On Mon, Apr 11, 2011 at 10:36 AM, Jeremy <listbox@unix-boy.com> wrote:
> On 4/11/2011 12:03 AM, Jerry Wilborn wrote:
>
>> > And there is the great fallacy of the internet. Every opinion must
>> be voiced.
>>
>> Ahh, irony.
>>
>> Jerry Wilborn
>> jerrywilborn@gmail.com <mailto:jerrywilborn@gmail.com>
>>
>>
> Yes, I realize the irony in having made that statement... :P I made it
> because I'm honestly concerned about what affect internet has had on the
> modern world. Tired, old, discredit crackpot theories can now be
> resurrected and gain a new following on the Internet. New crackpot bunkum
> spreads like wildfire and maintains a following despite being discredited
> (ala the 2012 doomsday). It is now easier to scam people or commit fraud
> selling bunk junk. The level of narcissism on the web is seemingly growing
> now that anyone can jabber away*. The signal to noise ratio obviously gets
> worse and worse because of the amount of bad/incorrect information. The
> level of voluntary sharing that is becoming the norm seems to cheapen the
> concept of privacy.
>
I don't know if it cheapens the concept or weakens it, but there's a
negative effect for anyone who prefers privacy. I don't worry too much
about what I say and write. The fact is for everyone who likes what you say
or do, there's plenty who don't like it. Hiding what you think will only
put you in places where you have to hide what you think...in which case, why
think at all. Hang up your hat, set the guns down, and let the vultures eat
your flesh cause you're already dead.
True, a tantrum on a tech forum like this probably exposes a person to all
sorts of criticism from prospective employers. I may yet regret getting
aggravated by a job posting, but I'll own it. If it hurts me, it hurts me.
But I think for everyone who doesn't like what you say, someone likes it
*Charlie Sheen*. You have to try really hard to get noticed. After that,
it's about balancing being noticed with actually making people mad or bored.
>
> Yeah, the internet is probably the greatest communications and information
> retrieval tool to have been built, but I'm concerned that having given
> "everyone a voice" may have had deleterious effects on that tool.
>
> Or maybe I'm wrong... Or maybe no one cares. Ehh.
>
> J
>
> *http://tweetingtoohard.com/
>
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Received on 04/11/11
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