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Neelank Tiwari Mrs. Amster Junior AP English February 4th 2013 Freedom Fighter Farewell Aaron Swartz was a guy who was ahead of his time. Aaron Swartz was a genius. Aaron Swartz was a freedom fighter. Aaron Swartz was great. Is it so bad, then, to be misunderstood? Pythagoras was misunderstood, and Socrates, and Jesus, and Luther, and Copernicus, and Galileo, and Newton, and every pure and wise spirit that ever took flesh. To be great is to be misunderstood. (Nordquist). As Ralph Waldo Emerson the man who essentially led the transcendentalist movement taught me ,Aaron Swartz the man who led internet freedom activists also taught through his philosophy and creations, to be great sometimes is to be understood. Aaron Swartz alleged federal crime was misunderstood. Aaron Swartz being charged for downloading millions of purely academic journals truly was as Clarence Page mentioned and David Sengal, executive director of the Demand Progress organization that Swartz founded, declared, Like trying to put someone in jail for allegedly checking out too many books out of the library. Aaron Swartz was a brilliant mind who was charged with breaking into a computer wiring closet at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology tapping into the schools network and downloading millions of journal articles from JSTOR ( short for journal storage) , a nonprofit service that charges schools to access its archives of scholarly articles. Aaron Swartz however

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was good hearted and had good intentions. Swartz did not intend on exploiting this nonprofit service according to his lawyer because he still hadnt released the files onto the web. Aaron Swartz obviously realized the gravity of the situation,(the means by which he acquired the files), perceived by others because he never released the files, however one must understand he simply wanted to spread already free publically accessible knowledge at MIT, and this would have benefited nearly everyone academically, no matter your affiliation or proximity to an institution . It is different to try to allow open access to education resources versus entertainment. I justify educational resources open access on the internet because I, much like Aaron Swartz did, value freedom and liberty highly and would see the easy access to the academic journals as equal opportunity. Clarence page mentions and conveys that he felt Swartz should have still been convicted because the law is the law, however the law was intended to protect institutions of profit and security such as Banks and Nation Security Agencies and is far outdated, being created nearly 30 years ago. Technology and information access is continuously evolving and expanding and the laws must adjust accordingly, perhaps making amendments annually versus every half a decade. Swartz was just as many of his character witnesses put it, just trying to better advance and help the world, and evident in his advanced innovations as well as philosophy ,would have thoroughly enjoyed if congress was able to catch up. I deviate from Clarence Pages disapproval of Aaron Swartzs hacking methods, however Swartz being an individual involved and active in politics, I wish he took a more balanced approach and asked for permission or approached with a proposal instead of acting as a radical revolutionist. I dont view Aaron Swartz checking too many books out of the library as a crime or theft solely because he intended to spread academic journals which the writers of most likely did not need to profit from to make a living, considering they were being distributed by a non-profit organization. Aaron

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Swartz was an amazing internet freedom advocate that was just misunderstood in his bold and daring actions. I have myself, as many of my peers have, utilized many academic and scholarly articles for research and study both in and out of school. Many individuals today especially , with the competition for employment and job positions (due to the poor economy), rely on the open access of numerous academic resources to either adequately due their jobs, make a living, or sufficiently prepare and train themselves for schooling. Although I am only a high school student, I have used open access to educational tools for both income and preparing for my accelerated courses, and was even fortunate to make thousands of dollars doing internet marketing solely because I was able to easily access educational information to teach myself. Not only did this marvelous man, who had innovations and philosophy unparalleled to our time and his age, lose everything ( such as his causes, numerous successful businesses, and family), from his death but the world also lost an innovative mind that could have further advanced society and the technologies which propel our nation and world. Aaron Swartzs death was influenced heavily by his charges, as told by his girlfriend, and the harsh action of the federal government because State prosecutors who investigated the late Aaron Swartz had planned to let him off with a stern warning, but federal prosecutor Carmen Ortiz took over and chose to make an example of the Internet activist, according to a report in Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly. (McCullagh). Aarons death sent a message to the world that he was willing to die for his cause which is evident in JSTORs receiving the message and opening its archives of more than 1,200 journals to free reading by the public on a limited basis. Not only did this still developing prodigy have so much to learn and put into perspective, but anyone and everyone had so much to learn from him.

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I support the free culture because like Clarence Page mentioned this is a time when some resources, especially those of educational nature, on the internet are downright absurd to purchase as they should be free and nonprofit. Aaron Swartz was going to attempt to bring educational equality to the internet and supply opportunity for its users unlike JSTOR who limited its audience. Aaron Swartz was a freedom fighter with pure intentions and it is a shame that our federal government and outdated internet laws and rules had to influence his suicide. Swartz was a profound philosopher and his death should not go unnoticed because he was essentially killed by laws which have yet to catch up to modern trials and technology. Swartz was a man who displayed he could keep up and even lead technological advancement. His brilliance, sacrifices, and ultimate tribute should not go unnoticed or unappreciated.

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Works Cited McCullagh, Declan. "Swartz Didn't Face Prison until Feds Took over Case, Report Says." CNET News. CBS Interactive, 25 Jan. 2013. Web. 03 Feb. 2013. Nordquist, Richard. ""Self-Reliance," by Ralph Waldo Emerson (page three)." About.com Grammar & Composition. About.com Guide, n.d. Web. 03 Feb. 2013.