Digital Identities

Digital identities online in America are extremely prevlent in their society. Identities are paved and created firstly, through the utilisation of social networks. Social networking on sites such as Facebook, Tumblr, Myspace among others allow people to assert their identity to people that they already know or who have 'friended'. This is done through uploading photographs, setting status' and 'liking' pages, all of which can be seen by all the people in your friends list.

These identities that can be paved are not always concrete and can be created by the user (i.e. the identity that they show might not always be exactly who they are). For example, one can ommit their sexual preference or their nationality which can transgress from the idea of the hyphenated American.

These identites paved by social networking can be furthered by the mobility allowed through smartphones, wifi and 3G internet connection. This allows users to be able to connect to the internet, and thus their social networks, via their smartphones.

These devices create a digital identity through the actual hardware itself. This is because of the value placed upon items such as the iPhone or Blackberry. By buying this hardware, an American is able to fit into a circle of people who own these products. For example, BBM for the blackberry or whatsapp (free SMS service for smartphones). Also, because of the price of these sorts of phones, it may also say something about ones social standing/ the American Dream. By default, due to the constitution and the declaration, Americans have quite a stark preoccupation with success and the ownership of flash, new and innovative technology would act as a 'signifier' that they have achieved middle class status.

The dangers of digital identity

Technology allows Americans to live a new American dream. One that doesn't demand hard labour. Be it from investing in technological buisness' or becoming a youtube sensation, the digital age produces profit. This financial freedom has created a new opportunity and a new level of wealth in America. Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg are two of the wealthiest men in the world and they have created this wealth through technology and people's dependence upon it.

More than any other, digital identity is all about choice. To set up a profile on a social network all a person needs is an email address. They can essentially become whoever they want to be. Most people use social networks to connect with friends and organise events however, there are other uses for the sites. One aspect of facebook that is fast becoming a problem is trolling. Trolling is
when a person, normally using a fake name, posts antagonising slander on facebook pages. The most commonly talked about are the postings on memorial pages for children. In a recent trolling documentary a troll said that the reason he did it was for the kick he got when someone replied to the posts. This is one way that people use technology to express their identities without consequences. Another is cyber bullying. The Internet allows anonymity for criminals and those who wish to hurt people. The ever growing need to police the Internet is a worry in America. Issues of illegal file sharing and downloading are especially prominent in the news but they are far from the most harmful Internet crimes. The ability to create a digital identity is abused by many in the ways I have already described. However, surely the most sinister crime committed through the Internet is the ability to create a new identity in order to trap a child. This is a new fear that did not exist before the Internet. It is the only place that a parent can not watch out for their child. I think this growing abuse of the Internet is virtually impossible to police and will only become a greater concern to America and much of the world in the future.

Digital Identity

In a the modern world we live in we are more connected and closer than ever. This is due to the use of social networking, such as Facebook and Twitter. They more or less allow us to see what is going on with anyone and anything in the world. If i were to look up news in Istanbul that would not be much of an effort, whereas 20 years ago it wouldn't be worth the curiosity. Governments now must deal with this over exposure and as a result be more secretive. This can mean lying to the public by keeping a face up that is perceived as ethical. Facebook allows anyone to form an identity by editing their pages, showing their likes and interests, age, sexuality ect. Through this medium people can "know" people from just a click of the mouse. In theory this should make us closer but that isn't exactly true.
The interests someone might show on their page are just the interests they have that they wish to publicise, it may say that they like sport, but in reality the person might not be able to hold a 5 minute conversation about the topic, but they can if someone was to start talking about Star Wars. The chat feature on face book can be used to get to know people and the wall or timeline to show messages to a person for all. With all these easy and quick features it can be an effort for some to actually meet up in person. with the continuos development of easy to use networking the future will be a very different place. The side effects of the Internet and excessive use predicts a future of over stimulation from things the Internet can provide. When in truth that future is here already.
here is an article explaining that those who have easy access to the online community at a young age face dangers
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2119665/Middle-class-children-risk-internet-use.html
health issues that come with constant screen use and Internet exposure include: obesity, eye damage, skin irritations, mental problems and bad posture .
Not only this but addiction is one of its biggest problems. Recent studies show the peoples need for dopamine is much higher and can only be obtained by hyper stimulation from things like online gaming and hardcore pornography. This is due to frequent use. studies show children (mainly boys) as Early as 12 seeing hardcore porn regularly. This can lead to impotence in later life as the need for more perverted material, can make there pleasure response numb, and disable them from having a functioning intimate relationships. Online gaming has got to the point were people have died due to excessive use. As games get more stimulating they become harder to not play, due to the intense levels of dopamine the brain delivers to the body from playing them. With the masses of money involved with online businesses the future is only going to lead to more exposure to dangerous materials. This creates a Distopian society that is not natural for humans, as we cannot evolve to this change quick enough, effectively making us cavemen living in a world we cannot function in, as our brains cannot support it.

