Hacking as Punk Rock
By Aaron M. Renn
arenn@urbanophile.com
March 2003
There have been a lot of comparisons made between the destructive habits
of malicious hackers and the supposed exploits of punk rockers on a rampage.
But I believe there is deeper similarity between the two cultures apart
from the fringe extremes of destruction. Consider the following and
judge for yourself. Both hacking and punk rock:
- Primarily consist of youth suffering from some degree of alienation
or not fitting in. (But anyone can be a hacker or punk rocker)
- Have an anti-corporate, anti-establishment, anti-authoritarian bias.
- Are open, voluntary subcultures without rigid hierarchies, but only
people with "demi-god" status based on accomplishments and longevity,
not other bogus criteria.
- Are made up of many warring sub-groups, in particular the ultra-purists
(think absolute straight edge and RMS) and the actively destructive
(petty vandals and script kiddies -- definitely a minority in each culture)
- Often experience persecution at a young age by people who don't
understand them.
- Share an extremely strong affinity for the "Do It Yourself" ethic.
Buying into the notion of DIY by itself is almost enough to get you
counted as either punk or a hacker, which is why I think DIY is very
core to the identity of both subcultures. Whether it be photocopying
and distributing your own zine or building your own watercooled PC,
there's a common thread linking them.
- Share an incredible commitment to following a personal vision,
the Right Thing, technical purity, doing your own thing, etc.
- What is {hacking,punk} a major topic of conversation. Particularly
with regard to identifying people who are actually posers, sellouts, etc.
- Many similar rules. Consider this line from a punk rock web site:
"There are certain punk rules, that certain punks are very serious about,
such as, if you are a punk, you can never refer to yourself as a punk,
calling someone else a poser makes you a poser". From the hacker's Jargon
File: "It is better to be described as a hacker by others than to describe
oneself that way."
- Subculture heavily linked through zines, or in the case of hacking,
electronic substitutes. (Punk Planet
or Slashdot as majors, with tons of
more obscure journals out over the years like Urinine or PHUN).
- Both have their heroic Elder Days in the 1970's.
- Can both be great things in your life.
What is Punk?
http://itzabreakdown.tripod.com/youngandhopeless/id15.html
http://www.sandiegopunk.com/whatispunkrock.html
http://www.ratserv.com/dread/punk/index.html
http://www.greenanarchist.org.uk/Punk.htm
http://www.forwardgarden.com/forward/24156.html
What is Hacking?
http://www.cs.berkeley.edu/~bh/hacker.html
http://www.catb.org/~esr/jargon/html/entry/hacker.html
http://www.hackinthebox.org/article.php3?sid=809
http://www.cs.duke.edu/education/courses/spring02/cps004/rdng/hacker.html
http://teral.blerk.org/shite/rants/hacker.html
http://members.tripod.com/wesleybarrett/althacker_faq.htm