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What The Net is Doing to You
Bart writes "The BBC reports One of the world's first research centres dedicated to studying the social, political and economic effects of the net has opened in Oxford" I've offered to trade CowboyNeal to them as a research subject for a case of beer. I think studying the effects of the internet on him will save lives. See? Someone is thinking of the children.
The Net has great and ponderous effects, such as creating studies to show the great and ponderous effects of the net.
I'll be honest, we're throwing science against the wall to see what sticks. -Cave Johnson
The Internet is a dynamic place. I don't think that a traditional study can accuratly describe the effects that it has on us.
I think that this study will be outdated as soon as it is written.
rejected (19) accepted (0)
Is there a psychological term related to getting your stories rejected on slashdot?
Perhaps science could explain why direct sunlight and fresh air kills us so quickly?
Be you Admins? nay, we are but lusers!
It is silly to waste my hard-earned money on a research center when many internet researchers have already done research without a center.
If you don't know what Zoo Blacklisting is, click here.
It broadens the mind by introducing you to subgenres of pr0n that you never knew existed.
Eli Noam, Professor of Economics and Finance at the University of Columbia, said... "We must save the internet from its founding myth that it is good for democracy and is open and cannot be regulated." I don't even have anything to say to this... besides, I'm sure the rest of you will. peace, tom
So you're thinking about having children?
Taco is really starting to settle down isn't he.
www.thinkofthechildren.co.uk
Sure, it's off topic, but I have karma to burn.
Deleted
Heh. There is a photo of some shirtless, tatooed protester swinging a punch to a policeman, with as caption:"The net could help improve political debate". Anybody else thinks the BBC has a strange idea of political debate? Besides, how is the net going to improve political debate, or at least raise it above the level depicted in that photo? Soon, we'll all be wetware-wired into the net, and then, instead of beating you with a stick, the cops i'll just fry your brains instead. It's called progress.
People who think they know everything are a great annoyance to those of us who do.
Hmm, why does this smell like a Katz story. You know the kind where instant messaging has a deep and profound impact on all of civilization and that we must study it and talk about our "feelings" towards it.
Sunlight and fresh air is good for you! I can't believe you didn't know that. Christ, some people...
Now, with that out of the way, let's discuss what it may be about eating other things than pizza that causes all these heart problems.
"If you think education is expensive, try ignorance" - Derek Bok
Is what this article sounds like. As if they want to be able to control the entire world's perception of the internet, and how they use it. This won't work of course, as business, personal beliefs, economics, and social concerns are the main driving factors in the electronic world. not some lame researcher in a cube telling everyone in his livejournal that they should think about everything in a different way
Surely the impact of the Net is totally obvious.
The Net lowers the cost of communication.
This lets people create much larger and more efficient network.
Activities that depend on such networks (research, digital theft, collaborative research, free software development, certain kinds of commerce) have and will continue to boom.
Activities that depend on the high cost of communications (old media, encyclopedia salesmen, and other information cartels) have and will continue to decline.
This seems to be stating the obvious... what else will a study turn up? That we are evolving resistance to RSI?
Sig for sale or rent. One previous user. Inquire within.
Well, I got so see more Pr0n than I ever imagined. Saw stuff that made me want to wash my eyes with liquid drano. Downloaded a Lot of useless crap. Became addicted to Online Comics. Made a handful of new friends. Got myself an e-mail account through a friend in Oslo. Learned that there are a Lot of ways to cheat...
Search engines are my friends!
So much data. So little HD space...
that more people have a voice. The Internet has given the "common man" direct access to politicians and information about political topics. If citizens are more informed and can take a greater role in political decisions, there are likely to be less instances of protests and riots. It will improve the political debate by giving citizens a more "civilized" method of accessing politicians. Not that it will necessarily eliminate the days of the protest and riot, but it should help to make more informed and connected citizens.
"Herbivores eat well cause their food never, ever runs."
Check out the realvideo (yeah sorry) technetcast presentation here . It's refreshing, to the point and funny. And oh so typically Cliff Stoll-ian. :)
Sure, there's this organization that is DEDICATED to studying The Net and the "profound" social changes it has engendered.. right, so where's the ground breaking results? The article is highly speculative, and contains little of value, I think someone just got caught by the catchy title without any core value..
My 2gilders
d
Am I the only one that first read this as "What the dot-Net is doing to you"?
"Send an Instant Karma to me" - Yes
But he warned against simply accepting that the net was a force for good all by itself and needed no guidance by policy makers to shape its effects.
This is why I hate these social-engineering dweebs. It can never be enough that something is just there and people use it. They think that the common man is too stupid to "understand the ramifications" and that there has to be broad and sweeping "policies" on what to think of it and how to use it.
I'll blame it on leftists, you can blame it on whoever.
