CDZ How the internet is destroying us

[JFK_USA]

My main beef with the Interwebz is that it's too much information.
Anybody and everybody can put anything out there and it's taken as fact.
We see it here all the time.....

There's a sign in front of a business near my house that says:
Respect you parents.
They passed without Google.

Oh don't we know it. You see conservatives constantly stick to a narrative no matter how false it is and conservative sites keep feeding them it.

Don't believe me? Go to WMD.com. I haven't gone there but my guess is some article refers to:

Benghazi
ACA (Obamacare)
Fast and Furious
IRS (or something about Lois Learner)
Or any related "scandal"

 

[hortysir]

My main beef with the Interwebz is that it's too much information.
Anybody and everybody can put anything out there and it's taken as fact.
We see it here all the time.....

There's a sign in front of a business near my house that says:
Respect you parents.
They passed without Google.

Oh don't we know it. You see conservatives constantly stick to a narrative no matter how false it is and conservative sites keep feeding them it.

Don't believe me? Go to WMD.com. I haven't gone there but my guess is some article refers to:

Benghazi
ACA (Obamacare)
Fast and Furious
IRS (or something about Lois Learner)
Or any related "scandal"

And the same applies to the other side of the case.
Progress Report
Talking Points memo
Think Progress
MJ
Huffy

 

[HUGGY]

How the internet is destroying us: Its pioneers hoped the web would transform society. Now a devastating new book says it has - in a way that diminishes humanity

The internet, its many evangelists tell us, is the answer to all our problems. It gives power to the people.

It’s a platform for equality that allows everyone an equal share in life’s riches. For the first time in history, anyone can produce, say or buy anything.

But today, as the internet heads towards putting more than half the world’s population online, all this promise has evaporated.

The dream has become a nightmare, in which I fear we billions of network users are victims, not beneficiaries.

In our super-connected 21st-century world, rather than promoting economic fairness, the net is a central reason for the growing gulf between rich and poor and the hollowing out of the middle classes.

Rather than generating more jobs, it is - as I will explain - a cause of unemployment. Rather than creating more competition, it has created immensely powerful new monopolists such as Google and Amazon in a winner-takes-all economy.

Its cultural ramifications are equally chilling. Rather than creating transparency and openness, it secretly gathers information and keeps a watch on each and every one of us.

You need only have read the stories this month about how smart TVs can spy on us in our living rooms to realise that Orwell’s vision in Nineteen Eighty-Four, of a Big Brother society, is becoming a reality.

Because such TVs are connected to the internet, they can watch us and listen to us, then beam that information around the world for companies to use for commercial gain.

And thanks to the explosion in social media, rather than creating more democracy, the internet is empowering mob rule.

An increasingly common kind of online attack involves the threat of rape against women.

For, rather than encouraging tolerance, the internet has unleashed such a distasteful war on women that many no longer feel welcome online.

Amanda Hess, for example, a feminist writer and journalist in the U.S., has received threats ‘to rape you and remove your head’ from men who have disagreed with her writing.

The internet has unleashed such a distasteful war on women that many no longer feel welcome online.

Pornography is so ubiquitous on the internet, and controls denying access so inadequate, that many parents rightly feel their children are at serious risk.

Read more: The internet would transform society and a new book says it has in a way that diminishes humanity Daily Mail Online
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook

Read the rest at the link.

So, what do you think?

I think you are a fool to connect your TV to the internet via cable.

I think anyone that signs up for an internet account is a moron. I steal mine.

I get my TV from the over the air signals.

I'm sure the admin of this site has wondered why I am located in Delaware or Virginia and still I maintain I live in a closed motel in North Seattle.

You DO NOT have to hand yourself over to those you believe may want to track you. If you do so without a whimper who do you have to blame?

 

[Asclepias]

I may be biased since my background is in network engineering. The internet is a communication/resource tool. I find that it has helped me in my research in unbelievable ways. Some of the the things I now know I doubt I would have been able to find just looking in the library. The down side is that people have less human interaction. I think people will adapt as they do with everything.

