Is the Internet the next "Opiate for the Masses" ?

[MrBishop]

Religion used to be considered the Opiate for the masses. It rendered them listless and inactive, mostly out of fear for the repurcussions from God and the church.

Television became the next recognized Opiate, with names like the Boob-Tube and the Idiot-Box, churning out zombies raised more by Mrs Beaver, more so than by Mom and Dad.

Now, the Internet is the Big Boy ont he block and some would have us think that it is churning out more ADD-induced morons than television could ever have hoped to do.

What's your take on the matter?

Opiate
(a.) Inducing sleep; somniferous; narcotic; hence, anodyne; causing rest, dullness, or inaction; as, the opiate rod of Hermes.
(n.) Originally, a medicine of a thicker consistence than sirup, prepared with opium.
(n.) Any medicine that contains opium, and has the quality of inducing sleep or repose; a narcotic.
(n.) Anything which induces rest or inaction; that which quiets uneasiness.
(v. t.) To subject to the influence of an opiate; to put to sleep.

 

[PuterTutor]

I think the Internet is a double edged sword. It can be the most powerful tool we own, or it can rip apart the home and your life quicker than you can blink. As for following your definition, It can easily fit, at least for some people. I think it's something we need to watch carefully, especially with our kids.

 

[MrBishop]

They used to say the same thing about school. Teaching people to read/write would allow them to start thinking for themselves and make decisions that might be harmful for themselves and others.

Literacy didn't seem to do that, but the internet is unfortunatly not only good stuff to read. It's almost the opposite. With almost 70%+ dedicated to either porn or gambling, it's harder to find the good stuff on the internet.

I'm almost afraid for the time my son will be old enough to surf the Web. At the rate it's going, it's not going to be a better place in 10 years, than it is now.

 

[Squiggy]

Once again a promising theory reveals the systemic self destructive mindset of man....The internet held/holds great promise. But until people, in general, grant it the respect it deserves, It will just be another piece of fodder to pass the waking hours...It has become polluted to the point of perpetual decline. And its accomplished that with incredible pace.

 

[greenfreak]

I think that video games would be more guilty than the internet right now. But I agree that it's declining, and there's more "bad stuff" out there than good stuff. I think, though, unless you're playing a game or looking at pictures, that it requires more thought than, say, watching tv. It depends on what you're doing with it and how you're using it.

I don't think the internet can be blamed for what it's become. It's the people that use it and their weaknesses that are the problem. There's millions of porn sites out there because there are millions of people that go to them. Same thing with tabloids, they're trash but people still buy them.

 

[MrBishop]

I would think that there are millions of porn sites out there because it's the quick money...the same reason why there are millions of pop-ups and banner ads, and spam. The other side of that arguement is that there are a large number of porn/gambling/spam places because Web-designers just aren't doing the work for the good causes. There was a writeup once from a famous designer regarding the state of the internet and the fight that designers should be doing in order to increase the quality of non-porn sites. I myself do pro-bono work for charities and make more of an effort on their sites than I would for a 'job'.

If the non-porn sites are more interesting, then they'll eventually crowd out the porn.

 

[kuulani]

*am sticking to my decision not to have internet at home and not to buy any kind of video game console for my kids*

 

[Noite Escura]

Yay for video games

 

[greenfreak]

We never really had video games as a kid but they weren't as popular as they are now. I play them now though, as an adult. But I balance my tv watching (down to only three shows: West Wing, Queer Eye, Sex and the City) and gaming with reading lots of books, gardening, photography. I think I have a good balance here.

 

[MrBishop]

Originally posted by kuulani
*am sticking to my decision not to have internet at home and not to buy any kind of video game console for my kids*

Hi Ku'u !!

No video games...I tend to agree with you, but no internet?

I tend to agree with PT, when he says that it can be a powerful tool...it is a researcher's Heaven... I wish taht I had had such a tool at my fingertips when I was working on all those projects in High School. All I had was the Encyclopedia Britanica (Hopelessly outdated) and a library card for a library with precious little in the way of science books, or interesting magazines (Pop.Sci, History, etc...)

WIth the right filters, the internet's a great place for kids.

 

[greenfreak]

*devils advocate*

But the kids can also download term papers and the like, getting around having to do it themselves. Call it the Cliff's Notes of this generation.

 

[MrBishop]

Those only work on the oblivious teachers. If you're actually paying attention to your pupils, you can tell who should be able to write what...beyond all that, a quick question about the topic or its' specifics will let you know if they truly understood it or copied.

 

[greenfreak]

And with overcrowding in schools and underpaid teachers, you think they're going to be doing google searches for the papers?

 

[Noite Escura]

Well I'm reading a lot lately. Mostly spiritism books, however...

 

[kuulani]

No video games...I tend to agree with you, but no internet?

You're right, the internet is a powerful tool, but it would be too tempting to be on it ALL night. I can get my daily 'net fix at work (and if worse comes to worse, I live only 10 minutes away and have the office key)

 

[MrBishop]

Originally posted by kuulani

No video games...I tend to agree with you, but no internet?

You're right, the internet is a powerful tool, but it would be too tempting to be on it ALL night. I can get my daily 'net fix at work (and if worse comes to worse, I live only 10 minutes away and have the office key)

Works great for you Ku'u , but what about your kiddies?

 

[kuulani]

Thank god I don't have to worry about that yet ... (the kiddies are only 15 months & in the womb)