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ASIAN AMERICAN ISSUES
Gnutella Hero Gene Kan: Suicide or Murder?
(Updated
Tuesday, Apr 1, 2008, 06:00:27 PM)
ene Kan was found in his Belmont home on July 2, 2002 with a bullet hole through the head. The San Mateo County Coroner fixed the date of death at June 29 and concluded that Kan had taken his own life. Presumably the suicide was triggered by one of Kan's longstanding bouts with depression for which he had been seeking treatment.
Killed by the mob?
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The 25-year-old Berkeley grad had much to live for. He was working at a lucrative programming post at Sun Microsystems and was already an icon of the peer-to-peer computing movement. The Gnutella protocol had been hacked out by another prodigy named Justin Frankel and a few AOL cohorts in March 2000, but Kan had improved its open-source code and promoted it, triggering non-centralized swapping of music, video and software files on a globalized scale. Kan's charisma and incisive verbal style made him a favorite with reporters hungry for quotes. In June 2000 Kan founded InfraSearch Inc to develop a peer-to-peer search engine technology. His notoriety helped attract investments from the likes of Netscape co-founder Marc Andreessen. In March 2001 Sun acquired Kan and InfraSearch to boost its own peer-to-peer project named JXTA.
Gene Kan's James Dean-like life -- complete with a love of street racing -- coincided with Napster's rise and subsequent well-publicized death struggle against the legal onslaught from the music recording industry. Millions of teens had begun downloading mpeg files from one another's computers, raising in boardrooms the spectre of a generation of digital freeloaders. But Napster's file-sharing protocol routed transfers through its own servers and died when it was enjoined to shut down. The Gnutella protocol has no such achilles heel. Anyone who installs the widely-available program becomes an independent server. Hydra-like, two new servers could take the place of every one shut down. And rampant file-sharing isn't limited to music. The same technology can be used to share blockbuster movies as well as popular games and software.
Theoretically, at least, the peer-to-peer space championed by Kan had the potential to bring the world's media giants to their knees. And its potential for ubiquity makes the legal system an ineffective recourse.
It was kill or be killed. Which is why the media giants chose to order a mob hit on Gene Kan.
That's the theory that has begun cropping up in computing circles. And some conspiracy theorists believe that Kan's Asian ancestry may have been a factor. Law enforcement agencies would be more willing to turn a blind eye to evidence of foul play against an Asian threat to the established business order, goes the thinking.
The theorists find circumstantial support in the jarring fact that Kan's body was cremated on July 5, barely three days after it was discovered.
A scan of a gnutella-related comment board reveals varied reactions to Kan's death. Some wits parody Kan's own astringent sensibility: "Cool. Sounds like he's perfected the B2B (Bullet To Brain) protocol. A genius, even in death." Others suggest the racial antipathy provoked by Kan's fame: "SUN Microsystems only hires asians, so f*** them and f*** this asian bastard. The record industry only assasinates silly asians too." Still others see an overarching conspiracy shadow falling over all heroes of the peer-to-peer movement: "Does anyone know where [Gnutella originator] Justin Frankel is these days? Guess what? he's toast. Supposedly OD'd on speed. Even though he was with family on the night and time he was supposedly to have suddenly developed a drug addiciton in 15 minutes."
Was Gene Kan murdered? If so, is there a conspiracy to cover it up?
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WHAT YOU SAY
[This page is closed to new input. --Ed.]
If this guy was as dangerous to big business as what is being said, I think they would have off'd him regardless if he was white, black, pink or flourescent orange.
There is only one colour that business respects, that's green (and red, purple, blue and brown in the case of Canada).
huu76
Saturday, August 10, 2002 at 16:54:03 (PDT)
Gene Kan is a beloved genius. He makes all Asians proud. I'm disappointed that he died so young. He's got potential. Does the American and international media know about his story and suscpicious death? Probably not, he's not considered important in White America. What Asian nationality is he?
Gene Kan's Fan
Friday, August 09, 2002 at 14:07:47 (PDT)
When an Asian rises to the top and achieves international fame, White people get so jealous to their bones. Asians are the biggest threat to White society. We all know that. It's a struggle for survival and superiority. All White people have some form of racism and prejudice within, whether it's subtle or not. Caucasians pretend to be nice to you at work and in public. In reality, when they get home, they talk crap about us Asians. It's a fact whether you choose to believe or not. White people are insulted and disgusted by our success in school and at the workplace. Asians are the main competitors of White people. Jealousy from White rivals are the cause of all suscipious activities against Asians. That's the truth, and the truth hurts all Asians. Open your eyes and see reality.
Asian Unity
Friday, August 09, 2002 at 13:50:26 (PDT)
I really hope these suspicsions are not true. The Frankel case seems especially suspicious.
If true, its scary how dirty big business can be.
Multiplication is better than Division
Wednesday, August 07, 2002 at 14:48:47 (PDT)
"Gene Kan's James Dean-like life -- complete with a love of street racing"
Hell yeah, street racing. I heard this guy frequented the runs in San Jose. Live fast, die fast.
TSJ
Eric@KristinKreuk.net
Tuesday, August 06, 2002 at 15:54:21 (PDT)
I remember reading about Gene Kan's death last month. It was dissappointing. He was such a young guy with so much promise. Truly talented for someone his age.
It wouldn't be right for anyone to disregard a conspiracy theory against Gene Kan. His death does seem suspicious. I mean 25 year-old guys like him with that much going for them don't just commit suicide unless the pressure and emotions get the best of them. It's possible that he killed himself. The questions are motive, opportunity and physical evidence. You need to answer those questions. Maybe cremation was his choice? I don't know.
Before anyone dismisses this as simply an asian conspiracy theory there should at least be a coroner's inquiry. I mean if the guy was killed by other parties it's only right to get to the bottom of it.
Political Observer
Tuesday, August 06, 2002 at 12:27:09 (PDT)
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