This echoes a similar concern over knowledge and information championed by postmodern theorist Jean Francois Lyotard in The Postmodern Condition. By deleting such information, the Patriots can shape the course of history as they see fit." High-level information can be categorized in stages, given clearance levels, and deleted as necessary - never to be seen by the public.
With the newly created system, they can fully regulate digital information. But with their existing data processing system, they are no longer able to effectively control the flow of information generated at the individual level. Political scandal, corporate corruption up until now, the Patriots have managed to keep a lid on these and other self-serving events. In fact, the speed of this circulation process is accelerating on an almost daily basis. "In this day and age, information emerges from every direction, and is freely distributed. The methodology of the Patriots and their intent to use Arsenal Gear is explained by NPC Emma Emmerich, the leading developer of Arsenal Gear’s GW computer system: Consequently, MGS2's newly introduced Arsenal Gear isn’t even a weapon but rather a massive mobile defense installation with the capability of controlling information across global digital channels. This falls in line with Kojima’s dark projections of advanced technology (where powerful organizations utilize said tech for questionable means), as the Patriots seek to extend and maintain their power by controlling the very flow of knowledge in society. To achieve this, the Patriots focus primarily on establishing control over the dissemination of information that occurs through digital channels. Most of the major plot elements in MGS2 revolve around the Patriots: a clandestine organization whose goals involve global social, political, and economic control. While the first installment saw nuclear weaponry as a means to bringing the nations of the world to their knees, MGS2 looks at how control and access to information is becoming the most important tool for global domination. With internet freedom and censorship being hotly contested topics, MGS2 doesn’t pull any punches in its exploration of the nature of modern digital communication and its control by government and private organizations. In an era defined by the rapid transmission of information the game addresses the impact that control of these advancements can have in an information age where societies are increasingly reliant on digital storage and communication. The second installment of the franchise, Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, turns its attention toward digital communication and computer technologies, namely the Internet and the flow of information.