Link: https://lithub.com/a-prophetic-classic-about-the-dangers-of-tech-is-back-in-print/

Paulina Borsook saw there was something rotten afoot in Silicon Valley in the 1990s, and in her book Cyberselfish: A Critical Romp through the Terribly Libertarian Culture of High Tech, she set out to document and understand a peculiar mindset she saw emerging. Originally published in 2000, Paulina’s observations in Cyberselfish have proved truer now than when it was first written. She saw that the culture of high tech was determinedly anti-government, even as it owed its growth to government subsidization. That tech prioritized the idea of progress and profits and ignored all costs. That it co-opted the language of evolution to make human decisions and power structures seem inevitable. That the industry was hyper-male and tended toward hyper-misogynistic. That its figureheads possessed great wealth but were abysmal at sharing that wealth through philanthropy.

Cyberselfish was published into a moment in which tech and its leaders’ reputations were immaculate and unquestioned. Now we know better. Thanks to a surge of interest in her prophetic insights, Cyberselfish will be reissued this fall to a world that’s finally ready to listen. The following is an excerpt from the new edition.

Two other rather prophetic books from the mid-90s:

• (1995) - Media Virus: Hidden Agendas in Popular Culture

• (1999) - Coercion: Why We Listen to What “They” Say

Both books by Douglas Rushkoff, are basically a blueprint for how digital media and the Internet have been used to manipulate society and governments for the last 30 years.

Those who see far ahead are able to do so because they see clearly.

- unknown

Those who are able to see beyond the shadows and lies of their culture will never be understood, let alone believed, by the masses.

- Plato