The FOIA Class

We're quickly developing an entire class of talented, motivated, angry cyber justice seekers with a predominant skill: filing FOIA paperwork. At least it seems that way. And while that is great for the depth of truth and wisdom they uncover, it might also leave us unarmed for the kind of proactive potential buried within the golden wisdom being found. There may be a reason the word ACT is in the law: to bring about action.


Wouldn't it (couldn't it, shouldn't it!) be better to take this talent and redirect more of it towards creating a citizen's militia of forward-looking, open-sourced, justice-loving progressives who can all be armed with the techno-wizardry required to seek out and stop all types of terror and militaristic missteps? We have the digital ways and means to do this, but the glory is in uncovering secrets. The values, however, will come from turning financial, governmental and media resources towards using more of that massive amount of data and facts. Yet at this point we are leaving too much of this wealth untapped for its empowerment potential. 

Don't get me wrong: the FOIA generation is a good thing. I'd even consider marrying some of those who made this trend fashionable. But that doesn't mean we're not coming up short on its potential. Do the digging, but do the work of justice too.