Letters to the editor: September 25

RE: Renaissance 2.0

I appreciated your inspired article on the extraordinary progress of human beings. You’re right, we live in a fundamentally different era, the accessibility of knowledge is significant in contrast to hundreds of years ago. Although, it is not nearly as accessible as you have expressed. The article fails to engage with privilege. Yes, the Internet has facilitated communication, but it is still only a tool accessible to a small section of the population. Those who are struggling to assemble a meal for the evening will not have the resources to afford a computer system (I myself have been going without a personal computer for months because I cannot afford a new one), let alone monthly Internet fees. You might be able to argue that we can access information via the public library system, but this access is limited- downloads (such as torrents and adblockers) are not permitted, and hours are restricted. Not to mention, this is only true within our own society. Across the globe, access to Internet is out of reach. If information can only be accessed by those who can afford it, will the progress we make using the internet really be meeting the needs of those who have no access?
– Catherine Smith