Here is something I have not seen before: a coherent critique of the activities of the Soros Foundation from the Left. It comes from the Netherlands by way of a mailing list in Germany. Subscription information is at the end of the article. ----- Gabor Fencsik The Art of Being Independant On NGOs and the Soros debate By Geert Lovink A fear is spreading throughout Europe: the creeping, existential angst of being possessed and ruled by new, unknown forces. For some, the dragon is called Brussels, for others it is neo-liberalism, the stockmarket, Asia, globalization, the year 2000, or Soros. In circles of media activists and electronic artists there is acute sensitivity towards emergent institutional powers. Active groups and individuals on the edge (and the margins) of Media Related Creativity are vulnerable to new economic and political formations. As temporary, freelance workers we are both inside and outside of the culture industry. The critique of large size capitalist and state structures from the perspective of small groups has been well known since the sixties. It is easier to critique Shell, MoMa, the Ministry of Culture, the Telecom and McDonalds, as the lines are clear. They are bastards. But now the threat is coming from within, without clear frontlines. Nowadays, power can be located anywhere. For some it is the body, for others the mediasphere, or transnational capital. The process of simultaneous fragmentation and centralization leaves us with a confusing picture. Does our critique need a clear object anyway, an artificial, imaginary focus? Current technologies make it out of the question to be fully autonomous, particularly if you are working with computers. The rise of the Net will only make us more dependant on [137 lines left ... full text available at <url:http://www.reference.com/cgi-bin/pn/go.py?choice=message&table=05_1997&mid=5417723&hilit=CONSPIRACY+MEDIA> ] -------------------------------- Article-ID: 05_1997&5410571 Score: 78 Subject: Re: The Best Measure of the Debt