My thoughts on the World Wide Web

The World Wide Web is a wonderful and terrible thing. Used responsibly and it is a research tool that is unparalleled in the annals of history. Used deviously and it has enabled child predators unprecedented access into the homes of unsuspecting families. The internet has enabled scientists and ordinary citizens to access data and study obscure texts, whether in a lab at a large prestigious university or in a cabin in the Alaska wilds. The scope of the material is mind-boggling as well. By using one of the plethora of search engines, anyone can type in a word, or series of words and instantly have available tens, hundreds and thousands of texts referencing the word or words. There is also a dark side to the internet. According to Family Safe Media, surveys have shown that the major purveyors of internet porn are children age 12-17. All of the internet filters are non-affective against sites that are not considered porn sites. These include several of the photo sharing sites. These sites are at the mercy of their users to correctly identify offensive photos and other content. Parents must take a very active role in monitoring their children’s internet usage. I think that some of the content on sites like Myspace and others is going to come back and haunt some of these kids in the future. Content posted to these sites can be downloaded and stored forever. What happens when ten or fifteen years down the road and one of these kids wants to apply for a job or run for office. His or her prospective boss can perform a search and voila, there is Johnny or Susie on camera in a very provocative pose or worse. I will admit, I have done some pretty ignorant things in my past, but thankfully none that I know were captured on film. Young people today are acting in the moment and are not realizing the consequences of their actions. My advice; have fun, but be responsible and be prepared to answer serious questions about any content you post to a web site. The last comment I will make regarding the internet concerns child predators. Recently, there have been several television shows, in which journalists, in conjunction with local law enforcement purport to be children on the internet. These law enforcement officials enter chat sessions and invite predators to a house where the journalists and law enforcement are located. When the predator shows up, he (all of the creeps I have seen have been male) is confronted by the journalist, who has a copy of the chat sessions. These predators have come up with every excuse imaginable as to why they were in the house. The kid seemed lonely, I thought they were older, are some of those used. After watching one of these shows I saw the crucial role the internet played in granting access to these predators. Without the anonymity of the internet, these guys would not have the unfettered access to children. So, even if these guys had the urges to molest children, they previously had no way to meet them. Via the internet a man in town A, can meet a child in town B several miles away and arrange a meeting. The child’s parents are unaware of the contact and the child is left unprotected. The man can then go to town B where he is unknown and commit his crime and return home, leaving the devastated victim to deal with the damage. I strongly believe that without the internet, a majority of these crimes would not be committed. I am not suggesting that we do away with the internet. That would be impossible. I am simply suggesting that parents take precautions with the internet just as they would any other potentially dangerous thing in their home. You would no sooner let your child drink poison as you would knowingly let a predator into your home. The internet is a great and wonderful tool as long as it is harnessed and monitored effectively.