Covino Commentary
“Grammars of Transgression: Golems, Cyborgs, and Mutants”

At first I must admit confusion because I could not see where a discussion of the Hebrew “Golem” was going to lead into a discussion of rhetoric.  Then this line, “‘Mistakes in carrying out the directions do not impair the golem; they destroy its creator” turned on the light bulb over my head (Covino 360).
If I understand correctly then the modern day golem is the Internet.  It was created with  to be “both an extraordinary domestic servant, enacting any command immediately and precisely, and a powerful weapon, he can exist forever, he is an agent of social change” (Covino 363).  I have often wondered if the creators of the Internet truly had any real grasp of what their “golem” would one day be capable of doing.  According to Covino, the Internet fit’s the golem  model.  The Internet is the perfect servant,  it is infinite and will outlast its creator,  and it is an incredible powerful weapon of change and destruction.
In the section about Golem control Covino argues that the creator of the golem must be able to keep the golem reined in so that its abilities are within the creators grasp and control.  This made me think of the “I, Robot” movie where the humans became a threat to themselves and the robots were programmed to deal with any threats to humans.  The golem must remain within grasp so that if it needs to be “unwritten” it can be.
However wonderful the Internet is, it has in some ways broadened the gap between the poor and the rest of the world.  The Internet has made it possible for the voice of the average man to have power but in order for one to get their voice online they must have a computer and Internet access.  Free Internet and computer access that is unmonitored is difficult to find.  So it becomes an issue of the haves vs. the have nots.  The poor without access are what Covino called “the idolators, the mutants, inscribed with met and not programmed for upgrading” (Covino 371).
Once upon a time the pencil was an amazing new technology that changed how people communicated.  I would imagine that, like any new technology, it was expensive and available only to the privileged class.  However, the very and vocal motivated were able to get access.  The same is true of the Internet.  It is not easy to find free computer and Internet access but it is out there if one is motivated to find it.  Finding it is another struggle but today people are at least free to try to get access.