The Evils of the Internet...

[Kythras]

Alrighty - here we go...

Recently, in Australia, there has been a lot of heat directed at the internet after two girls, who met vie MySpace, committed (is that a word) suicide...

Anywho, after watching another very one-sided story on The 7:30 Report, I thought I'd bring the debate here...

So, what are the opinions about the internet around here, I acknowledge that this probably isn't the best community to have a balanced debate it, but oh well...

Is there debate over this in the mainstream of other countries...

I understand there are a few teachers in the community - what are their views, especially on the so-called "cyber-bullying" issue...

So...

Discuss...

[Captain Arrrgh!]

Hi Kythras, good thread.
The internet has brought more awareness and understanding to the world than any other media source. The elite absolutely hate this, for example, when a politician in the US calls an individual a monkey as a racial slur, someone in Australia can hear about it within the hour. Big Brother is ******** himself because for the 5th year in a row viewership of the propoganda news networks such as FOX and CNN have plumetted as more and more people realize how full of **** they are and how little they focus on real issues or contort information. Also, to much of this information and education is being had for free, Big Brother is not making money from it.
This is why they are so eager to bring in "Tier 2" internet, which will effectively squash the freedom of communication we have now and essentially turn the enet into cable t.v.
Oh well, at least you all won't have to put up with the Captain's farts then...

[Kythras]

Thanks for replying Captain...

How about as a father - who knows what kind of stuff the internet will be capable of by the time your daughter hits her teens? What's your attitude going to be when/if she starts using stuff like MySpace and MSN - what if she ends up as an "emo"(/the 2010s/20s equivalent) and stuff like that?

Posing questions is fun!

[Gwendylyn]

The internet has brought more awareness and understanding to the world than any other media source.

Quoted For Truth.

I only get my news from sources on the internet, where I can immediately cross check any editorials or biased news reports by typing a few words into google.

While the internet has plenty of places like the NAMBLA site, they are vastly outnumbered by good information, like news and charity organizations. Then again, things like NAMBLA and racist sites and forums teach a lot about what those types of people think, so even then it's not a total waste of the internet.

How about as a father - who knows what kind of stuff the internet will be capable of by the time your daughter hits her teens? What's your attitude going to be when/if she starts using stuff like MySpace and MSN - what if she ends up as an "emo"(/the 2010s/20s equivalent) and stuff like that?

You... are worried about one's daughter becoming "emo"? Emotional rollercoasters are common among adolescents, even more so among girls. That should be the least of anyone's concerns.

[Augustus Lucifer]

The root of "evil" can never be blamed on the source of information that fuels it. Blaming the internet is as foolish as saying violent video games cause increased tendency for acts of murder. All of the information gained from the internet comes by way of seeking it, and regardless of the ease of interaction you have sitting at your computer and searching the internet, that same information in such cases of suicide would just be funneled another way.

With all good, comes bad. The same applies for many things nowadays such as international dependencies, and especially with communication. We have less privacy and more tools to engage in "evil" acts. At the same time though, we are provided with more security and a heightened awareness of the world around us. In the overall, you must weigh the bad against the good, and judge that the root of the "evil" is not the source it draws from, but rather the inherent nature of the person who seeks to fuel it. Stopping the source wouldn't stop the acts, but it sure would make productive things much more difficult.

All the Best,
Chris
Achtung! 0v3rl0rD

[Kythras]

You... are worried about one's daughter becoming "emo"? Emotional rollercoasters are common among adolescents, even more so among girls. That should be the least of anyone's concerns.

Not personally no - I have emo friends, and they're awesome

But lots of parents are, they don't understand it, so they fear it, they think it causes depression and the like whereas, in my view, it helps people cope with depression, it gives them a social outlet for it, as well as connecting with people who are going through the same thing...

Of course, you get stuff like those two "emo" girls who committed suicide after meeting via MySpace, but everything has a negative like that...

[Dunecat]

Not personally no - I have emo friends, and they're awesome

But lots of parents are, they don't understand it, so they fear it, they think it causes depression and the like whereas, in my view, it helps people cope with depression, it gives them a social outlet for it, as well as connecting with people who are going through the same thing...

Of course, you get stuff like those two "emo" girls who committed suicide after meeting via MySpace, but everything has a negative like that...

This is true. The only way I survived for five years was using internet forums as my outlet. I could be at peace there.

The new generation knows what's up. Soon Hillary would be crucified, dead, and buried, and we can get on with bettering our lives.


...ZING!

[Thanatos]

With the Internet comes hacking. With hacking comes lost money and ID theft.

[Mig el Pig]

Recently, in Australia, there has been a lot of heat directed at the internet after two girls, who met vie MySpace, committed (is that a word) suicide...

If those 2 girls got married, had children, installed a blue bathroom and bought a dog would you blame Sims2?

[Tecumseh]

The internet, like any great invention, is a double-edged sword.

It has opened the world to itself, I can discuss politics with a man in Singapore. I can have instant and up-to-date news from biased and un-biased sources alike. I can read from vast archives about anything from science, to philosophy, to history without stepping foot in a library. And I can come here to TWC. These are obviously great and wonderful things, and they were probably unimaginable 50 years ago.

But the internet has brought with it the dark underside of society, and has given that portion of society unprescedented power and reach. Pedophiles have easy access to our children now, and they can now network and share their child pornography. People's darkest sides are now revealed, and they are revealed thanks to the anonymity that the internet provides.

The internet allows people's "true selves" to emerge under that veil of anonymity, and that is what discomforts and disturbs us. We now realise that many people have serious problems, and they now have a means to enact their sick and twisted wishes. The internet opened Pandora's Box, the holy grail of psychology. It has, and will continue to reveal man's true uninhibted nature. Once more people do as they wish, their "id" is now unleashed.

I will say though, the internet is freedom, and people want to throw it all away. That freedom is of course that veil of anonymity the internet provides and the ability to do what we will on it. The security that would be created in abolishing or censoring the internet is tempting, it would protect us from dealing with pedophiles and sick minded individuals, but it would supress our new-found freedom. The internet has freed us all, everyone including the sick minded, and while that is upsetting, it's a price I'm willing to pay. To have the liberty to be informed as I will, and say as I will, to whomever I will, is greater than anything any pervert can do to me or anyone else.