Loaded on user's computer Dec 31, 2003. (You'd think a site devoted to computing would have halfway decent servers.)
Who else thinks these guys just want to view pr0n, visit chatrooms and play games all day?
Sounds like a research grant I would think up :)
-- Waht? Tehr's a preveiw buottn?
Mostly The Net just bored me. Sandra Bullock did the best she could with the script, but the entire thing was exactly the sort of paranoid FUD that makes people think they can get sick by using a computer with a virus.
Now, The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes? Classic!
--
Damn the Emperor!
I'd rather not think of Cowboy Neal making children...
Do you even lift?
These aren't the 'roids you're looking for.
(Even though a Brit invented it.)
Too much academic naval watching. This stuff already happened five human years ago, or 35 "Internet years" ago. Excerpt from article:
"But academics are starting to find out how important an agent of social change the internet is, the opportunities it presents for researchers and how to frame policy and practice to cope with its associated changes."
Any 15 year old kid could could have told this five years ago. Adults, especially academics, are clueless.
Seeing that the Internet is a great place where people can do research and download p0rn and do many things unimaginable before the advent of it, (excluding SPAM) I can only see good things coming out of this study. For every new idea/technology, there are bound to be good and bad sides to it. -SK
Does anyone else see a logical flaw in that argument? It's not like knowledge == control. If knowledge was measurable in quantity and quality, then the statement might make sense. But I've yet to see compelling proof that such measurement is practicle or desireable. Since when did we have control over technology? The statement in that context almost implies we have control over "it" and that some how we will loose "control over it."
It seems like they still have a lot of work to do, like defining what "it" is and how to go about measuring "it". Otherwise, it will just be a truck load of political jargons.
Foxy Cleopatra: "So, what does this thing do?"
Austin Powers: "Well it's called the internet, and it's completely revolutionized the way we live and access vital information. For example have a look at this...
monkey.mpg
Foxy: "Wow... now that's vital information."
Austin: "I know, it's amazing!"
mole.sig
The internet has helped me in soooo many ways, I can't thank it enough. Before the internet, I didn't know much about p0rn. Now there is so much more to see, so much to play with.... Thank GOD for the intenet.
"We must save the internet from its founding myth that it is good for democracy and is open and cannot be regulated."
Oh, is *that* why we need to be told what to do? For DEMOCRACY?
Eli Noam is an academic who moonlights as a beurecrat. Based on his webpage, he doesn't seem to advocate censorship exactly - he wants to somehow use regulation to encourage people to talk one another when they have diverse social backgrounds. This is a laudable goal, and I'm certainly no anti-government nut - but this is a stupid target for regulation. Like regulation to make people be nice.
He complains about centralization of information. This has NOT been my experience with the web - EXCEPT for academic journals. If he wants regulation to require peer-reviewed academic journals to make their content available for free online; well, that would be great. I'd support that 100%. A journal that wants money shouldn't publish publically funded research.
The fact is - the protocols (TCP/IP, http/html) fascilitate free, open and DIVERSE exchanges of communication. I can't think of any changes I'd make that would encourage people to interact with people of diverse experience. If there were improvements to these fundamental protocols, there would some justification in legislating them (you'd get them no other way), but I don't think his goals are well enough defined, or the effects well enough understood, to even talk about this as an option at this juncture.
His op-ed pieces are particularly enlightening if you really care what he thinks.
The good and new comes from no quarter where it is looked for, and is always something different from what is expected.
Hmm, A case a beer huh? Might want to ask for two cases of beer.
eh, this sucks, I am going back to bed....
They must be on crack. There are many different places looking at these sorts of things:
c hn ology__and_Society_Studies/
http://dir.yahoo.com/Social_Science/Science__Te
Seriously...most places that do cultural analysis of science are also looking at the effects of the internet.
- Sighuh?
For disabled people that don't leave the house often it's even more of a godsent than for 'normal' people. Finally they have a cheap and vast and versatile tool for getting and sending information!
-- Cheers!
What kind of beer?
It broadens the mind by introducing you to subgenres of pr0n that you never knew existed.
While the above post was joking, the idea is true. The internet has done more to make sexuality and sexual practices that were 'deviant' before the mid 1990's into more normal every day things.
In some respects this is very good. People who were otherwise unable to express themselves now have an outlet. People can find partners and build relationships that they would never have had a chance to in the past.
In some respects this is very bad. People who are truly sick-- those who sexually molest children to get their jollies-- are lulled into a sense of normalcy by the apparent 'commonness' of their illness.
The next Slashdot story will be ready soon, but subscribers can beat the rush and slashdot the links early!
The net taught me enough shocking things about rocking the casbah, that there would be small challenge in making a sailor blush.
It taught me that humanity itself is plagued with idiots; not just the populace of the United States.
