The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

For this post I want to discuss the a topic that can be filed under the good, the bad, or the ugly, depending on the situation: online dating. It is something that more and more people are doing these days. Whether it be through a dating site such as eHarmony (more common for adults), or through some random person you met on some social media site like Facebook, (more common in younger people) it is something that is becoming more of a norm in today's digital age.

The good: Legitimate and reputable online dating sites allow people who have not had luck in the traditional dating game a chance to meet different kinds of people in more comfortable environment. It is especially good for older people, such as someone who is divorced or widowed, and have not dated in awhile. Sometimes it's hard for these people to have the motivation to get back out there or find situations to meet new people, so dating sites help a lot in these cases. Sites like these make it easier to find someone with the same interests and values as you, which can help to weed out a lot of really bad first dates and save people time in finding a match for them. There are many success stories and marriages that have come out of these dating sites (the legitimate ones, not Facebook dating, as I will discuss later). In fact, a close friend of my dad found his new wife on Match.com after a very bad divorce, and he has never been happier. It is also great for people who live in especially rural areas where there are not a lot of people to chose from. I'm sure it does not work for everyone, but there are a lot of good aspects about online dating sites.

The bad: Some people have a lot of success with these legitimate sites and end up in healthy, happy relationships. These are the people who were honest about themselves. Unfortunately, internet dating provides a layer of uncertainty, because sometimes people are not honest about their profiles. A lot of times people will post false pictures of themselves, or pictures of a younger version of themselves, which is misleading. Also, people can put up any values, goals, interests, hobbies, etc. they want, even if they aren't true. This would kind of negate the purpose of finding a match, and the people who do lie are probably not on the site for the right reasons. Bottom line: you don't know who you're really talking to in some cases, and this is definitely a bad thing, and a safety issue. Sites always recommend meeting in public places if you do meet in person or bringing a friend along until you make sure he or she is who they say they are, for this very reason.

The ugly: There are many cases of fraud in legitimate online dating sites, and there are even more when people don't go through them for online dating. This is where a lot of young people run into problems. Everyone has seen the popular MTV show "Catfish the Tv Show", and maybe the movie "Catfish"that led to the television show. We all wonder how people could believe the person they are talking to is really who they say they are, when the signs are so blatantly screaming "FRAUD!", but people do every day. The ugly part of dating someone you met online, and the internet itself, is that you can be or say anything you want to be. A 49 year old male can put up a Facebook profile claiming to be a 24 year old female model, and no one can do anything about it when it comes to social media. The show "Catfish" investigates people's online romances and sees if they are in fact who they claim to be. Only once have I seen the person actually be the face on the Facebook picture. A lot of times these people have a genuine connection, or think they do, but a lot of times these people are just used by internet predators. In many episodes, the real person convinced by their "significant other" to send money, cell phones, etc. It is a seriously ugly part of online dating and the internet itself. The message here is that you have to be careful when it comes to online dating because you never truly know if you're talking to the person they say they are. The internet provides everyone with a layer on anonymity, and it is something a lot of people are tricked by.

Here are some links I found about the good, the bad, and the ugly aspects of online dating

Huffinton Post: 'Online Photos: Are We All Catfishing' Is Third Report In Pace University's Sex And Dating Study

Forbes: Love on the run

Who uses internet dating?

Assignment 4: Thoughts on Network Neutrality

Net neutrality is a very controversial issue that would affect everyone who uses the Internet- which these days is pretty much everyone. There are pros and cons to net neutraity and people have reasons to argue for both sides. The biggest pro of net neutrality is that there are that there are no restrictions or limitations that would make any sites slower or cost more money to use. This is fair and allows everyone to upload, download, search, and use any sites the same way. Another pro (in some ways) is that net neutrality allows for an even playing field to companies who advertise on the internet. If every company has the same chance of being visited and used it is fair and allows people to choose what sites and advertisements they want to see, rather than being forced to go to a certain one. A con of net neutrality is that once free sites may cost money, and sites that already cost money would have higher costs for certain websites, as well as internet providers. Also, making some sites faster/slower forces people to go to the site that the company wants them to go to, and this is an issue of censorship and reduces personal rights. As one would expect, people like us support net neutrality because it would not change the way we use the internet by making any sites slower or cost money. Clearly, large corporations and internet providers that get a lot of net traffic are not in favor of net neutrality.

Recently, Verizon sued the FCC for net neutrality rules and a Federal appeals court ruled that the FCC does not have the right to enforce net neutrality rules. Companies who provide internet service argue that since they are providing the service, they have the right to determine how they deliver it and what they charge.

The issue of net neutrality is tied to the issue of freedom of speech in many ways. The internet the way it is now is open an free for everyone to do and say whatever they please. However, if net neutrality is diminished, the big companies who can afford to pay to be visited by their users will be able to pick and choose who/ when/ how/ what, etc. people can view, post, download, etc. This does not allow for freedom of speech.