Digital Identity

Digital identity has become ever more important in the modern day world. Technology will become even more important in years to come causing people to come even more reliant on the ease of technology. This is not always positive though.

Social networking sites such as Facebook have enabled people to be able to simply choose an identity. People can be selective to what they wish to disclose but also create a completely new identity. The freedom these social networks can give you tends to cause more negative than positive effects such as the many cases of bullying even leading to suicide in many circumstances. The negatives of this result in the many cases of mistaken digital identity. This has only added to the larger numbers of paedophiles creating a differing digital identity. Identity is no longer about appearance or personality but what we chose to indicate to people. Facebook is almost certainly an example of performance choosing how we want to be perceived rather than who they genuinely are.

Another digital identity available to Americans is simply the make and types of technology people rely on. For example there is a strict divide between those who have a Blackberry or Iphone, it is now seen as a status symbol and can also relate to symbolise your identity through displaying class divides. These devices can further create someones digital identity through apps such as Blackberry messenger or Whatsapp whereby profile pictures and statuses can display anything and everything you wish to tell your digital “world” about you at that certain moment. For example your mood, your relationship status and even your whereabouts which can create a friendship through nothing but what you wish to reveal. It can also result in criminal activity, there is examples of cases whereby people have posted on the internet the time they are on holiday only to return to find their houses have been burgled.

The number of digital identities available to Americans will only seek to increase as more and more examples of media and technology. Americans will end up relying on technology for every daily task causing them to lose even more of their identity and relying on their digital identity.

Class Struggle

http://www.socialistalternative.org/about/

The site above belongs to a group named the social alternatives, of whom are described as a ‘national organization fighting in our workplaces, communities, and campuses against the exploitation and injustices people face every day.’ Their slogan ‘Bail Out Workers, Not Wall Street’ highlights their attitude towards the US government, ‘We believe the Republicans and Democrats are both parties of big business.’ In contrast they campaign ‘to build an independent, alternative party of workers and young people to fight for the interests of the millions, not the millionaires.’

The aims of the Social Alternative include some of the following, ‘Raise the federal minimum wage to $12.50/hour, adjusted annually for cost of living increases and regional differences, as a step towards a living wage for all.’ Free healthcare, and a personal favourite being to shorten the work week ‘with no loss in pay and benefits - share out the work with the unemployed and create new jobs.’

Two other points worth mentioning, was the attitude towards the Tea Party movement - something they call an 'incredible phenomenon' with 'ludicrous and crazed ideas and leadership,' that only garnered support because they took advantage of the political vacuum created by an absence of any left-wing challenge to Obama. And also, their feelings towards the lack of unionisation in America - something they feel strongly attributes towards 'increased class polarisation' and helps the popularity of Occupy America, as it provides an important catalyst.

The 99%, The 1% and Class Struggle

The 99%, The 1% and Class Struggle is an article that I had found on the website dollarsandsense.org. The article was written by Alejandro Reuss in September 2011.

In this article, he points out the main focus of the idea of the 99% and the 1% and the movement '#occupywallstreet' and what they are trying to achieve. Occupy Wallstreet are a movement against the unequal distribution of wealth in the United States and how the economy, although in crisis, favours capitilism and the few people that are on top.

The article highlights that the classlines are evidently clear and describes these class inequalities as a 'losing streak at the hands of employers'. In other words, the people 'on top' are in utter control and in order to create maximum profit, creates a class struggle.



The above picture is included in the article written by Reuss and demonstrates the unfair treatment of the '99%'. It shows that the workers are putting in more work than what they are paid for, which can obviously lead to a class struggle. This is because they are putting in way too many man-hours for what they are being paid and are ultimately wasting time. This can lead to problems such as child-care and makes it more difficult for people in the 'poor' class, or what is known as the 'working class', to have a properly functioning family life.

It was also said by Reuss that: "...workers’ share of total income has fallen, and capitalists’ share has increased." Meaning that the top 1% riches are furthered by this.

Class: the big divide

The website I have found is a page from the New York Times. A team of reporters spent a year investigating class and the page contains their results. They are expressed in bar graphs, pie charts and personal accounts. In the personal accounts they ask for the person's self described class. They go on to talk about the person's job and background. It is interesting in that it allows the people to define their class themselves. It also has a section called 'where do you fit in?' in which you choose your occupation, education, income and wealth and tells you which percentile each aspect is and overall. This means it can calculate the percentage of the population who earn the same as you or lower. There is a section on how class works which allows you to see the wealth distribution in certain professions. The final section is an opinion poll on how Americans see class and how they fit into the class system. This section asks questions such as 'how likely is it that you will ever become wealthy' and 'compared with their social class growing up people said their class was' this section again is interesting because it is based on opinion.