 

[Statistikhengst]

How the internet is destroying us: Its pioneers hoped the web would transform society. Now a devastating new book says it has - in a way that diminishes humanity

The internet, its many evangelists tell us, is the answer to all our problems. It gives power to the people.

It’s a platform for equality that allows everyone an equal share in life’s riches. For the first time in history, anyone can produce, say or buy anything.

But today, as the internet heads towards putting more than half the world’s population online, all this promise has evaporated.

The dream has become a nightmare, in which I fear we billions of network users are victims, not beneficiaries.

In our super-connected 21st-century world, rather than promoting economic fairness, the net is a central reason for the growing gulf between rich and poor and the hollowing out of the middle classes.

Rather than generating more jobs, it is - as I will explain - a cause of unemployment. Rather than creating more competition, it has created immensely powerful new monopolists such as Google and Amazon in a winner-takes-all economy.

Its cultural ramifications are equally chilling. Rather than creating transparency and openness, it secretly gathers information and keeps a watch on each and every one of us.

You need only have read the stories this month about how smart TVs can spy on us in our living rooms to realise that Orwell’s vision in Nineteen Eighty-Four, of a Big Brother society, is becoming a reality.

Because such TVs are connected to the internet, they can watch us and listen to us, then beam that information around the world for companies to use for commercial gain.

And thanks to the explosion in social media, rather than creating more democracy, the internet is empowering mob rule.

An increasingly common kind of online attack involves the threat of rape against women.

For, rather than encouraging tolerance, the internet has unleashed such a distasteful war on women that many no longer feel welcome online.

Amanda Hess, for example, a feminist writer and journalist in the U.S., has received threats ‘to rape you and remove your head’ from men who have disagreed with her writing.

The internet has unleashed such a distasteful war on women that many no longer feel welcome online.

Pornography is so ubiquitous on the internet, and controls denying access so inadequate, that many parents rightly feel their children are at serious risk.

Read more: The internet would transform society and a new book says it has in a way that diminishes humanity Daily Mail Online
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook

Read the rest at the link.

So, what do you think?

The article is interesting. I don't know how much hard data it is based on, if any, but I think that many of the obervations are pretty keen.

I think that the heart of the issue is that anonymity is leading people to do and say things that they would not say to another person's face in real life.

The internet, in my opinion, is a fantastic tool, but indeed, it can be misused and abused.

 

[Derideo_Te]

In point of fact, cyber-bullying is very real and affects a lot of people. I suppose we could say that we should not punish that crime but you might not feel that way if it were your daughter.

How do we make the internet work for us instead of against us? How do we protect our children and others?

We do that by putting the internet into it's proper perspective.

For starters the internet is not your home. No matter how much it intrudes into everyday life it is still not your home where real people have lives and loved ones. Make that distinction very clear to everyone who lives with you. The internet is what happens outside of your front door. It does not have to impact what happens in your own home.

Cyberbullies don't get to come into your own home any more than physical bullies can. You can turn off the internet a whole lot easier than you escape from being in the presence of a physical bully. The power to turn off a cyberbully is in your own hands. Use it.

Cyberbullies are cowards like physical bullies. They have no actual power that you don't give them over you. Deprive them of that power and they are just sniveling cowards.

There are legal tools at your disposal and first and foremost are the laws that make it illegal to use the internet to harass anyone. Contact the site where the bullying is occurring and threaten them with a lawsuit for enabling cyberbullying. They might deny that they are responsible for the content but any lawyer can make the case that they enabled the behavior by failing to provide appropriate safeguards for minors. Yes, there are probably going to be a whole lot more lawsuits as the legal profession figures out that there are deep pockets on the internet and victims too.

So to get back to the OP. The internet is evolving and right now it is more akin to the wild west than main street. There are no cyber sheriffs patrolling the area to keep it safe. That will change over time as people come to realize that the internet is just another public area that needs policing and regulating like everywhere else.

The internet is not "destroying us". It is enabling us to communicate in ways we never did before and it has empowered us in a manner that is actually greater than the invention of the printing press. With any empowerment comes those who will exploit it for their own nefarious purposes. We the People need to take control of the internet just as did our streets. Once we do that the red light districts won't be right next door to the childcare centers anymore. The cyberbullies will have to deal with cybercops who will have an evidence trail that can be used against them in court.

