#61 Free software, free people

How often do you read some news headline about free speech denied and human rights being suppressed and think that sucks but there is nothing I can do about it from my distant perspective. I guess you could vote slightly differently in the next election and maybe, just maybe, it will have a small impact in 4 years time.

If you're a technologist or developer, you have way more power than you realize. Still the challenge is could you use your skills to make a difference? Maybe you could remove a layer surveillance or add a layer of anonymity for the affected people.

If the answer is yes, and it probably is, then the question becomes would you do and even should you act? This week on Talk Python To Me you'll meet Pete Fein who spent two years of his life helping others using his technical skills. His story is both inspiring and amazing. It will show you what can be done to help people in need.

Links from the show:

Pete on twitter (personal): @wearpants


Pete on twitter (tech): @petecode


Pete on BBC: bbc.com/news/magazine-17914501


Datalove in a Time of Cyberwar (video): .youtube.com/watch?v=I7GhNK6K8fQ


Free Software, Free People - PyCon 2015: youtube.com/watch?v=A3dimvwrnO8


Telecomix.org: telecomix.org


Slashdot article: yro.slashdot.org/story/11/10/05/1249209/telecomix-releases-54gb-of-syrian-censorship-logs


Blue Coat WSJ Article: wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052970203687504577001911398596328

Transcripts on GitHub: github.com/mikeckennedy/talk-python-transcripts


Anthony Shaw's Graph: twitter.com/anthonypjshaw/status/734339624605257728




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