TNA-GOLD 1/TNA-GOLD - Volume 1.iso/24hours/demessay.txt

INI File | 1996-03-11 | 4KB | 78 lines

[Prev| Next| Index] 2/22/96, [e-mail], Arlington, MA, USA

Internet Communities

One of the keystones of democracy is freedom of association -- the freedom
to get together with others to pursue similar goals.

The Internet has encouraged the creation of on-line communities. Cyberspace
is full of such communities -- from Usenet newsgroups to electronic mailing
lists to Web pages which offer a place to read others' comments, then leave
your own.

These communities can span boundaries that were previously insurmountable.
People who live in faraway places, in different timezones, of different
economic classes, even speaking different languages, all can gather
together, form a miniature culture, and share their experiences and
knowledge. And people who need help can get it, even if they're miles away
from it.

There's always a common bond -- growing up in the same city, or owning the
same brand of computer, or worrying about the same political developments
or the same personal problems. That common bond is what keeps these
communities working even in the face of enormous personal differences.

But these communities only form -- and can only survive -- because there
are no restrictions on what the common bond can be.

For me, personally, the Internet has made it possible to explore new
interests by finding people who share them and hearing what they have to
say. I've been able to stay in contact with owners of DEC PC computers,
people building cohousing projects, people who grew up in New York City and
went to Stuyvesant High School, folk musicians and concert producers,
people who don't want to have children, even people who write filksongs
(science-fiction-related song parodies).

And I've been able to listen in on cultures and interests that aren't
easily available any other way. For example, out of curiosity, I read the
alt.sex.bondage newsgroup over a period of several months. From this, I
developed a better understanding of what "S&M" really is, why people do it,
and how they think about it. (Before, I thought of it as perverted and
weird; now I consider it a much-maligned, harmless form of sexual
expression.) I was able to learn this without meeting any members of the
S&M culture face-to-face or doing anything sexual.

I have no doubt that many people on the Internet, and many people in this
country, would find most of the articles in alt.sex.bondage to be indecent.
They might view the above paragraph as evidence that I've been corrupted,
lulled into thinking that an evil lifestyle is morally neutral after all.

I totally disagree. The only way to make moral decisions about different
values, lifestyles, political views, or anything else is to first gather
information about them. If you want to fight your moral enemies
effectively, first you must know them, you must learn all you can about
them. (And if it turns out that after you've learned about them, you
discover they're no longer enemies, that's even better!)

The Internet currently makes controversial information available easily,
cheaply, and safely. It contains readily available, easy-to-use indexes and
searching services for Usenet newsgroups, electronic mailing lists, and Web
pages. Access is available at low or no cost in many areas. And it's safe:
your neighbors won't gossip about what you're reading or talking about.

I think it's all-important that the Internet remain free from tests for
decency or offensiveness. That way, people will be free to learn about new
cultures and subcultures and then to make their own decisions about what's
offensive or indecent for them.

Freedom to learn -- isn't that an essential part of democracy?



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Created by Bob Leigh ([e-mail]).
Last updated on 22 February 1996