A young man sits writing alone on a cushioned chair in the grass of Alamo Square. It’s so late that it’s early. The most dangerous weapon he holds is a pen and the pad that he it scrawls on. As he scribbles furiously toward the last page of his notebook in the dark, an obnoxious light strikes his eye. He attempts to ignore it but the irritation overwhelms him, and he turns to face its source. Staring at the silhouette of an SFPD cruiser, “can I help you, officer?” he calls out.

“Park’s closing. Disperse,” mumbles the cop over a two-way radio. The guttersnipe sits, bewildered at the interruption. He was only committing a bit of journalism, and no harm.

“Alright, officer, should I take this chair as well? I brought it here with me,” questions the suspect.

“Leave it and get the hell out of here,” explodes from over the radio. The officer’s real voice is too distorted by muffled static to decipher.

Rising from his seat the scribe brazenly pack his tools into his pocket, furious in his indignity. But soon his anger gives way to introspect. He wonders again why he was displaced. And just as abruptly as the police appeared out of the night, a hacking cough erupts from his throat and swifly develops into a dry-heaving choke of rage.

“People should not be afraid of their governments. Governments should be afraid of their people,” says V, the antagonist of the Wachowsky Brother’s film, V for Vendetta.

There could be no truer words spoken in a day when we, the people, have so little liberty left. Today’s technology has provided exceptional power of control to our government and the rise of the machines has given way to some of the most pervasive forms of rights-restrictions we have ever seen. Since the establishment and reiteration of legislation like the PATRIOT act, their might grows exponentially.

Here (NY Times) is a contemporary case of them using their power with proper ethics. But it’s a flex of their muscle. Think of all technology across the globe at our disposal daily that can be used for such good, or evil.

Now may be the last opportunity we have to protect ourselves against being caught with our guards down. We must be alert of our access to many of the technological assets at our disposal, and be aware that they can be used as weapons to fight back in self-defense. A unified effort to reclaim our rights is necessary if we want to control our own destiny. And judging by what little hope is left of our Mother Earth’s natural resources, after being raped and abused for too long, little faith should be bestowed in the hands of the powers-that-be to save our souls.

In 1999, another Wachowski Brother's movie, The Matrix, was released internationally. Immediately after its groundbreaking debut, film changed forever. It was the landmark media event to close out the last century and bring in a new one. The original use of technology in the movie, which simultaneously critiques its own technological power, is epic. The technological aspects won critical appeal at the time of its release, and earned its take at the red carpet of the Oscars. But its greater lasting impact was its effect on popular culture, then and now, which is proven in its box office and DVD sale numbers. Since then, The Brother’s have made blockbusters which serve as powerful contemporary simulacrum…even their sequels, unfortunately.

Both in theory and reality, technology is the strongest weapon available to fight with. It has the omnipotent power to accelerate time, which is a task unachievable for any other current capability. Everyone knows the world moves faster today than ever before, and that’s all because of our common access to technology. And its only going to speed up in the future.

In The Matrix, The System’s avatar, Mr. Anderson shoots a bullet at the protagonist, Neo, who is able to slow down its speed and dodge it. His skill to alter time, his talent of critical thought, and his knowledge of technology allows him to champ his artificially intelligent oppressor, if only for a scene. But its that one image which made the boldest imprint in the collective consciousness of the generation whom it effected the most. And its those of us who are going to inherit the future and determine what’s next, with however much time is left in this crazy world. The pharisee whom was chased from the park now defers to Neo in order to explicate the rest:

"I know you're out there. I can feel you now. I know that you're afraid... you're afraid of us. You're afraid of change. I don't know the future. I didn't come here to tell you how this is going to end. I came here to tell you how it's going to begin. I'm going to hang up this phone, and then I'm going to show these people what you don't want them to see. I'm going to show them a world without you. A world without rules and controls, without borders or boundaries. A world where anything is possible. Where we go from there is a choice I leave to you...."