On the plus side, because of the net, I learned what real music sounds like. On the down side, the RIAA is now more determined than ever before to shove crap into my ears, all because of the net.
I think, however, that the most important thing that has happened to me because of the net is this: Because of the internet, I've been able to 'own' camping bitches all the way over in France.
Cheese eating quad-camping surrender monkeys.
The 'net has allowed us to capatilize on our synergy while moving to a B2B model and later B2C. During this time we leveraged our user community and capatilized through eCommerce.
Then we ran out of funding and went broke. But it was a fun couple-a-few years.
You know you're a geek if you've ever replied to a tagline.
To quote the Great and Wonderful OZ.
"Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain!"
One man's info babble becomes another man's reality?
Just think of what H.G. Wells could have done with the Net!
The sum of our knowledge today becomes the reference point of our ignorance tomorrow.
Here are the results:
Social effects: Porn distributions reach an all time high. Minors are exposed to porn as soon as they learn how to type "http://". Divorse is at an all time high because a woman from Ohio can chat with a "rich guy" from Texas while her "hard" working hubby is at work all day (masturbating to the new porn sites he found on his son's computer last night).
Political: People finally realized how much fun the President really gets to have in the oval office - we impeached him (jellousy!!)! People also excahnged a record number of politcal cartoons via email - Al Gore looses election!
Economic: The Internet brought the world economy out of the early 90's depression, created stocks with price earnings ratios of 50x and up, people could trade stocks online - which further drove up the over inflated stocks. Poor people became millionaires overnight - and are now poor again because they spent all their money on a super bowl commercial. Now the economy has collapsed around itself and unemployment is at an all time high (except for the people that are doing this study
And who said you need a PhD to document the effects of the net?
HallmarkOrnaments.Com
Our U.S. equivalent, of course, might be Carnegie Mellon University -- from which we got all sorts of The Internet is Soooooo Scary "studies" for a while. (Remember the Time Magazine article back in 1994 or so that claimed 75% of all Web traffic was pRon? That was based on a C-M U paper. The more recent "study" that said people who browsed a lot tended to be depressed and socially isolated? Guess what University published it. Somebody at Carnegie Mellon has a hateful thing going on, seems like.)
It's advocacy over actual information, as far as U.S. pop media's appetite for "studies" goes.
"Fundamentalism" isn't about divine morality. It's about human authority.
From the article: "We no longer need to capitalise the internet like we do God or Truth," he said.
You MORON! We capitalize Internet not because it's some sort of abstract concept, but because it's a proper noun. Many companies have their own internet(work). There is only one Internet (WWW). Schmuck.
You may now commence calling me anal.
A.C.
Seems like they mixed up their images, that was actually from the Manchester United finals.
It is by the juice of the coffee bean that thoughts acquire speed, the teeth acquire stains. The stains become a warning
I'm sorry but I never want people who dress up in fur suits to have sex to become accepted by society. After all, part of their fun is to be outsiders and I don't need to see a guy dressed as Barney with an erection sticking out.
It is by the juice of the coffee bean that thoughts acquire speed, the teeth acquire stains. The stains become a warning
"All that has happened is the "lazy man" has found a way to send his opinions and read other people's without getting out of his house."
Sort of like posting to Slashdot?
It is by the juice of the coffee bean that thoughts acquire speed, the teeth acquire stains. The stains become a warning
There is no surprise that one sees one of the most violent "revolutions", quotes from a communitst and censorsip ideas like those implementet in the mentioned communistic country all grouped together.
:-)))
I have long observed people with communist thoughts (so called commnists) having taken over the BBC. You can tell by statement like these and by nearly fanatic hatered of christian religion.
(For instance, saying "A.D." in a date is against BBC guidelines and is censored out
Watch guys! Your Big Friends are out to get you.
Censorship is not coming. It is already here on the BBC!
I find it sad that so many things labled as "American" are such crap. American cheese... how can they call it cheese when it is only grease, salt, artificial flavors and maybe some enzymes? And when asked what "American Food" is, many people will begin the list with 'Ballpark Nachos' (see reference of grease called cheese), hotdogs (a bastardized and overprocessed form of an already processed form of entrails and remains from various other countries), bologna (same as hotdogs), white bread (yah, throw some more bleach in my samich please), and PB&J (now THERE is something to be proud of dammit, in fact I think I will go make myself one now).
On the other hand, I have tried some very good beer made in America, but since the term "American Beer" really refers to the that over watered down, corn sugar (and other cost cutting crap) subsitute piss that only vaguely resembles a Pilsner, then it is hard to refer to it as such.
I shiver just thinking about drinking that swill. Budweiser, king of beers for the fat, no life, football fanatic loser who's lack of real life accomplishments or substance is only glossed over by his dependence on others accomplishments and weak attempt to make himself look NOT like a fat lazy pathetic slob.
