The Duke Law and Technology Review has released a special edition dedicated to examining the legal and philosophical legacy of John Perry Barlow: co-founder of the Electronic Frontier Foundation; junior lyricist for the Grateful Dead; biofuel entrepreneur; philosopher; poet; hacker Zelig; and driven, delightful weirdo.

John Perry Barlow lived many lives: small-time Wyoming Republican operative (and regional campaign director for Dick Cheney!), junior lyricist for the Grateful Dead, father-figure to John Kennedy Jr, co-founder of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, inspirational culture hero for the likes of Aaron Swartz and Ed Snowden (and, not incidentally, me), semi-successful biofuels entrepreneur... He died this year, shortly after completing his memoir Mother American Night, and many commenters have noted that Barlow comes across as a kind of counterculture cyberculture Zelig, present at so many pivotal moments in our culture, and that's true, but that's not what I got from my read of the book -- instead, I came to know someone I counted as a friend much better, and realized that every flaw and very virtue he exhibited in his interpersonal dealings stemmed from the flaws and virtues of his relationship with himself.

EFF co-founder, Grateful Dead lyricist and mayor of the internet John Perry Barlow died in February and left an unfillable hole.

EFF co-founder John Perry Barlow died last month, and though his death had been long coming, it's left a hole in the hearts of the people who loved him and whom he inspired.

It's been less than a week since the death of EFF co-founder, cowboy poet, Grateful Dead lyricist and Mayor of the Internet John Perry Barlow died, and he's already sorely missed. But Barlow was an open access advocate before that was a thing, and the archive of his work at the Internet Archive is full of what Bruce Sterling calls "a lot of weird, flaky, broke-the-mold stuff."

I met John Perry Barlow in 1999, and I was awestruck: here was the legend whose Declaration of Independence of Cyberspace had profoundly changed my life, making me realize that the nascent internet that I'd dropped out of university to devote my life to could be more than a communications tool: it could be a revolutionary force for good.

John Perry Barlow — author of the Declaration of Independence of Cyberspace, Grateful Dead lyricist, Electronic Frontier Foundation co-founder, character in my novels, and all-round amazing, pioneering guy — has been hospitalized on and off for a year and a half, is in constant pain, and has limited mobility.

EFF co-founder John Perry Barlow's visionary 1996 text A Declaration of the Independence of Cyberspace has stirred hearts since he penned it in 1996 — and now you can own a beautiful recording Barlow reading it in his wonderful, gravelly voice.

In this Sky News television interview with EFF co-founder John Perry Barlow, Julian Assange of Wikileaks describes Prism Leaker Edward Snowden as "a Hero."

Jim from the Open Rights Group writes in with the announcement for this year's ORGCon, a brilliant UK digital rights event:

Legends of digital rights, Tim Wu and John Perry Barlow, will be leading Open Rights Group's 3rd national conference on June 8th.

In September, friend and EFF co-founder John Perry Barlow was arrested at the San Francisco Airport and charged with the misdemeanor possession of controlled substances that had allegedly been discovered during a search of his checked baggage. He was requested to get off the plane (which was about to take off) by an attendant, who escorted him to the baggage claim area. — Read the rest

Follow-up on this previous BoingBoing post from Cory: Link. As he steps out the door to "lead another sortie of dancing fools out into the streets of Manhattan," John Perry Barlow reports on the dance protests he's been organizing this week in NYC:

After four missions, Dancing in the Streets has exceeded my fondest expectations.

Reason has published the best interview with John Perry Barlow I've read. He talks about becoming a reality TV star, a Democrat, and getting busted for marijuana possession at an airport.

I have grave misgivings about John Kerry, but I certainly don't have misgivings about Kerry that equal the terror I have about another four years of Bush.

Right here: Link.

The latest missive from "cognitive dissident" and EFF co-founder John Perry Barlow, written on the road from Brazil:

I know that we can turn Baghdad – a town with 2 and a half million
children – into telegenic Disney Hell with several thousand tons of
high explosives and injure only Bad Guys.

Earlier today, Electronic Frontier Foundation co-founder and "cognitive dissident" John Perry Barlow distributed to a mailing list of friends and fans this essay on Total Information Awareness, The Really Scary IAO Logo, and his proposed alternative to the IAO–an "Open Intelligence Office." — Read the rest

John Perry Barlow just published an essay on "the present state of the American Experiment" to a mailing list of friends, fans, and assorted geeks. I've posted a copy online. Excerpt:

A lot of what's wrong may be the very sort of thing you're reading right now.

From John Perry Barlow's mailing list:

*DO* WORRY ABOUT US. AND, MORE TO THE POINT, U.S.

As most of you know, I believe that the United States has gradually, subtly, invisibly to most of us, become a police state over the last 30 years.

John Perry Barlow describes his first acid trip.

"With the possible exception of having children, taking that trip was the most important thing I ever did. In terms of creating the person I am and how I approach the world, why I do what I do, and what I think it's all about, no other experience in my life has been so transforming.

On the Document Journal magazine website, writer Claire Evans has an interview with Boing Boing compatriot and Mondo 2000 founder, RU Sirius. In it, they talk about the hazy, crazy days of Mondo as a print magazine, the utopian, pioneering fervor of early cyberculture, and the computer-powered bizarro world we find ourselves in today. — Read the rest