Guerrilla Re-translation vs. The Miscommunication Station

 It’s things like this that make it all worthwhile.

So, a few months back, we read this interview with Dmytri Kleiner. We talked to Dmytri and shot an email to Marc from Furtherfield, proposing that we translate it to Spanish. Fine. We translated it, proofread it, wrote a Spanish bio for Dmytri, and published it. The works.

So, today, we were charmed and surprised to find that the interview has just been translated back to ENGLISH!  We shit you not! And credited to someone named “Google”, taking precedence over our own credits. Actually, this isn’t the first time this has happened, which says much about our ever-rising popularity and world-wide influence. Check out some extracts:

Recently, we received a physical copy of the Manifesto Telekomunista Furtherfield in writing. After reading the manifesto, it is clear that is a shock to the discussion on collaborative initiatives based on the commons. Commune paper scarce properties would distribute the same way as a distributed network intangible property. DK: There have always been individuals who are able to overcome their social class. Many entrepreneurs bubble Dotcom gouged party “sales” multimillion platforms, like other individuals devoid of property in other areas.

That last sentence almost sounds like a Beck lyric!

It’s especially funny, considering that this “Guerrilla Re-Translation” is a pseudo-naturally occurring example of The Miscommunication Station, a Telekommunisten project, which goes something like this: a well-meaning chat room bridging space and culture is, finally, tragically, mediated by some very dodgy automated translation, and “….somewhat overzealous automated content filtering, in-chat advertising (required to recoup investment funding) and processing delays result in a platform that allows you to communicate only with great difficulty.” Ay.  

Produced by Guerrilla Translation under a Peer Production License.