IT security, climate protection and pensions – 3 different topics have so much in common.
Nothing is happening!
This article explains why the issues of the future are not being tackled by yourself or by politicians!
Let’s get started!
No initiative and bad laws – why?
Better IT security
IT security is absolutely not necessary as long as nobody wants to hack you.
You can programme software without passwords or use encryption. In the 1950s, the early days of computing, that was the standard because programmers didn’t connect their computers.
The biggest risk in the past was that a burglar would steal machines weighing several tonnes, which very few people in the world could operate. This risk is close to zero, which is why most computers still work with the same insecure standards today!
Security by design did not exist and many companies and private individuals do not take IT security seriously.
Where is climate protection?
Humans are harming themselves with greenhouse gases and environmental pollution.
In many rivers that irrigate our food, you can no longer go swimming without a rash. In big cities, you can’t see the skyscrapers above you because of smog, and you have to cough constantly without a mask.
(Almost) every party puts climate protection on its agenda, but progress has been minimal for decades.
Why do we need a pension reform?
The intergenerational contract has failed. Today’s pensioners have not brought enough children into the world to pay their pensions. A switch to a capital-financed system is only possible with today’s restrictions.
Future pensioners will only benefit from this system in 30 – 40 years’ time. Unfortunately, most voters in Germany are pensioners or people who will receive their pension in 10 years’ time.
What do these issues have in common?
I am too small – Global / local influence
The DDoS problem – IT security
The more criminals hack computers, the more DDoS bots are available. These DDoS bots can attack super secure computers and overload them with the sheer volume of requests, rendering them unusable. When one country passes strict laws for their IT security, other dictators encourage their criminals to hack other countries.
When polluters go green – Climate
When a small, post-industrialised country becomes climate neutral, it is a drop in the ocean compared to the rising, large non-industrialised countries. African and Asian countries want to get rich from oil, gas and other raw materials and boost their economies.
A look at other countries – pensions
If the French retire earlier or the Swedes receive more money from their funded pension , then a politician in Germany can hardly cut the pension contributions for a new funded pension.
I still have time … – Long perspective
Bits and bytes – security
IT security is super abstract.
You want to protect yourself from damage in the future. Only a few bits and bytes change on a few computers in the company.
Most companies need an average of 100 days to even discover the hack. Unexpectedly subtle changes can be a sign of a hack. A competitor launches a product before you that is similar and better (successful industrial espionage).
The breeze in 50 years – climate
I live in the here and now. In 30 years, I will be dead and future generations will have nothing to do with me. As a rule, older people, start-ups and non-industrialised countries want to take advantage of the boost from fossil fuels. Entrepreneurs and new heads of state don’t care about the extreme storm on 20 April 2063.
Homeopathic payouts – pensions
Promises for the future are easy to make. The successor of the successor of the promising politician must then confess that the pension is homeopathically small.
What is good? – Relative
To upgrade or not to upgrade – IT security
When are you secure? You can do a lot to improve your IT security. But how far do you go? Does your office need mantraps (isolation systems) with iris scanners and self-shooting systems..
What is already good? – Climate
Is every citizen only allowed to use his/her car for 100 km, 50 km or 10 km per week? Are we only allowed to take a long-haul flight every 2, 4 or 16 years? Are asbestos, mineral wool and Teflon harmful to the environment? Can substances extracted from nature be harmful at all?
Fair payouts – pensions
What is a good pension? Do you have to earn as much as your last salary? Should it increase regularly? Or should a pensioner only receive 50% of their salary because they no longer contribute anything to society? A good pension policy is just as difficult to define as fair pay in a company.
Sinking money and justice – uneconomical
The bottomless pit – IT security
From an accountant’s point of view, the IT security department is a department that burns money.
The department buys software that has no direct benefit for the end product. IT security decides on rules that “hinder” employees in their work.
They slow down all processes with their passwords and specifications. The return on investment is not clear at first. The department has to show why its measures are worthwhile.
Filter or cough – climate
Imagine this: Instead of discharging 10 m³ of exhaust fumes into the air, company X has to filter them for €100. On the other hand, the employee does not have to breathe in the gases and coughs less.
The medical costs are borne by the public. The company pays €400 in medical costs indirectly, because without the environmental pollution the contributions are lower. Climate protection is not always immediately visible and companies pay their costs indirectly.
Money sink – pensions
Why should I pay old people a pension at all? It’s just a loss-making business for the state. Before Bismarck’s proposal, that was also the standard. People who did not save and invest privately did not receive a pension. Every change to pensions makes one section of the population unhappy: either pensioners or the working population. The bottomless concept of pensions does not fit into a capitalist-orientated society.
Two extreme camps make issues unpopular
Scaredy-cat vs. pass-the-buck – IT security
On the one hand, we have the “can do” faction and, on the other, the “scaredy-cats”. The scaredy-cats quickly realise that their efforts are making a difference. The scaredy-cats are powerless against zero-day exploits. The scaredy-cats become even more fearful. The “it’s all right” faction sees IT security as a matter of course in all software. The only password is stuck to the screen.
Kelber vs. Roller climate
Party Z sticks itself to the road or chains itself to railway tracks, while Party Y engages in coal rolling. These are climate deniers who drive around in SUVs trying to blow as much black smoke out of their machines as possible. Business organisations castrate the laws initiated by climate activists. Two camps externalise each other.
Young vs. old – pensions
The young earn the money that the old burn. The views on pensions cannot be any different. As long as there is no funded pension, we will always be arguing about money.
