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Paul Craig Roberts
Institute for Political Economy
Norway Goes in Opposite Direction from Germany and Escapes from Digital Tyranny
Norway Goes in Opposite Direction from Germany and Escapes from Digital Tyranny
RT DE 20.10.2024
Norway’s digital turnaround: return to cash and the analog world
By Rainer Rupp
Norway has been at the forefront of the digital age since the beginning, pursuing the vision of a cashless and digitized society and is considered one of the most advanced countries in Europe in this area. Now, however, the downsides and dangers have been recognized.
With a remarkable change in the law, the Norwegian government recently strengthened the rights of citizens to an analog life and to cash payments. The new law makes the notices “No cash accepted” or “Card payment only” posted in shops and at checkouts throughout Norway illegal. This is not only a departure from total reliance on digital payments, but also a remarkable social change.
The dark side of a cashless society
In Germany, too, it is no longer considered a conspiracy theory that it cannot be the case that the exercise of fundamental rights, participation in social life and use of public infrastructure (trains, post office, medical care) is dependent on whether people have internet access, carry a smartphone, have a certain app installed and also know exactly how to use all of this.
This digital compulsion, forced upon society by powerful financial and economic interests, means a tangible disadvantage and even the complete exclusion of large social minorities from public services. This affects not only old, sick or visually impaired people who cannot use the technology, but also people who simply cannot handle the corresponding techniques, or even poor people whose money is not enough for such things. But it even affects tech-savvy people who are well-versed but do not want to constantly send personal behavioral data all over the world or indiscriminately install new apps on their devices in order to avoid being excluded from public life and necessary services.
For private service providers, digitization is a goldmine, because the savings from eliminating office rents and workplaces are enormous. In the brave new digital world, there is no friendly lady or nice gentleman in an office in the next town where the analog person could previously call or drop by for advice or information. Even the telephone number provided, which many a soul lost in the digital quagmire desperately calls, is answered by a computer programmed to put the customer on hold and finally throw him off the line without having achieved anything, with the request to find a solution to his problem on the company’s own website. The reason: these so-called “information centers” of the providers are also totally understaffed in order to maximize profits.
The additional profits that corporations are making as a result of digitization presuppose that helpful spirits must be found everywhere among the digitally illiterate: among relatives, neighbors, caregivers, etc., who voluntarily and free of charge do the work that used to be done by the service providers’ employees from their offices or during home visits to customers.
The whole thing is reminiscent of the Merkel scam: “We can do it.” In this way, the gigantic extra work of taking in and caring for over a million migrants in a single year was done everywhere by volunteers with free labor, and not infrequently also using their own finances to provide the people with the essentials. However, there was a difference between that and the current exploitation of the willingness to help: in the “We can do it” case, the state organs were kept from collapse. Only the corporations benefit from the voluntary overtime of the digital helpers, and that makes the rich even richer – at the expense of the solidarity prevailing among the population. This is another important reason why the development towards a purely digital society with digital compulsion as a consequence must be stopped at all costs. Corresponding initiatives in this direction already exist, including in the Bundestag.
The change in Norway
Until recently, hardly anyone would have thought that Norway, one of the world’s leading countries in terms of digitization, would ever take a step back towards cash. After all, according to a survey by the Norwegian central bank, only three percent of the population paid with cash when they last purchased a real object. But the new amendment to the Financial Contracts Act ensures that cash will once again play a greater role as legal tender and offers citizens the option of paying in cash, even if other payment options are available.
This step is more than symbolic. It marks a shift away from the unconditional acceptance of the digital world and a renewed focus on avoiding the marginalization of entire population groups. Even in a digitally savvy country like Norway, there are people who cannot or do not want to keep pace with modern technologies, while others have become so immersed in digitalism that the majority do not even notice how dependent they have become on it. Such a development may seem like natural progress, but dependence on digital tools has enormous drawbacks, for example if there is a power outage for a period of time.
The new legislation aims to support people who have difficulties with digital payments. This is by no means limited to older people or those who are not tech-savvy. It is an expression of the increasing awareness that not everyone is benefiting from the digital revolution. While the younger generation has grown up with the speed and convenience of card payments, there are a significant number of people who continue to rely on cash. Around 600,000 Norwegians, about ten percent of the population, have difficulty using digital payment methods. For them, cash is not just a means of payment, but also a matter of self-determination.
It is noteworthy that Norway is now recognizing that this development is not without risks. In the discussion about the new law, the fact that cash is the only means of payment that works independently of electricity and the internet also played a role. It remains stable even when the grid fails or digital attacks paralyze the infrastructure. In times of cyberattacks and increasing global uncertainties, cash is therefore invaluable to society.
The invisible barrier
With the digital imperative, modern societies have created an invisible barrier that favors those willing to give up their data and keep pace with the latest technology. But what does this mean for our freedom? What happens when basic rights and services are only accessible if you are willing to submit to the digital surveillance network?
Norway’s U-turn sends a strong signal to the rest of the world. Although digitalization brings many benefits, it is not a panacea. If we want to avoid a world in which people without a smartphone have no access to fundamental rights or services, then we must all follow Norway’s example and stop the digital tsunami. In Germany, too, there are already organizations such as digitalcourage that want to stem the digital tsunami – albeit still under the radar of the system media.
Digital courage refers, for example, to Article 3 of the Basic Law of the Federal Republic of Germany, which prohibits the disadvantage and discrimination of people, regardless of skin color, faith or origin. According to digitalcourage, this article should be supplemented to include a ban on discriminating against people in their basic services if they do not use a particular device or digital platform. Therefore, the organization calls on the Bundestag to include a right to life without digital coercion in the Basic Law!
Currently, however, developments in this country are continuing in the opposite direction: in more and more places, we are being forced to log in, register online or download an app – and in doing so, disclose personal data. And all this in order to use services that are part of basic care!