The Good Part

This week I chased off a man who was trying to break into my neighbor's house. My wife and I spent a good while after that discussing our neighborhood. We don't want contact with people like that, but living in low-cost housing as we currently do, we sometimes don't have a choice. The internet is very similar, actually. For all the bad and inappropriate things that we know exist online, good really does exist there, too. It's a matter of perspective, and of where you live (figuratively speaking). If you encounter too much negative or vile on the internet, try moving. You're in a bad neighborhood, and you need a change of pace. Change up your regular sites, and avoid the bad parts of town. You'll be surprised to find that the internet can be a bright and wonderful place, if you've got a good map. Hint: it's the gospel.

See also, Articles of Faith 13.

A Farewell to Campus

I believe that higher-learning institutions, such as colleges and universities, have become obsolete. These institutions were founded on the principle of uniting eager students with knowledgeable professors, vast libraries, and other academic resources. With the accessibility of the internet, however, this principle is dead. The internet contains more learning than any single institute could hope to hold, is accessible to anyone from any part of the world, and is more affordable than any single textbook. Current students are crippled by debt. This debt is accrued from paying for the costs associated with a physical campus - a beautiful lawn, or perhaps a new addition to a college to which they don't even belong. Internet-based universities dramatically reduce the cost of learning and level the playing field for anyone interested in higher learning. It is my position that we, as a society, need embrace the internet as a platform for higher learning and discard the idea of physical institutions for learning.

The Internet is Free. Are you?

The internet is free. At least, recent movements have pushed in that direction. As a society, we're increasingly concerned with making sure that the internet becomes and remains free from governmental and other constraints. However, as we do this, we ignore a potentially more devastating problem - are we, as a society, free from the internet? Increasingly, the internet has become an integral and accepted part of our daily lives. The word that comes to mind is "dependence." Dependence is one of those concepts that can be either uplifting or damning, depending on its context. It is good to be dependent on God, or to depend on those closest to us. In the same breath, however, an addict is dependent on his drug, and some in our country have become dependent on government handouts. The internet can play either role in our own lives. How do you depend on the internet?