Shape of cyberwar's future is foggy at best

Washington

WE journalists often have mixed feelings about what we report and write. Naturally, we like to see our reporting vindicated by events or other reporting. This makes us feel prescient. Still, we often feel bad, because what we've reported harms some group or society as a whole. That's how I felt when I read a recent story in The Wall Street Journal headlined "Cyberwar ignites new arms race".

In the past, I've argued that - contrary to conventional wisdom - the Internet does not represent "progress", because its benefits are vastly overshadowed by its potential for social anarchy and global conflict.