When I was young, I was crazy about my idols and heroes.
And that’s nothing special I’d say. I think we were all a bit crazy and obsessed with icons of our hearts.
Athletes, musicians, artists, celebrities, wanderers and gurus … and so on.
But, when I got older, that pure youthful obsessions toned down.
I guess that pragmatism and life kicked in hard, ha 😁
Even though I’m kidding a bit, there is truth to it.
I did get less emotionally attached to figures that meant the world (and more; I’m not even kidding, I literally had a secret book dedicated to … I won’t even say it 😂) not even that long ago.
But there is one person whose intelligence, courage and will I seem to admire more and more with the years passing by.
His name sadly was Aaron Swartz, and he did A LOT so the internet still is as it is. Today marks the 10 years of sad anniversary since he took his own life.
I wanted to write a longer piece about the things he did, and also what led to his death, but Patrick Campbell wrote this great thread, explaining all of it in a really nice matter and witty language, so you should read this instead.
And also, you should read the book The Boy Who Could Change the World; A posthumous collection of writing by Aaron Swartz, the computer genius and Internet hacktivist whose tragic suicide shook the world.