL guilty of the same "crimes" as Swartz, including you.
mro_name 6y ago
recommended read: "A Programmable Web" https://www.morganclaypool.com/doi/pdfplus/10.2200/S00481ED1V01Y201302WBE005 https://www.morganclaypool.com/doi/pdfplus/10.2200/S00481ED1...
trident5000 6y ago
land of the free.
ddevault 6y ago
I think Aaron would have been proud to see the rise of Sci-Hub today. I am disappointed that we haven't learned from our mistakes, and that the powers that be are attacking Sci-Hub with as much, or even more, vigor and evil.
dang 6y ago
3 months ago: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=24678554 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=24678554 Related and current: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=25731566 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=25731566
environment 6y ago
Aaron is dead. Wanderers in this crazy world, we have lost a mentor, a wise elder. Hackers for right, we are one down, we have lost one of our own. Nurturers, carers, listeners, feeders, parents all, we have lost a child. Let us all weep. -Sir Tim Berners-Lee, January 11, 2013

94 points by tslocum 6y ago

Submission statement: The story of programming prodigy, information activist and co-founder of reddit Aaron Swartz, who took his own life at the age of 26.

rkt88edmo 6y ago
While under duress from the threat of prosecution by the federal government for republishing academic research while MIT stood by silently.

pcdoodle 6y ago

This is a must watch if you haven't seen it. Thanks for adding it to the feed op.

chosen1111 6y ago

Unfortunately the openess of data he fought for would possibly be criticized as enabling accused malactors.

derptron 6y ago
malactors is not a word. You can just say bad actors.

lxe 6y ago

This is a must-watch. Made me furious and teary eyed the first time I've seen this and really understood his story.

fossuser 6y ago

One thing that bothered me about this documentary were his interviews on Russia Today. He didn't understand the extent to which he was being used by foreign adversaries to push a narrative favorable to them. That doesn't mean his arguments are wrong, but they're in a quite misleading context. If you go on RT you should do it like Yascha Mounk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cucX1IO78lM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cucX1IO78lM In hindsight, wikileaks was more an arm of Russian propaganda than Aaron understood. (Full comment from the other thread, just got buried: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=25734526 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=25734526) (meta: To those downvoting, the irony is if Aaron had lived to see today's political insanity - I suspect he would have regretted those interviews too. He seemed pretty introspective and thoughtful about politics.)

antifreeze0 6y ago
No, wikileaks was/is not Russian propaganda. Just because you don’t agree with the information it doesn’t make it false. Wikileaks did nothing more then dump emails for anyone to sort through during the 2016 election. Aaron was against big tech censoring information and I remember HN supported him in those views now you all look the other way because it doesn’t fit the narrative you like. If Aaron was still around you would be against him and try to de platform him for being against big corporations. Edit: Grammar.

MeinBlutIstBlau 6y ago

Just because you're a prodigy doesn't make you exempt from the rules that exist. On the scale of injustices, what he did is hardly an offense worthwhile by illegitimate means. He should've just gone about it the way the system is devised. Nobody likes it. But being noble doesn't get you anywhere nowadays.

breck 6y ago
> But being noble doesn't get you anywhere nowadays. It never did. You do it for the people that come after you.
- MeinBlutIstBlau 6y ago
  Doing anything for the "greater good" doesn't get you anything besides being a folk hero. There are very few if any folk heroes that ever "triumphed" over the state.
pm90 6y ago
Being noble is only possible when you have power. When you know the right people, breaking the law like he did can be shrugged of as an ideological protest. His prosecution shows just how flawed the Criminal Justice system is in the US. Harsh laws, selectively applied and the weakest get the harshest sentences.
kichimi 6y ago
What he did was barely a criminal offense, breaking terms of service should not warrant jail time. If it does then we are ALL guilty of the same "crimes" as Swartz, including you.

mro_name 6y ago

recommended read: "A Programmable Web" https://www.morganclaypool.com/doi/pdfplus/10.2200/S00481ED1V01Y201302WBE005 https://www.morganclaypool.com/doi/pdfplus/10.2200/S00481ED1...

trident5000 6y ago

land of the free.

ddevault 6y ago

I think Aaron would have been proud to see the rise of Sci-Hub today. I am disappointed that we haven't learned from our mistakes, and that the powers that be are attacking Sci-Hub with as much, or even more, vigor and evil.

dang 6y ago

3 months ago: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=24678554 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=24678554 Related and current: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=25731566 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=25731566

environment 6y ago

Aaron is dead. Wanderers in this crazy world, we have lost a mentor, a wise elder. Hackers for right, we are one down, we have lost one of our own. Nurturers, carers, listeners, feeders, parents all, we have lost a child. Let us all weep. -Sir Tim Berners-Lee, January 11, 2013