Living In The Age Of The Internet- My Observations

Not often do I wish to engage in comments on various sites. It seems for every one comment two more will challenge whatever I say. Which leads to four more after responding to the first two. All of it becomes rather taxing. Thankfully on this site I don't have to deal with too many of them. I like it that way.

When Hannity tweeted his readers asking them to attack CNN's Jake Tapper a few weeks ago they went after him instead. Speak on any topic. It doesn't matter. Users of the internet just love to piss on someone's parade. People love bickering. It appears there's a basic need in some humans to try and make the other person look stupid. When facts fail them or they begin to lose the competition, engaging like it were a battle of wit, they nearly always resort to name calling. It doesn't matter what someone post, either for or against (nor matter how many facts they present) it will attract dissenters like bees to honey. That's just the way the internet operates.

The other thing I've observed, if the comments threads are left to continue long enough people will stop taking the time to read all of those before. Hell some won't even bother to read beyond the headline before shooting off their mouth. A few weeks ago NPR ran a headline entitled "Get Off The Couch Baby Boomers". All hell broke loose The comments broke down into a war of words between millennials and baby boomers as to which was the laziest. This had nothing to do with written article. It was about the need for older Americans to maintain exercise as they grow older.

Because all too often people act like jerks many of the major news sites, having to deal with hundreds of comments, have eliminated them completely. My attitude towards comments is they can prove useful and informative. However there's so few of these it's like panning for gold. I'm not a fan of sports for much the same reason. I have neither the patience nor the time to spend relentless hours watching one game after the other or analyzing the players.

I'm a bottom-line kind of guy. Just the hard facts pertaining to the subject at hand is all I'm looking for. Not the competition between egos. Especially trolls who post very obvious remarks to do nothing more then get people riled up. They are the biggest jerks of all.


In Summary
The internet has spawned an ability for turds to interject themselves. Much like the static we use to put up with in the old days of AM radio, I try hard to tune them out. How I and others deal with this going forward remains to be seen. I have no problem debating anyone, but when it becomes too cluttered with nonsense for the sake of argument I lose interest real fast.

If the internet is to live up to it's truest potential we all need to refine what we will allow or not allow on our sites. The internet is open to everyone, even turds. If some turd doesn't like it-- feel free to start your own. See how that goes for ya. I nor any one else is under any obligation what-so-ever to host those we find disagreeable.

Neither do I feel the obligation to engage incessantly when I so choose to speak on others when they allow me to. That's the way the internet works. We all have the freedom to choose.

Overall my impression is (from my experience) people who comment on the internet only represent a teeny tiny fraction of those who read what was posted.

Judging by the stats embedded on this site most realize I won't tolerate the kind of BS others put up with. I'm not as tolerant as they. Credit goes to them for putting up with such. I admire them for the ability to accept what I cannot.