Actually, the internet has given politicians the ability to communicate directly with the world, not just their constituents, via their web sites and email. Not that they couldn't send out newsletters before, but email newsletters are more cost-effective.
Case in point: Back when I lived in NC, I signed up to be on my Senator's email mailing list. Even though I've moved to another state, I still get the messages, which include info like when he'll be appearing on various news shows and what cities in NC he'll be visiting that week.
I think it's the ability to get out timely information like that where the internet beats out traditional media. Newspapers and snail mail are more expensive and slower, TV and radio are here-and-gone so if you didn't write that information down, too bad. The internet is uniquely fast and long-lasting.
Your fantasies contain the seeds of important concepts.
Eve ate apple from the Tree of Knowledge and thus gained god-like insight into the human plight. Or at least, that's the metaphor.
But these bums who obsess on controlling the internet and all knowlege would be like a Bureaucrat, a Politician, and an Entrepreneur who entered the Garden, kicked G-d out and set up Garden of Eden Apples Lmt. They would then eat apple-sauce, apple cider, and apple apples.
Meanwhile GOAL would contract out to the timber industry for sawdust and the slop industry for protein, and use a Red #5 and a factory to produce Consumer Renewable Apple Protien-Supplement for consumption by the general populace.
Ohhh, and somewhere along the way, they would also convince everyone that due to G-d's absence, they in fact were G-d.
I firmly believe that promiscuity and homosexuality both constitute being 'truly sick'. You can talk all you want about how urges were 'repressed' and people need to 'express themselves,' but (contrary to popular opinion) psychology does NOT vindicate things like this in the least, and it is NOT psychologically healthy to do so. Pornography, promiscuity, and homosexuality really are like illegal drugs- you tamper with the way your body is ordered in an attempt to produce more pleasure and get all sorts of negative effects. If the Net is providing an 'outlet' for this kind of thing, that would be one of its worst effects, not one of its positive ones.
Modern society is learning the hard way that you can't encourage perversion and expect people to act morally. When we all grasp this basic truth, the world will be a lot better off.
I'm bound to be flamed to death for this. Sometimes the truth is difficult, unpopular, and publicly termed 'intolerant.' It needs to be told nonetheless.
we need to pay politicians and bureaucrats to tell us what to do in cyberspace... the one place where the 1st Amendment should reign supreme...
Hmm, last I checked, I don't have a 1st Amendment in my Constitution, and "cyberspace," being, as nearly as I can define it, not really a "place" at all so much as a metaphor for a place, doesn't de facto or de jure fall under completely US jurisdiction (no matter what you all might think cough Sklyarov cough), that's an extremely Americocentric way of putting it.
Now free speech, on the other hand, freedom of the press, perhaps, and certainly multilateralism and international cooperation, I'll go for.
In any case, we don't need stodgy academics, consolidationist free-market wet-dream media moguls, or anyone else turning the internet into television with fewer moving parts (there's a reason I don't watch television!) -- nor in preaching the scripture that the freedom and openness of the internet are an illusion that should be dispelled as soon as possible (to what end?).
As with all agendists of every stripe, I have to ask what this guy's ulterior motives are. Can some kind Slashdotter with some time on their hands find out who's (which media company, dare I venture?) paying him?
I'm not a geek, I'm just a clever script.
Not sure if anyone else has mentioned this, but this story got google'd. Does this mean /. is real news now? Horror of horrors.
. ht ml
http://news.google.com/news/gntechnologyleftnav
managers...why god invented purgatory
It's wasting my time! Thanks a lot, Slashdot. Thanks a lot, Onion. Thanks a lot, MSNB-- er, comment over. Gotta go.
Thing(s) you would be likely to get for Cowboy Neal in trade:
- Case of beer
- Case of Scotch
- Case of Maalox
- Case of SPF 90
- Case of depression
- Case of anxiety
- Case of Cowboy Neal's Genuine Imitation Butter Substitute
My other sig is a Mercedes
Here are a just a few others off top on my head (all of those have existed for several years):
- U. of Toronto's NetLab
- U. of Michigan School of Information
- Berkeley Center for Globalization and Information Technology
- Berkeley Center for Information Technology and Marketplace Transformation
This by no means is a complete list - I am just too lazy to paste more links. Also, a number of books have been published on the subjects, e.g. The Internet in Everyday Life, The Control Revolution, etc.Today is an important anniversary for Oxford.
Another example of a body researching the societal effects of the internet
The Pew Charitable Trust
The Internet makes you stoopid.
non-christian faiths.
Your comment has nothing to do with the topic.
Sure, it's off topic, but I have karma to burn.
Moderators,
Have you had an irony bypass today ?
The link is to a parody of mass media hysteria currently being stired up in the UK by the low-end tabloids and minor celeberaties about the 'corruption of children' by the Internet.
