The internet is painted with such broad strokes that merely as a male, I have numerous things I"m automatically guilty of by association. And then, of course, there is the "white" aspect, the middle aged aspect, the working aspect, the conservative aspect, and so on, all of which put me into a category that is despised by some other category of humanity. In fact, if one were to take all the things I'm lumped in with by association, I would be the vilest human in the history of the world. and to be fair, it goes on with both sides of every major issue. The vileness spewing forth from peoples' keypads and the automatic "sharing" of such posts is reprehensible in our society. We are more polarized than ever, it would seem.
Lest of course we forget that social media sites create the perfect forum for jihadists - those with no respect for the dignity of life, and those who I will identify as pure evil, no matter how just or worthy their cause may or may not be. Just this morning, at least 28 people died in the latest terror attack in Brussels. Why? Because of pure narcissistic greed and a complete lack of respect for a God-given right to life.
Then, in the light of the threats of evil this world faces, what lights up the internet? In both past and present, the number one use is pornography. Well, what must rank right up there is useless debates that often center on what I might call "soft porn:" the scantily clad skin-revealers who can only do it for one reason, and that is to get people looking at them and placing them back in the center of attention. Recent infatuations with Kim Kardashian's naked internet photos, along with Britney Spears' supposed photoshop of her waist should not even be given the time of day, and yet they dominate the net. Just look at what is "trending" on the right side of your Facebook page to see the latest round of garbage on all kinds of irrelevant topics.
It all boils down to the telling of truth. People will spin, will be deceptive, will omit, or will downright lie, all to advance their own agendae. It all comes down to what they desire. The problem with that is in what is the ultimate authority to determine right from wrong, and truth from lies. Truth has been a favorite topic of mine here, but rather than spend more time on that, it also becomes clear that the lack of truth is most often associated with people who follow their own internal desires, rather than a common good, a higher moral principle or virtue, or even an absolute truth. It was Spock who said as a part of Vulcan philosophy that "the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few." And yet we not only fail to recognize that in society but we cater to individual whims and desires, and have turned personal deviancy into the new normal.
It's no wonder this country and this world are in the mess they are in. And so what is the solution? Back to the topic at hand: the internet and social media. Like anything, there can be tremendous good in social media. But it can be and is also used for great evil. It must be within the resolve of average humans to get back to a greater level of decency once again - not to blame others for our own failings but to seek once again to find the common decency, virtue, and morality that when absent, brings down empires. In this Holy Week, the Christian church looks to the culminating events of Jesus' life, death, and resurrection once again. There is no better time to discuss the sewer that the internet and social media have become. For contained within the Gospel is the sum total of what it means to be decent: to think of others before the self, just as God demonstrated the greatest love in giving his life for his friends.
If we can get back to a position where others matter before ourselves - to follow Christ's ultimate example of love - perhaps this world can be turned around after all. A good place to start is in watching what we share and post online.
No comments:
Post a Comment