

A Net Skeptic's Conservative Manifesto - TDL
http://reason.com/archives/2013/04/27/a-net-skeptics-conservative-manifesto

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tomphoolery
The Internet isn't a religion, nor is it a supreme being. So why would anyone
put their faith behind it?

It's just a tool. I like to invoke the gun analogy. A gun can be used to shoot
a person in the face and ruin countless lives, but it can also be used to kill
an animal so you can eat it. The Internet doesn't make you smarter, but it
does give you access to more information. But _you_ still have to make
yourself smarter by reading and taking in that information.

~~~
nitrogen
_The Internet isn't a religion, nor is it a supreme being. So why would anyone
put their faith behind it?_

It's easy for people to believe that the effect a technology has on them is
the same effect it will have on everyone. In the case of the Internet, it's
easy for an idealist to believe that an open, peer-to-peer global
communication network would inevitably fuel a positive revolution in human
interaction.

The expectation might be that everyone, upon seeing the power of the Internet
to share, collaborate, and contribute, would join in the Utopian happy science
party, eventually leading us to our well-deserved Star Trek-esque future.
Instead, however, while the idealists see ideals, capitalists see cash,
politicians see power, etc.

Long ago, when I was first discovering the Internet, I came across things like
IRC and telnet-based chat services. I was amazed that I could just start a
conversation with anyone who wanted to listen, and it didn't matter who they
were, what they looked like, or where they lived. I was so excited by the
possibilities that I wanted to share the technology with everyone. The first
thing I did was show a friend how to connect to a chat server. I was dismayed
when he immediately began trolling, harassing, and trying to come up with
creative ways to ruin the conversations of others. We didn't stay friends for
long after that, but I began learning the important lesson that not everyone
will use a tool for good.