In my humble opinion, this is frighteningly ontopic for this article.
OMFG! Heinrich and his babykilling cabal of communists is back. he may be funny this time, but know, moderators, that this man has a bonafide history of supporting things that lead to the DEATH of innocents. this man's black heart is tainted with the deaths of hundres of voices and souls screamingout for vengeance against him and his cronies who plans the executions of INNOCENTS!
Because the openess of the net mimics in some ways the closeness between 'common' and leader in the early days of democracy.
The printing press made it possible for folks like Tom Paine to print up and rapidly distribute political pamphlets (Paines writings, like "Common Sense" are often credited with being more important than Washington's leadership in winning the war), which were read aloud and widely discussed in the many taverns of the day.
There was much less distance between leaders and 'commons', (since there were so few taverns?;-), & folks are reported to have discussed politics much more openly and frequently than folks do in pulblic today.
So the net may well encourage more open debate, debates that folks are often afraid or don't care to have in person anymore, and may help the 'commons' communicate more directly with the leaders. But I'm not sure it will lead to less protest, unless the leaders listen willingly. My guess is that the ability of disaffected groups to communicate rapidly and globally will lead to more protests, at least until a good way is found to let folks excercise their political power through the web (like e-referenda?) rather than in the streets...
Will this study be publish on the net?
I know you and your types. The communist is back. I know you and how you want to purify yourself on the alter of intellectual debate. I know you think you are smarter and should think for everyone and democracy is bad and that we should atone. I know you do nothing and you are a professional academic and that is sadly a contradiction in terms. I know no one has ever benefited from your work, you don't have to prove yourself, and that you stand on the shoulder of many men with a crushing boot as do your 1st world friends. We all do. But somehow you get absolution from being evil, you are better; you are a deeper thinker and are somehow not a party to this evil dance of greed and decadence. You fucking anti right wing types, by no mean would I condone fascism, but ultra left wingers and ultra right wingers are religious zealots. They wash themselves of blame and use human sacrifice to prove they are right. You are a fear monger, and a naysayer. But Red October_30th, you never prove yourself. You hide in school, hiding from the proving grounds. You enjoy life; you expect to live 3 times longer than most people on earth. You think you want it equal for everyone one, but you will give up none of the accoutrements and amenities of the 1st world lifestyle, while you spit venomous remarks at your enemies the right wing establishment, but you theories about cabals of men raping the world, well, whatever you theorize about you are a party to so fuck off. You vile scum. I wanted to ask you how it feels to put the diapers back on a baby you just raped? Look at the communist left wing Bund, rules by intellectuals, and this lead to the power base of V I Lenin to crush the life out of hundreds of millions of people for almost a century. Real good left wing establishment, the soviet empire. You are such a clouded thinker. Democracy may not be the best, but mobocratic revolutions lead to thought policing, and capitalism breed a daily voting system that the stupid and smart all partake in, voting thousands of times a day with your wallet. And those who detract from such a system are generally inferior. They claim to not being able to get a break but they don't try. Like you don't 'October,' the pussy behind the veil. You don't like a system which makes you look pathetic, you never published, you don't have a patent, you never helped anyone, you only make enough to feed yourself and you greedy needs, you will never affect another man. And charity? I have taken many under my wing and show them how to fish metaphorically whenever I can, but your bourgeois Volvo driving liberal asshole don't want to take the time out of your day to teach a man to fish, you want the government to do it all for you, and raise your kids, and pay for your health while you suck down cigarettes and blame it on the government and evil business. Think of WW2, think of all the people who had no choice and died. 55 million people dies, and more would have had not the biggest evil capitalists come in a kicked fucking ass. And that we did. USSR, 11 million dead. Germany 4 million. Japan 1.4 million. The USA? 300,000 dead. We kick fucking ass. We saved you and your fucking little pit's neck. Now that the average age of the world is half that of how many years have passed since then most of you liberal idiots have forgotten that you and your Volvos and you free thinking and all that shit would be dead, and you'd either have grown up in a Hugo Boss Hitler youth suit or in a stupid piece of shit clothing made by the USSR with seams falling out, wishing for blue jeans.
I was in USSR in 1991. I doubt you've ever been, and even during glasnost/perestroika the place was a fucking dump. Go to Moscow now, the mafia does a better job than left wing commies. And that holds true. Left wing thinkers are lower than the mafia because they justify everything.