Life is evolving and yes, change can be painful but it is also good. The positive influence of the internet far outweighs the negative IMO. The empowerment of people all over the planet is a good thing and you don't have to look very far to find all the positive things that are happening because of the internet.

 

[Politico]

Part of what I get from this article is that its the bullies who are victimizing those who are the least able to fight back.

Why are you answering yourself in a separate post? And you can;t be bullied by some anonymous guy on the internets.

 

[Delta4Embassy]

How the internet is destroying us: Its pioneers hoped the web would transform society. Now a devastating new book says it has - in a way that diminishes humanity

The internet, its many evangelists tell us, is the answer to all our problems. It gives power to the people.

It’s a platform for equality that allows everyone an equal share in life’s riches. For the first time in history, anyone can produce, say or buy anything.

But today, as the internet heads towards putting more than half the world’s population online, all this promise has evaporated.

The dream has become a nightmare, in which I fear we billions of network users are victims, not beneficiaries.

In our super-connected 21st-century world, rather than promoting economic fairness, the net is a central reason for the growing gulf between rich and poor and the hollowing out of the middle classes.

Rather than generating more jobs, it is - as I will explain - a cause of unemployment. Rather than creating more competition, it has created immensely powerful new monopolists such as Google and Amazon in a winner-takes-all economy.

Its cultural ramifications are equally chilling. Rather than creating transparency and openness, it secretly gathers information and keeps a watch on each and every one of us.

You need only have read the stories this month about how smart TVs can spy on us in our living rooms to realise that Orwell’s vision in Nineteen Eighty-Four, of a Big Brother society, is becoming a reality.

Because such TVs are connected to the internet, they can watch us and listen to us, then beam that information around the world for companies to use for commercial gain.

And thanks to the explosion in social media, rather than creating more democracy, the internet is empowering mob rule.

An increasingly common kind of online attack involves the threat of rape against women.

For, rather than encouraging tolerance, the internet has unleashed such a distasteful war on women that many no longer feel welcome online.

Amanda Hess, for example, a feminist writer and journalist in the U.S., has received threats ‘to rape you and remove your head’ from men who have disagreed with her writing.

The internet has unleashed such a distasteful war on women that many no longer feel welcome online.

Pornography is so ubiquitous on the internet, and controls denying access so inadequate, that many parents rightly feel their children are at serious risk.

Read more: The internet would transform society and a new book says it has in a way that diminishes humanity Daily Mail Online
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook

Read the rest at the link.

So, what do you think?

Wow, and I thought I was a pessimist. Like any tool, the internet's benefits depends a lot on the user. Could make many of the same points though replacing 'internet' with 'telephone.' But that doesn't mean telephones are bad or undesireable. The internet is still somewhat new technology and the world is still getting used to it. Governments too are figuring it out still.

As to the end, "parents are rightly worried about their children seeing porn online." We've been through that. There's no harm there whatsoever.

 

[Luddly Neddite]

I agree that I cannot be bullied by fools on the internet but other people certainly can and have been.

I also agree that its a tool, a wonderful resource. Its like having several times the Library of Congress at your fingertips but that doesn't mean it can't and does not do harm.

I don't agree that the article is "pessimistic". It simply talks about some of the possible problems caused by the internet.

I also don't agree that porn cannot harm children.

I don't want to see the internet regulated and sure as hell don't want an end to net neutrality.

 

[Statistikhengst]

I agree that I cannot be bullied by fools on the internet but other people certainly can and have been.

I also agree that its a tool, a wonderful resource. Its like having several times the Library of Congress at your fingertips but that doesn't mean it can't and does not do harm.

I don't agree that the article is "pessimistic". It simply talks about some of the possible problems caused by the internet.

I also don't agree that porn cannot harm children.

I don't want to see the internet regulated and sure as hell don't want an end to net neutrality.

Porn most definitely harms children. I don't want my daughter anywhere near it.

