Why This Mask?

Singapore is in a flutter today as international hacker group Anonymous is threatening to disrupt key infrastructure in Singapore to protest against the government's new online media licensing rules. Announced via a YouTube video, a person wearing a Guy Fawkes mask even claimed credit for the work of "The Messiah", a hacker who had broke into two Singapore government websites recently.

However, I'm not here to talk about the threat. Honestly, even if the Youtube video is legit and Anonymous is successful on it's attack on government websites...so what? Anonymous is an annoying irritant to people they attack but hacking into websites isn't going to bring down any government.

No, what I really want to talk about is the Guy Fawkes mask they keep wearing! As someone who read and liked Alan Moore's "V For Vendetta", I really wish Anonymous would stop wearing the mask for their own purpose. "V For Vendetta" is a great work, and I really do not like the fact that a hacking group is using it while threatening to do something illegal.

Not only that, they're not even doing it right! I mean did anyone in Anonymous asked Alan Moore or David Lloyd for permission to use their creation for something like this? I mean what's this about telling the Singapore government to stop their new media licensing rules? "V" don't ask! He's an anarchist, he's just go out and stop it. Not only that, he'll destroy everything in his path to do it. "V" isn't out to change the world, in the story he's there to destroy it!

That's the "V" character in "V For Vendetta". He wasn't a hero. Alan Moore wrote him as a character that makes you question if he's right or just crazy.

On second thought, that does sound like Anonymous.