I can't believe you sit on your pulpit, unproven, unmarried, and not responsible for anyone but yourself allowed to masturbate yourself all day long, with the implements of greed. A full stomach, an easy non labor life, DVD players, a fucking computer and an internet connection. Then you come out and kick the balls of the very engine that provides everything that is real to you. Everything you look at is a product of entrepreneurship and genius - both. Sometimes, when a guy like Howard Hughes has both, the results are rather interesting, but most of the time the innovators and the entrepreneurs work hand in hand to deliver, something you were never a part of because you are inferior and you hide in academia unproven and spout your vicious epithets from your perch where you frothing rabid thoughtless speech wafts into the air largely unheard, your snarky self congratulating style is hated by all. I want to kick you in the testicle sack and sodomize you with a broom handle. I want you to feel the burning pain of something in your ass. That is how the 3rd world feels every day, but you claim to know nothing about that ass-pain. But you are a cause of it. You vote with your presence in a society. You are a part of the collective, and if you think those less fortunate consider your defense of them, they are too fucking STUPID to even differentiate and advocate from an evil oppressor. You mother-fuckers walk a thin line. The line is between stupidity and insanity.
So now the anti government anti free society lunatic and terrorist supporter comes to Slashdot to troll, to quip and chime in with his thought policing. From the Bund, the communist union left wing shop. Even Albert Einstein, god bless him, was a member of the communist party. He would have been a highly intelligent accomplished but completely unfit for public leadership - which is why he largely stayed out of politics. But without entrepreneurship and a free society, the money and equipment to verify his theories would have never come to pass. Why did my Einstein live in the USA, in Princeton NJ? Why not Russia? When did Russia EVER beat the west to proving and or utilizing Einstein's theories? Well, you see left wing death organizations like USSR and the EU, which is turning out to be a force of evil with their anti Turkish and Anti Israeli racist elitist attitude, is a similar fucking hole. A bunch of decadent, self fucking mental masturbatory mother fuckers Oedipus slime molds who sit around and spout trash while their own racist anti entrepreneur system crumbles and the third world is as pissed off as ever.
You god damn bitch, why do you come here and shit on these threads, you defecate and eructate forth such crap with your snarky one liners and you deprecated method of thinking. You communist friends are gone, the lost. Fucking Moscow is a better capitalist than you. And if you think that legislated mediocrity, world "equality (doesn't exist as all humans are equal in the eyes of law but in terms of aptitude and usefulness to others, there is no equality, it's a gigantic strata)" is something that people want, fuck you, no one wants it, they all want everything from themselves, as you do but you deny it. I hate you, and I want to kick your testicles.
The baby-fucking pedophile death bringing terrorist cunt mother fucker Oedipus Rexxed out communist idiot with his Volvo and his bike path is back. He is a rapist, a terrorist, and killer.
DO not trust this man, he has been known to say things that lead to the justification of rape, mass killings, thought policing, societal cleansing. He is a typical proto fascist/communist/dictator, and the far left and far right meet at the bottom of a circle where Red October_30th is positioned.
used to do a good job with that long before the net took off...
A friend paid me a complement recently, he said I was mentally prepared for life as a cyborg.
I'm a software developer, and a 28-yr-old grrl. Always been into coding and the internet. What changed me recently is that I started telecommuting, and mmorpg (Darg Age of Camelot = crack).
I used to exercise almost every day, make dinner, and shower regularly. Now I'm constantly on either my work notebook or my gaming pc. I avoid leaving the house until I've run out of code red. I lost my connection for 9 hours and 20 minutes about a month ago, and I freaked.
What is the net doing to me? People here have made posts about the news and politics and porn, but I'm talking about daily life changes, and who I am at the core of my being. I still don't give a crap about politics, but almost all my socializing happens over the internet, and certainly all my work does, and my play. (sorry, no porn). None of this bothers me, I so completely enjoy life this way.
Until someone takes my connectivity away again...
> Well, for one, the observed tendency is for many (though definitely not all) negative effects of promiscuity, pornography, and homosexuality to be social negative effects.
1 /yate-j02 .shtml
i de/horb/horb-c 14.html
Reference?
> A few months ago, some pervert broke into a private home 50 miles north of mine in the middle of the night and kidnapped a preteen girl.
"Until the terrible events of June 20, Russell and Andrea Yates and their five children were the kind of family that a Ronald Reagan might have pointed to as a model for America, or that might have been paraded on the platform at a Republican national convention: responsible, professional father; "stay-at-home mom" and home-school teacher; well-scrubbed, neatly dressed, smiling children--a tribute to "traditional family values," as envisioned by the Christian right."
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2001/jul200
So do you call Christians "immoral perverts" since Andrea Yates was one? Maybe the Bible made her do it?
From my own review of the evidence, it seems to me that people who prey on other people generally have biochemical problems, probably mostly related to genetics. Certainly some drugs & experiences can exacerbate these problems (such as Yate's religious experiences that led her to claim her kids were possesed), but ultimately, there is simply something medically wrong with a human predator, blaming other folks who are superficially like them clouds the issue: just because a Christian drowned her kids doesn't mean that Christians tend to drown their kids. Nor do homosexuals tend to abuse children.