 

[beagle9]

I'm gonna get into a little bit of conspiracy theory here for a second, and say that I think the old technology that was still working great, was sabotaged to render it in-operable in order to force people onto the new technology that can track and keep up with us much better. Now if this is true, then it is a huge indictment on the tech industry, because they would have to all be complicit in this for their own gains down the road, and in the working with the government as well to keep tabs on us. Do we think the government hasn't recognized the awesome power of this technology yet ? Do we think it can sit back and not be tempted to use it to destroy it's enemies with it (or) to keep track of voter trends in order to be right where they need be come campaign time ? This tech could virtually change the entire nation into something that no one has any idea upon how bad it could actually get, but the previews may be right in front of our eyes now. Our greed of needs may blind us to what is coming for us sooner than we think, but like I said it could be real or it could be an over imagination about the gret big ole boogy man that resides in the tech industry now...LOL

Hey that dude (whats his name?), that is living in Russia now, well he saw a lot and knew a lot that the government didn't want him to know, and they wanted him back so very badly that it hurt. Was he a hero or a traitor ? I guess it all depends on how one looks at it, but with no one knowing the whole truth about it all, how could anyone say one way or the other right ?

Like someone said, just don't be hooking all your devices up to the internet...sheesh.

And cover those camera's up with tape, and keep that adobe flash player updated. Then again there are plenty out there that are wanting to be stars, so I'm guessing they would say bring it...LOL

 

[Derideo_Te]

I'm gonna get into a little bit of conspiracy theory here for a second, and say that I think the old technology that was still working great, was sabotaged to render it in-operable in order to force people onto the new technology that can track and keep up with us much better. Now if this is true, then it is a huge indictment on the tech industry, because they would have to all be complicit in this for their own gains down the road, and in the working with the government as well to keep tabs on us. Do we think the government hasn't recognized the awesome power of this technology yet ? Do we think it can sit back and not be tempted to use it to destroy it's enemies with it (or) to keep track of voter trends in order to be right where they need be come campaign time ? This tech could virtually change the entire nation into something that no one has any idea upon how bad it could actually get, but the previews may be right in front of our eyes now. Our greed of needs may blind us to what is coming for us sooner than we think, but like I said it could be real or it could be an over imagination about the gret big ole boogy man that resides in the tech industry now...LOL

Hey that dude (whats his name?), that is living in Russia now, well he saw a lot and knew a lot that the government didn't want him to know, and they wanted him back so very badly that it hurt. Was he a hero or a traitor ? I guess it all depends on how one looks at it, but with no one knowing the whole truth about it all, how could anyone say one way or the other right ?

Like someone said, just don't be hooking all your devices up to the internet...sheesh.

And cover those camera's up with tape, and keep that adobe flash player updated. Then again there are plenty out there that are wanting to be stars, so I'm guessing they would say bring it...LOL

As someone who has been in the industry for over 4 decades your "conspiracy" fails on two levels.

#1 Maintaining obsolete technology is expensive.
#2 There is a commercial motivation for tracking your spending, location, etc.

So it isn't the government, it is just good old capitalism at work making you paranoid. If it is cheaper to upgrade to a newer technology than it is to maintain the old stuff then that makes for a better bottom line. If they can make money out of knowing that you are addicted to Twinkies and Root Beer you can bet your butt that they will exploit that to the hilt.

Nothing more sinister than keeping the pockets of the shareholders lined with profits.

Oh, what the government is doing is another matter entirely, but it isn't driving the tech industry.

 

[beagle9]

I'm gonna get into a little bit of conspiracy theory here for a second, and say that I think the old technology that was still working great, was sabotaged to render it in-operable in order to force people onto the new technology that can track and keep up with us much better. Now if this is true, then it is a huge indictment on the tech industry, because they would have to all be complicit in this for their own gains down the road, and in the working with the government as well to keep tabs on us. Do we think the government hasn't recognized the awesome power of this technology yet ? Do we think it can sit back and not be tempted to use it to destroy it's enemies with it (or) to keep track of voter trends in order to be right where they need be come campaign time ? This tech could virtually change the entire nation into something that no one has any idea upon how bad it could actually get, but the previews may be right in front of our eyes now. Our greed of needs may blind us to what is coming for us sooner than we think, but like I said it could be real or it could be an over imagination about the gret big ole boogy man that resides in the tech industry now...LOL

Hey that dude (whats his name?), that is living in Russia now, well he saw a lot and knew a lot that the government didn't want him to know, and they wanted him back so very badly that it hurt. Was he a hero or a traitor ? I guess it all depends on how one looks at it, but with no one knowing the whole truth about it all, how could anyone say one way or the other right ?

