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I've seen Universities have been security for their professors than politician's laptops. It's truly bewildering - then there is the fact that the technology MPs are generally not well versed in technology at all - witness the myriad of awkward speeches given on tech topics in governments around the world. Does any country actually have a genuine politician with a CS degree in office?


> Does any country actually have a genuine politician with a CS degree in office?

One U.S. Congressman, Pete Olson (R-TX-22), does have a CS degree, from Rice. He later studied law.

Engineers and physicists are slightly more common, though only slightly. And one Congressman, Jerry McNerney (D-CA-9), has a PhD in mathematics.


Rush Holt (D-NJ-12) has a PhD in physics, and more than a passing understanding of computation.


Whether any of those men are genuine is another issue entirely.


>>>Does any country actually have a genuine politician with a CS degree in office?

These two things are not mutually exclusive. Meaning, most tech people distrust politicians and would never enter politics. Likewise, most politicians have no desire to learn about technology, or delve deep into things like cryptology and how to make technology secure from prying eyes.

FYI - the majority of representatives in the US Congress are attorneys:

http://www.sodahead.com/united-states/did-you-know-this-abou...

"168 Representatives and 57 Senators have a law degree. Of these, five (Representative and two Senators) also hold a Master of Laws (LL.M.) degree."

Also keep in mind most of the people in congress are also from the baby boomer generation. They grew up long before the internet even happened. I've been told by a few friends most don't even use smartphones and barely use email. Maybe in another ten years this will start to change, but for now, don't expect too many computer science majors to enter politics.


Yes. Italy: Stefano Quintarelli, MS in Computer Science, he brought internet in Italy in the early 90s, then sold i.NET and founded a few startups. One of the smartest and most brilliant people on the planet.

He now sits in parliament. Unfortunately, he had a bad car accident a few months ago and he's still recovering.


I'd be happy with Lessig in office.


one of the incredibly rare examples of a lawyer who has made a point of understanding technology.




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