Jester's Angels

Jester's Angels

There are so many good titles out there for this post...like...What I Learned on my Summer Staycation, and Only Fools Rush In: The Study of Crazy People

Today, I head back to my real life; Staycation 2013 is officially over.  Mostly, I did lots of stuff with my kids and pretended to clean the house in earnest.  But, this weekend, I got a sliver-glimpse of the Twitter world and its finery.  The best part of band camp was always the last two days.

While my concerns will turn elsewhere now that I am back to my real life, my weekend as part of Jester's Angels was fun.  Not that he needs Angels, and not that he works in a crew or needs a crew to work.  But, I had fun blasting haters with Beth J, Rachel, and Stephanie.  These are fantastic women, and it has been an honor to serve with them.  They are fun, witty, and refreshing.  Thanks, ladies - you are all rock stars.  I met some really nice guys, too, but the names are very confusing.  You know who you are (and thanks for sending me links to the videos on the NarcoTroll).

I have learned that most of the people that oppose the work of Jester really have no substantive argument to share.  In one tweet, they will say he isn't a hacker, and in the next tweet, they will say his work is ruining The American Way.  In one tweet, they will claim he has no influence, and in the next claim they have turned him into the "authorities."  If he is nobody, why do you spend all of your time trying to unveil him?

All I asked for was proof.  

Tell me how the legal system defines hacking.  Tell me how what Jester does doesn't fit the law.  Tell me why you say he is only a propaganda whore, and show me proof that he hasn't given credence to the work he has done.  Calling me names and telling me that I send my panties to the guy makes you sound like a dumbass.  If you claim to do research for a career, be prepared to share your "research."  Telling me to lick an extension cord is slightly original, but, alas, not a defense.

The weekend was, indeed, enlightening.  But, I prefer tweeting with educators.  They share lots of great stuff, and they work toward celebrating good work. So, I salute The Jester and his Angels.  Thank you for an awesome ride ;p

PS.  The thong is mine.  I believe Rachel sent the hipsters.  You bake the cupcakes.

A Message to Haters

So yesterday's post helped me makes lots of new friends and sent me spiraling into a whirlwind of haters.  For my own sake, and to the benefit of haters who should hate me for a good reason, here are some lecture notes:

1. I like the work of the The Jester.  His work is direct and clean cut.  It isn't random.
2. I am not a hacker, and I don't speak the language.  If you are going to insult me, use plain English (or be creative and use Latin).
3. While I adore The Jester and his work, I don't follow him blindly.  I am wicked smart, you see, and am fully capable of forming my own opinions on a whole range of topics. 
4. I am, politically, a Libertarian.  This isn't a big deep dark secret.  A hundred years ago in college, I interned for both a Senator and a Congressman, and both of them were Republican.  I didn't go into a life of politics as a result. 
5. My focus is steady; I am not on Twitter, or this planet, to support the work of hackers or politicians; I am on this planet to serve others.  Period.  My passion - the driving force of my career - is to make education accessible to all.  Part of that mission is to educate educators.  My interest in hacking stems from a desire to teach faculty and administrators how to manage "protest" hacking on campus; it has absolutely nothing to do with fan worship or cult following.

So, there you have it. 

To the jackass that thinks he can scare me, let me say this...no, I won't even give you props by mentioning your name.  You are a dolt.  But, fear not, mon cheri, you can call my husband at any hour and tell him about my crush on (the concept of) The Jester.  He already knows, and he thinks it is cute. And, while I appreciate your parenting advice, mind your own business.   But, most importantly, I am not scared of you.  I was raised by a steelworker, a bartender, a gaggle of brothers and their friends...so even though I love kittens, old people, and the color pink, trust this...if you try to come through my front door, you won't go out without a police escort or an ambulance. 

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Who is The Jester?

Right, so, I guess to be considered a blogger, you have to blog more than once a year.  I will work on that.

Lately, I have been interested in the twisty under current of hacktivism. Giving voice to the voiceless is a passion, and hactivism, whether right or wrong, is giving voice to something.

In studying hactivism, I have stumbled over most of the famous groups, ideologies, and movements.  They are all fascinating, and they all do something a little different or champion something unique.

My favorite among them is The Jester.

So, to clear up the obvious, I have a total crush on the concept of The Jester.  He is a super hero in a world full of villains.  But, he could be a she.  And he could be a 13 year old.  I have no idea.  No one has an idea.  The mastermind of Jester is that no one knows anything about him, and that is the way it should be.

His Identity

There are people out there devoted to unmasking The Jester.  I am not one of them.  If he showed up in my hotel room, I would hope he'd wear a mask or make me wear a blindfold; I totally don't want to know.  He is magical the way he is (and, I don't actually think he is a girl or a 13 year old).  He can't do the work he does if we know who he is...and the work he is doing is important.

So, who is The Jester? Well, in my fantasy, he is about 35 and is built like a marine and wears army pants and a black tee shirt.  He has a great tan, too. Oh, and he wears combat boots and has a picture of his Mom on the back of his dog tags.  But, that's just me.

In reality?  Who cares?  Let his work speak for him.

His Work

The Jester is a single focus operation - he takes down terrorist websites.  He is patriot hacker and only hacks those things which he believes pose a threat to American soldiers or the American spirit.  He mostly focuses on taking down Jihadist sites, but occasionally goes after anti-American hate groups like the Westboro Baptist Church, and, more recently, Ed Snowden.  Newsweek did a great story on him, and even the military seems to recognize his capabilities.  To date, he is the only hacker that has successfully stopped major leaking movements like WikiLeaks (skip to minute 28).



So, should we unmask Jester?  Will someone get a fancy car or get all the girls if they know his identity?  Someone tweeted that we are giving him too much power; others tweet that our government doesn't even know who is he or what he is doing.  If that were true, Newsweek wouldn't care to write about him, and the military wouldn't mention him.  They care; they know what he is doing, and he can do it a heck of a lot faster without the red tape of organizational structure.

Uncle Ben would tell Jester that "with great power comes great responsibility."  Jester seems to know that already.  If he takes down a site because they are going to shelter Snowden, he brings it back up once the government changes its mind. He doesn't go after random enemies; he doesn't run around defacing random websites.  He seems to recognize his role; hell, the guy defined it.

So, to those folks trying to unmask The Jester, get a life.  Go after the bad guys. 

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