Like someone said, just don't be hooking all your devices up to the internet...sheesh.

And cover those camera's up with tape, and keep that adobe flash player updated. Then again there are plenty out there that are wanting to be stars, so I'm guessing they would say bring it...LOL

As someone who has been in the industry for over 4 decades your "conspiracy" fails on two levels.

#1 Maintaining obsolete technology is expensive.
#2 There is a commercial motivation for tracking your spending, location, etc.

So it isn't the government, it is just good old capitalism at work making you paranoid. If it is cheaper to upgrade to a newer technology than it is to maintain the old stuff then that makes for a better bottom line. If they can make money out of knowing that you are addicted to Twinkies and Root Beer you can bet your butt that they will exploit that to the hilt.

Nothing more sinister than keeping the pockets of the shareholders lined with profits.

Oh, what the government is doing is another matter entirely, but it isn't driving the tech industry.

Well, if you say so, but I still might not be totally convinced about it all, and upon how it seems to be connected in many ways.

 

[Mertex]

How the internet is destroying us: Its pioneers hoped the web would transform society. Now a devastating new book says it has - in a way that diminishes humanity

The internet, its many evangelists tell us, is the answer to all our problems. It gives power to the people.

It’s a platform for equality that allows everyone an equal share in life’s riches. For the first time in history, anyone can produce, say or buy anything.

But today, as the internet heads towards putting more than half the world’s population online, all this promise has evaporated.

The dream has become a nightmare, in which I fear we billions of network users are victims, not beneficiaries.

In our super-connected 21st-century world, rather than promoting economic fairness, the net is a central reason for the growing gulf between rich and poor and the hollowing out of the middle classes.

Rather than generating more jobs, it is - as I will explain - a cause of unemployment. Rather than creating more competition, it has created immensely powerful new monopolists such as Google and Amazon in a winner-takes-all economy.

Its cultural ramifications are equally chilling. Rather than creating transparency and openness, it secretly gathers information and keeps a watch on each and every one of us.

You need only have read the stories this month about how smart TVs can spy on us in our living rooms to realise that Orwell’s vision in Nineteen Eighty-Four, of a Big Brother society, is becoming a reality.

Because such TVs are connected to the internet, they can watch us and listen to us, then beam that information around the world for companies to use for commercial gain.

And thanks to the explosion in social media, rather than creating more democracy, the internet is empowering mob rule.

An increasingly common kind of online attack involves the threat of rape against women.

For, rather than encouraging tolerance, the internet has unleashed such a distasteful war on women that many no longer feel welcome online.

Amanda Hess, for example, a feminist writer and journalist in the U.S., has received threats ‘to rape you and remove your head’ from men who have disagreed with her writing.

The internet has unleashed such a distasteful war on women that many no longer feel welcome online.

Pornography is so ubiquitous on the internet, and controls denying access so inadequate, that many parents rightly feel their children are at serious risk.

Read more: The internet would transform society and a new book says it has in a way that diminishes humanity Daily Mail Online
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook

Read the rest at the link.

So, what do you think?

I think you are a fool to connect your TV to the internet via cable.

I think anyone that signs up for an internet account is a moron. I steal mine.

I get my TV from the over the air signals.

I'm sure the admin of this site has wondered why I am located in Delaware or Virginia and still I maintain I live in a closed motel in North Seattle.

You DO NOT have to hand yourself over to those you believe may want to track you. If you do so without a whimper who do you have to blame?

Stealing is a crime. So you think you are being clever by doing so....I can't imagine you getting the best HD connection on your TV or having a reliable internet connection just because you are afraid that someone may be tracking you. That is paranoia of the hugest kind.

