TZUTC: -0400   
   MSGID: 1289.internet@1:227/201 21a7b40d   
   REPLY: 2:310/31 59a9720b   
   PID: Synchronet 3.17c-Linux  May 22 2019 GCC 7.4.0   
   TID: SBBSecho 3.07-Linux r3.114 May 22 2019 GCC 7.4.0   
   To RM, NA, and everyone else.   
   -=> Richard Menedetter wrote to Nick Andre <=-   
      
    RM> Hi Nick!   
      
    RM> Sorry for the late reply ...   
      
    RM> 14 Aug 2017 04:38, from Nick Andre -> Richard Menedetter:   
      
    NA> While that may be true, the information available is in most cases no   
    NA> different than one can (and have) obtained from libraries.   
   I think the quality has dropped considerably even over the past few years.    
   I've looked at some news .. what they claim is news, and its a single short   
   paragraph with large font surrounded by tones of add space. Libraries have   
   books with lots of pages.    
      
   But on the other side there is really good information out there but I don't   
   see that information being desiged as a general rule, and for the masses. The   
   primary interface for users today is their cell phone and althought the screen   
   sizes are decent they content delievery is short bites. However people now   
   claim they have understanding, where they mean they've heard of it. They see   
   these short bites of info and don't know that isn't understanding, and hardly   
   clasifies as knowledge, but to the ignorant, you don't know what you don't know   
   and the less you do know the more you think you know.    
      
    RM> You have much easier access to geographically diverse information.   
   This is true.   
      
    RM> Etc.   
      
    NA> Remember the early to mid 90's... The world did not suddenly morph   
    NA> into some magical utopia when the Internet became popular, nor would   
    NA> the "information superhighway" bring us together or improve our social   
    NA> standings with eachother by removing those geographical limits.   
   I wish this was the case. That was my hope and dream and still is, the   
   information age! We could have it, but corps ... they've stolen the dream! data   
   became a traded commodity vs its real use information, not money. It could be a   
   lot cheaper, but ... its just being monetized.. like that is what drives   
   people, .. usually no, but due the collective consciousness of corps about the   
   all gains and growth vs all good and sustained, everyone has to play their game   
   or fall behind financially and literacy (must keep working). The information   
   age should have set many free, and make us more freer people!    
      
    RM> It depends on how technology is used.   
    RM> But the fact remains that it is now much quicker and easier to   
    RM> communicate with people from other continents, etc.   
   This is what allows the dumbing down, while it could also allow global   
   education and understanding, but .. what is going on? Separation, ignorance,   
   misunderstanding, misinformation at a rapid pace on a global scale.   
      
      
    NA> In fact, I think the opposite happened. People by and large just stare   
    NA> off into their smartphones, or are addicted to Facebook, or seem   
    NA> compelled to share pictures of what theyre about to have for supper.   
    NA> Cybercrime is more advanced and prevailent than ever nowadays.   
   Agree! I've asked people why, why take a picture of your food, how many times   
   have you looked at those pictures going back ... say 7 years. They don't really   
   have good answers, not answers for reasons that would be logical, but more so   
   about feelings or emotional based reasons.    
      
    RM> There we are again, that it depends on how technology is used.   
    RM> And it also requires more education on the user side.   
    RM> Eg. checking the crowd sizes for inauguration and to fact check "fake   
    RM> news"   
   Its nutty how fake news is spreading. At one point people were able to shed   
   light on major media corps with simple small cameras and posting them on the   
   internet, even some of the older smart phones, but now.. now you can be put in   
   place of another and it can be almost undetectable. This was all before major   
   censorship over the past 1.5 years.    
      
    NA> I realise its not all doom and gloom and there are a few good websites   
    NA> out there, but IMO western society's social skillset and intelligence   
    NA> level did not improve whatsoever by the Internet.   
   Not all doom and gloom is true. Think about how we (us on this board use the   
   nets vs, basic smart phoners).   
      
    RM> That is why education is important.   
    RM> People need to LEARN to use the tools that are already widely   
    RM> available.   
   Yes they do, but the tools are being produced and changes so fast, they have to   
   be simplified and dummied down for users to understand them, and this is   
   creating quality problems as well.    
      
    RM>> The Internet is just a tool for communication.   
    RM>> You need to select with WHOM you communicate.   
    NA> I really wish I could share the same sentiments, truth is, the   
    NA> Internet is by and large powered by companies who by and large earn   
    NA> profits by tracking and manipulating individual's on-line activity.   
    NA> Google, Microsoft, Amazon, etc.   
   I agree with both of you. Turn on encryption and start communicating with each   
   other without allowing the giants to take and your comms and use them to turn   
   us all into the product.   
      
    -> education   
    RM> Learn to use Privacy Badger, Adaware and other useful tools.   
   I'll have to look this up.    
      
    RM> EFF is usually a good read on those topics.   
    RM> One interesting part is browser fingerprinting.   
    RM> https://panopticlick.eff.org/   
      
      
   Hi everyone, I'm back and its been a long long time but I was off working on   
   some project that took my attention and I wasn't able to get back to this   
   really interesting topic.    
      
   I've really liked to confirm the internet is in-part dumbing down people. I've   
   looked up a lot of information and although I use the internet for the research   
   its been interesting to see the change in available general indexed internet   
   search results. Since the last posts I've made we've seen several changes like   
   censorship, and straight out psyops, or behavior control. Now many of us older   
   computer users, knew of the warning signs delivered from the olden day   
   underground aka hackers, but for the masses.. they have no clue, and will never   
   have a clue and will never care.    
      
   So the other day I was watching netflix ... The Great Hack .. and watching it   
   knowing that other companies are performing psyops on the masses, but they are   
   getting better and better at it.    
      
   I've also had the opportunity to work with people and talk to people about   
   today's younger workers, and while I've observed the zombie like almost   
   unbreakable attention to their smart phone, and they stroke the phone like   
   Golem loves the precious, ... but they have a real real hard time dealing with   
   others when having to focus or remember what they are being told.    
      
      
   Hey sorry no name in sig, .. still way to scared to do so. The internet has   
   also made very vindictive people these days, OSI.. is getting toooo easy.    
       
   --- MultiMail/Linux v0.49   
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