Abstract
Computing amplifies governments' actions but can also temper their behavior by enabling mechanisms for private communication and for open, transparent communication by a nation's people Similarly, governments can help focus the artifacts of computing on their citizens' health and happiness, and temper it as well. The Web extra at http://youtu.be/GuFNqmvbkrE is an audio podcast of Grady Booch's On Computing column, in which he discusses how computing amplifies the actions of governments, but can also temper its behavior by enabling mechanisms for private communication as well as for open and transparent communication by the people of a nation. Similarly, governments can help focus the artifacts of computing to the health and happiness of its citizens, but temper it as well.