The fact is, folks who have biochemical problems tend to latch on to some experience in their life as the source of these problems, be it hearing about the devil in church or seeing pr0n on the 'net, these things tend to be _SYMPTOMS_ of an underlying biochemical problem, not CAUSES.
Its easy to blame the problem on some behavior we don't like for our own reasons (I tend not to enjoy the company of religious rightists, for instance) but the fact is that people who have tendancies toward doing violence to other people need to either learn to control those tendancies themselves or be put away. It's that simple.
As far as 'perversion' being the cause of violence, children were abused, people were raped, even back when folks who were 'different' were generally ostracized if not burned & I'm not sure the evidence suggests that there was less predatory violence in the past than there is today.
For instance:
History of Rape: A Bibliography
http://www.geocities.com/history_gu
This matter is simply put: your rectum can receive a large penis easily and fully, and this can be quite pleasurable, if you want it. And you must want it, before it can happen. That is, you must be at ease, in mind and body. The rectum is like a very elastic pipe with a set of muscular rings at the end, the anus. The anus acts as a plug, to stop things from going out, or let them in. It tightens and relaxes like purse-strings on a bag, and is fairly strong.
This muscle is controlled by the mind, and emotions influence how tense it will be at any given time. Good fucking can't happen unless the anus is relaxed, and this may take some learning, some patience, and some time.
Many of us are taught to be ashamed out our rear ends, of the things that happen there, and the sensations of this area. the anus can be an erotic place; most children experience pleasure in shitting, but many adults ignore these feelings, in their rush to get the act over with as little guilt as possible. The rear end becomes an ignored and mysterious place. The anus is usually held tight, and becomes the site of problems like hemorrhoids, yet the feelings are still there. Awareness and conscious control of the anus can be learned, although this takes time to discover.
Look at it as exploring something new, part of your own body. The first thing is, how do you feel about your anus and rectum? Are they a part of you, or do you emotionally push them away? If you feel bad about your ass, that it's a dirty place, this is where your explorations must begin. Explore your anus, to discover how it feels and
that it's not dirty, that you can touch it and not get hurt. You can do this two ways: by yourself or with a friend/partner/lover.
If you explore yourself you have control over you actions. Climb into a tub of hot water (or a shower or on your bed) and relax. Then with you fingertips explore your genitals and thighs, gliding around to feel what it's like. Then bend your legs and slide your fingers down between them lower and deeper, past your testicles. Touch your anus very lightly with one finger. Then with several. Push down a little- how does it feel? If you like that, try masturbating while pressing several fingers on your ass.
Now you've made contact. If it feels good there or if you sense that it will, keep exploring. Don't push yourself to do more than you want at any one time- pace yourself comfortably, but try to tune in on your rear; discover when it's tight and when it's loose, and how you can control this.
At some point you'll want to take the plunge, inserting a finger inside. It's a remarkable discovery that you can do this, and it opens up a world of new sensations. Be aware that the rectum is a sturdy, flexible organ and can't be hurt by fingers, a penis or other similar objects, unless you violently intend to do so: if you don't make your finger force your ass, or your ass force your finger, they will work well together. Sharp edges like fingernails can scratch it, and that's not good, so be sure your nails are well trimmed and filed first. The bottom line is if it can take all your excrement in its many shapes and sizes, it can take smaller things like fingers and cocks.
Usually there's nothing inside the end-part of the rectum; but sometimes there might be small particles. You'll discover that these are harmless and easily washed off after. Or you can clean out your rectum first, douching with an enema bottle and warm water. Many people who enjoy ass fucking do this first by habit, or you can use a quick and easy method developed by Dr. Bill Horstman, a San Francisco sexologist, which consists of douching with a large basting syringe, which can be bought at most supermarkets. It's a big plastic tube, pointed at one end (make sure to file down the tip so it's not scratchy) and a rubber glove on the other. Filled with water, it holds just enough to clean the rectum thoroughly and easily.
Now, I suggest you lie back on your bed (or wherever), and bend your legs to bring your feet up close to your rear. Get into an enjoyable masturbation with one hand, and grease a finger of the other with KY Jelly or another lubricant. Then place it at your anus, and push very gently, slowly. Your finger will go in just a little. If you want to get your finger in farther, you must keep pushing gently and firmly, and release the anus muscle and then you will feel you finger go all the way through, past the thick muscle and into the soft, quiet rectum.
It may feel uncomfortable at first, because you've taught yourself to regard anything in the rectum as dark and dirty, and you'll want to push it out. But take it easy; try letting your finger rest there as you're masturbating. You may feel a little burning or irritation, but this will turn to pleasure if your masturbation is feeling good. If you like, climax with your finger inside, and see how it feels. If all this seems good to you, keep up the exploration. If it bothers you, withdraw and try again later; take you time.
