Originally published on 10/11/06 at Dreaming 5GW

First off I would like to give a big thanks to Tom Barnett, Zenpundit, TDAXP, Purpleslog, John Robb and many others (especially Curtis Weeks!) for setting the perfect stage to introduce Dreaming 5GW. We couldn’t have arranged it better ourselves . . . or did we?

Yes friends, welcome to the world of 5GW, land of conspiracy theory, confidence game, warfare by proxy and all good things that keep the royalty checks rolling in for Action / Adventure / Spy / Thriller novelists the world over. Come! Come out of the bright light and into the shadows, the realm of misdirection and sleight of hand. I am Keyser Soze, your guide, your friend. I have 31 flavors of 5GW for your pleasure. Take all that you wish but beware, sometimes that which seems most bitter is sometimes merely the least sweet . . .

Your first flavor: Memetic Engineering.

Behold the power of an idea. It can open closed doors and closed minds. It can build bridges both figurative and literal. Is it thought control or controlled thought, spread like a virus, contagious to those with the weakest minds and wills, each in turn becoming a vector for its spread. The viral meme cannot be destroyed. It cannot even be truly contained for it is as ephemeral as air, and as patient as water, always seeking its level and flowing through the smallest of cracks, at first a trickle, then a deluge. Indoctrination is the only immunity and temporary at that. Where is the 5GW you ask? Ahh yes, 5GW is a memetic symbiote. It strengthens and disperses the meme to new populations, promotes and entices new hosts. It is the Pied Piper playing a memetic flute. Where will it lead and who will follow?

Your second sample: The Super-empowered individual.

The Black Swan glides gracefully through the air, drifting toward the placid blue-green water of a quiet pond. As it lands, its feet and body break the calm surface. The waters part, whipped into a pale green froth that rises and curls, becoming a wave that travels toward the distant shore. Strangely, the wave seems to grow stronger and move faster, rising, looming ever higher to finally crash against land with the furious force of the tsunami.
How does one deal with a madman, especially one holding the power and lethality of a weapon of mass destruction / disruption. A system perturbation of this magnitude benefits only those who have prepared for it, strengthened themselves mentally and physically for it. Who is this who has such foresight, such vision to divine the future? Is it 5GW or the madman himself.

A third helping: The Sysadmin, the Department of Everything Else, and Development in a Box.

You build roads, and schools. You create a stable power grid. You establish communications networks that bring those who are far away, near. The streets are safe with the citizens secure in the knowledge that the guardians stand ready nearby and at the gates, to protect and defend. Are you an urban planner, an engineer, technician, policeman or soldier? Yes to all, but are you 5GW as well?

Where do the roads run?
Who and what do the schools teach?
Who provides the power?
Who is connected and who is not?
Who defines the laws and marks the borders?

5GW, indeed, are those who create the rule-sets and establish the places where they grow. Rule-sets, like roses, must be pruned and shaped for the plant to flourish. You drive roots deep, anchoring to what, at the core, makes the system work. The goal is connection and empowerment. You build and create with purpose and in doing so you destroy that which is ineffective and harmful. You encourage all those around you who will benefit to contribute. In doing so you add strength, determination, and diversity, increasing resiliency and a imparting a sense of ownership. This 5GW operates by the axiom that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.

Ahh, three tasty treats. It is just enough to whet the appetite and get the juices flowing. How do they taste? Are the flavors very much the same to you or are they vastly different? No matter, there will be more, I assure you. 31 flavors I promised and many more besides. All the colors of the rainbow are here, with tastes strangely familiar and tastes yet to be named. They will tantalize and tease, provoke and please.
I hope you enjoyed yourself. Next time bring your friends. We have plenty for everyone. Do, please, come again.