I'm sure the Admin of this site doesn't care where you post from as long as your IP doesn't match someone else that is posting here....you may have an inflated view of yourself.

 

[Mertex]

The internet is just like any new innovation that is introduced into society. There will be things that can hurt us from it, as well as things that benefit us tremendously. I don't think we're going to get rid of it any time soon, so, we might as well be alert and be aware of things that can harm us and do something to protect ourselves, but we're not going to go back to the way it used to be.

Parents are going to have to be aware of what their children are accessing on the internet because it is a totally new and different arena for today's children and most parents are not even aware what their kids are doing on the internet. 20/20 had a program on Saturday night where two 12 year old girls tried to kill their friend (also 12) by stabbing her all because of some character named "Slender Man" - who a lot of kids have knowledge of, but most parents had never even heard of him. These girls claimed they were doing it for him (Slender Man) because he told them that he would hurt their families if they didn't. Fortunately, the little girl survived.....but this is ridiculous, that these kids are taking instructions from someone on the internet and the parents are oblivious to it.

There are precautions that people can take with any new invention, and there are pitfalls.....we will survive it, learn how to overcome the pitfalls and make the most of it, IMHO.

 

[Disir]

Wait, Slender Man is a fictional character and most people and kids understand this.
Slender Man - Wikipedia the free encyclopedia

I agree with the rest of your post, Mertex.


Parents have the power to control what their children view on the internet and the television. We can block channels and apply filters. We can track them through their cell phones.

 

[RKMBrown]

I'm gonna get into a little bit of conspiracy theory here for a second, and say that I think the old technology that was still working great, was sabotaged to render it in-operable in order to force people onto the new technology that can track and keep up with us much better. Now if this is true, then it is a huge indictment on the tech industry, because they would have to all be complicit in this for their own gains down the road, and in the working with the government as well to keep tabs on us. Do we think the government hasn't recognized the awesome power of this technology yet ? Do we think it can sit back and not be tempted to use it to destroy it's enemies with it (or) to keep track of voter trends in order to be right where they need be come campaign time ? This tech could virtually change the entire nation into something that no one has any idea upon how bad it could actually get, but the previews may be right in front of our eyes now. Our greed of needs may blind us to what is coming for us sooner than we think, but like I said it could be real or it could be an over imagination about the gret big ole boogy man that resides in the tech industry now...LOL

Hey that dude (whats his name?), that is living in Russia now, well he saw a lot and knew a lot that the government didn't want him to know, and they wanted him back so very badly that it hurt. Was he a hero or a traitor ? I guess it all depends on how one looks at it, but with no one knowing the whole truth about it all, how could anyone say one way or the other right ?

Like someone said, just don't be hooking all your devices up to the internet...sheesh.

And cover those camera's up with tape, and keep that adobe flash player updated. Then again there are plenty out there that are wanting to be stars, so I'm guessing they would say bring it...LOL

Yes, it is widely known that our government has forced the the tech done in ways that easily allow government agencies full unfettered access to all of your data without a warrant. Further it is illegal to have secrets from our government in this country.

Encrypting data to a point beyond government's grasp is easy, but it's also illegal.

 

[Mertex]

Wait, Slender Man is a fictional character and most people and kids understand this.

Apparently these 12 year olds thought it was real......at least one of them did, the other one may just be a serial killer in the making. If she is, her career has ended as the DA said they were going to be tried as adults....

 

[Disir]

Wait, Slender Man is a fictional character and most people and kids understand this.

Apparently these 12 year olds thought it was real......at least one of them did, the other one may just be a serial killer in the making. If she is, her career has ended as the DA said they were going to be tried as adults....

They are twelve. They have twelve year old brains. Thousands of other kids have seen the videos and did not do the same.

They shouldn't be tried as adults.

 

[RKMBrown]

In a nutshell, our government has decided that encryption is a weapon of mass destruction. Couple that with the common understanding that our government is weeding through all of our internet communications, such as email... and it becomes painfully obvious why our government has decided to make strong encryption illegal.