The recent news of net neutrality would affect everyone using the internet, but I think it would be really detrimental to students. For example, when doing research, it may be difficult to find information that isn't biased to the company providing it. If we are only seeing what the big corporations are wanting us to see we may not be getting the most accurate information. Also, if certain sites began to cost money a lot of people would simply go without. Youtube is a really helpful site with a lot of informational videos. What if it began to cost money to have videos load and play faster? It would cause a lot of problems for us.

As for my stance on net neutrality I am very much for it. I think it is only fair that everyone has the same opportunities to visit whatever site they please at the same speed and without cost. If net neutrality laws are taken away the internet will be a not so free place in more than one way. the ease of the internet will be taken away and the big corporations will have the monopoly. They will have the ability to charge more money for service and pick and choose who gets it, what they see, and how fast or slow it should be. It just seems really unfair to diminish these laws because they provide equality to the web and everyone who uses it.

These two sites provided valid information about what net neutrality means to us and I found them helpful to my blog post.

This is an opinion post I agree with about how net neutrality is directly related to freedom of speech.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/OPINION/08/05/franken.net.neutrality/

And this link explains the implications of ending net neutrality for average internet users like us. It explains that this ruling could make internet a really expensive thing for its users, and make the providers even more money.

http://www.savetheinternet.com/net-neutrality-101

Social Media and Privacy

Ever since Myspace, Facebook, twitter, etc. have become popular; we have seen a dramatic decline in personal privacy. We post so much about our lives for the world to see- what we're doing, pictures of us, our beliefs, etc., but sometimes the things others post is even worse. With this digital age, taboo subjects are publicized much more. The article "When Rape Goes Viral" is a testament to this. It is one thing for a person to have to go through such a traumatic experience, but when it is captured in pictures or on video and is posted online, that is a whole different story. “The horror of having the intimate violation of your body exposed, shared, transmitted, and existing in a way that you know can never be expunged is awful,” (Friedman). Rape has always been a touchy subject that people try to sweep under the rug, but now we can’t avoid it. In this digital age we are forced to confront the issue at hand. I only wish it was not at the expense of the victim so much. They have already suffered enough before having their privacy invaded and posted on the internet for everyone to see.

Nothing to Hide?

A lot of people claim they have Nothing to Hide when it comes to the internet, and this may be true, but the online world can be very daunting when it comes to privacy. People who aren't careful about what they post may not care who sees it now, but they may no take into account the fact that once it's out there- it is ALWAYS there. At 20 years old, sure you may have nothing to hide, but will you feel that way 20 years down the road when your child is looking through embarrassing pictures, blog posts, status updates etc.? Probably not.

We should all be concerned about internet privacy because it is not only about what we post anymore. Through the internet, a stranger can find out everything about you- your private and public life, your family, your friends, and even your location. Even if you claim to have noting to hide, things on the internet can be misconstrued. After watching the video in class, I was surprised to see how many people were questioned by the government or even arrested for posting something that was taken out of context and seen as a potential "threat". The film really made me feel like big brother is always watching. Even if you delete something, it can still be found, so we have to be cautious about what we do online.

Living in a networked world has its pros and cons.

On one hand, we have access to more information than we could read in a lifetime, tedious tasks have been simplified, and we are connected to anyone in the world through the internet (among lots of other amazing pros). When I was little I imagined we'd be flying hovercrafts and have robots checking us out at the grocery store. We haven't quite gotten to that, but the progress we've made through the Internet is still dizzying.

So what about the bad? Do the pros outweigh the cons? In some ways I'd say yes. But the most troublesome thing (in my opinion) that has emerged in this Networked world is a whole new generation of Disconnected people. My parents and grandparents are always going out of their way to talk to strangers and connect with other people. Our generation is not as interested in this. I see it in myself too. I'm more involved with my cell phone than I am with most people I am in contact with throughout a typical day. It is even worse with the kids who have always had a smart phone in their life. My little cousins will barely speak to anyone unless it's via text, Facebook, twitter, Instagram, etc. Unlike me, who got a crappy flip phone when I was 13 and not a day younger, these kids have had access to the entire internet from as early as 7. Yes, 7 is the age one of my cousins got her first smartphone. Now she is 12 and we can't hold a conversation (because one or both of us is on our phones), but then I remember that this 12 year old has over 500 followers on Instagram. She is more connected to these people (most of which she doesn't even know) than she is to me. It makes me sad, because their life is completely centered around their technology. Not that mine isn't- I am guilty of this too, as I said earlier. But, I remember what it was like before smartphones. My phone could make calls and text, and that was essentially it. I am definitely more disconnected to other human beings than I was before the internet and smart phones, but I worry even more for the generation below us.

We are losing the ability to communicate face-to-face. We may be in the Networked world, but as far as human to human interaction, we are much more disconnected.