I am not a crackpot, but this is definitely a crackpot idea... unless, I'm on to something here.
These thoughts were prompted by two things. 1) During an excellent 9/11 sermon given at my church by First Responder Chaplain, Toby Nelson, who worked at Ground Zero, Katrina, and other places, he mentioned one thing that I'd never put my finger on but that definitely had the ring of truth about it. He said, "While I watched the planes crashing into the buildings again and again and again, I found that I was getting more agitated every time I watched." And 2) I just saw a headline for a "News" video that said, "WATCH: A man gets naked before breaking into a store." And I really had to wonder, "Who would want to watch something like that?"
So, here, in a nutshell, is my crackpot idea...
Is the Internet, Satan?
I offer these points of comparison. 1) Both lie. Incessantly. Or tell the truth in such a shade of lie as to mislead and misrepresent. 2) Both show us things we want to have and want to believe and makes it easy for us to obtain these things - none of which bring us happiness. 3) Both, by their very existence, stir up trouble. 4) Both tempt us to do and say things we'd never have done before. 5) The world is definitely more agitated because of their existence.
Now, normally I'd argue that the same could be said about any form of mass-communication. But can it? Certainly books, when they were introduced, caused a stir - but not nearly to the level that the internet has and in such a quick and dangerous way.
Would you agree that since the internet first appeared on the scene back in the early 90's, that the world has gotten steadily worse?
Anyway, I will leave this thought at this stage of its development. If any wish to take up my lance and attack this particular windmill, I shall be happy to join your quest.
4 comments:
Information has always been there, albeit access to same has been more onerous. In that sense, I think it's beneficial in allowing democratic access to a wide variety of sources.
The problem is not with information. The problem is with the users who have not been trained to separate the wheat from the chaff. They've not been taught the intellectual tools necessary for analysis, i.e. logic, appropriate sources, etc.
Stated differently, a saw is great for building a house, even though an idiot could cut off an appendage. The existence of the idiot doesn't change the saw's purpose or utility.
Cheers.
Guys, I think you're both partly correct. I would add that the Internet, particularly in the last 10 years with the rise of blogging and other social media forms, has given ANYONE the opportunity to use a worldwide platform to share their ideas...accurate or not.
This then plays into your point, Randall, that many are not able to intelligently discern whether info is accurate or not - and the sad thing is that many in the "mainstream" media aren't much better. Add to that the ability to comment on journalistic articles in online editions of our magazines and suddenly anyone can hide behind snarky comments. Little is filtered now - and while I value the sharing of information and ideas, there is something to be said about the decline of any form of etiquette (however you choose to define "etiquette") in our conversations today.
Good thoughts, Will.
I'd like to add that it is precisely this perceived interpretation of the internet as just a "tool" that is the perfect place to disguise its truth. Remember that Satan is a master of disguise. He looks beautiful and wonderful up front, but his actions speak differently.
And Andy, it is not only the snarky comments that are out there that are bad behavior, but the fact that such discourse has now become commonplace and that because of the pervasiveness of the internet into every aspect of our lives, there is no escape from it. The true ugliness of the internet, then, has invaded every thing that we do, say, feel, or think.
Look at the world around you now and tell me that it wouldn't be better off without the internet.
2 Corinthians 2:7 - "But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us."
So we have established the fact that you are a pot. And after all this time, how could you not have a crack or two?
Keep letting the juice leak out the cracks, brother.
And get back to the Disney blog please. I miss my daily dash.
P.S. No, in my opinion, the Internet is not evil.
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