Once you get used to having your finger inside, you can discover new things. Stick you finger all the way in. Then feel around inside, gently, (and for guys especially:) as you masturbate, until you touch on a silver-dollar sized, round lump behind you testicles. this is your prostate gland, and you'll know when you've touched it because it'll feel hard and nice. If there's a sharp pain, however, withdraw your finger and go see a doctor, because it means your prostate might be infected. Otherwise, try moving your finger up and sown against the prostate as you masturbate. This will probably feel very good. Also you'll notice that you can squeeze and unsqueeze your anus around the finger.
Now you'll want to learn to loosen it enough to let in larger sizes. It may seem at first like you anus has a separate personality, doing things in its own way. But this is only because you've separated it in your mind. If you get to know it better, it'll eventually make friends with you, and the separation will disappear. After using your finger to meet it, get to know your anus more intimately. You can trace warm wet rings around its outside; after inserting a finger you can massage it, pressing outward in a circle, tensing and calming it, trying to curl your finger around its side, feeling its touch through the skin - while exploring, if you act like you're shitting, pushing out, this will help even more. Practice stretching and tensing/calming your anus around your finger; you want to do this until it can be widened easily and painlessly.
Next you can insert two (or more) fingers, seeing how far you can bend them apart. Later, you might want to try a dildo (a straight, smooth, round tipped object like those found in sex shops). It's a good idea to use something that won't break, such as plastic or rubber. Glass objects can sometimes shatter, and a candle could snap in the
middle leaving half stuck inside, so be careful... you don't want to become the next weird newsworthy object of humiliation! Otherwise, feel free to indulge, since you can only hurt your rectum with sharp objects or violent jabbing motions.
You might want to move right on to experimenting with a partner, and this is also another way to learn about your ass. Say to them "I'd sure like to enjoy anal pleasures, but I'm not used to it and a little afraid," Then your partner can turn you on, after douching if necessary, and that they can place their fingers at your anus during sex. They can also suck and tongue your anus if they like, or insert their finger(s). These are called analingus and postillioning, and can be soothing, warm, and exciting. A nice thing is for your partner to masturbate you as their finger is inserted in your rectum.
If neither of you can get this far, because your anus just won't relax, it means you're anxious somewhere, or you simply don't know how to relax it yet. This is not always the easiest thing to learn, and there's no reason to feel bad about it, since the anus is very likely to just follow old habits of not opening up. It takes time. Take risks only when you really feel safe, and don't allow yourself to be forced open. It helps to talk about this, and how you're feeling.
One especially nice act that can relax your rear is for your partner, during sex, to simply trace soft rings around the opening, pressing with one or two lubricated fingertips, going around and around. This usually has a calming, wholesome effect.
If, after much gentle trying over a period of time, your anus just won't loosen, I would suggest you might have a mental wish not to be entered that you aren't aware of. If this might be, explore the possibility in your mind and with your partner; you may want to see a counselor or sexologist, or you may decide that anal intercourse just isn't for you.
If you do progress in your explorations, the time will come for your partner to insert his penis. If this is what you both want, let it happen as it will, without planning on doing it. Be easy about it, trying one of the positions I've described. It may take several (or many) tries, so relax and feel the sensations. If it hurts, and it might, just ask him to withdraw gently. Some pain may happen, and this is usually normal, just as in vaginal sex can be painful at first. If it's a strong or sharp pain, back off, but you'll discover that the mild pain turns to blissful delight during sex. As he enters, you may experience a violent urge to go to the bathroom, or you may imagine you're going to piss or shit right there. This is a fantasy of your mind and body, through lack of use and conditioning; if you respect these feelings and have patience, they will change through practice. Also, if you're sexually excited, these feelings and any tightness will lessen considerably. The best rule is to take it in steps, going easy and smooth. It may seem difficult for a while, but you may be surprised by a rapid change from discomfort to sweet pleasure.
There is a special position for you if you want to take entire control of the act. This way you can go fast or slow as you like. It involves your partner lying on their back. Then you squat down over their hips, facing them, and guide their penis to your ass. Then you simply sit down on it, gently and as far as you want to go. You make any motions with your hips, or you can just feel what it's like.
There are two other ways you can take more control, which are useful not only if you're new at it, but also if the male has an extra large penis. You can use your hand as a stopper, wrapping it around his penis where you like so
only so much is let in (or he can use his own hand). Also you can use a position allowing only limited entry - a good one is where you lie flat on your stomach, with him lying on top; by pushing down with your pelvis or tightening your buttocks you can limit penetration even more.
After insertion, give a luxurious amount of time in becoming used to it. Let him worry about what to do, and you just pay attention to the warmth and you just pay attention to the sensualness of it. Try masturbating - this is a regular part of intercourse, and may surprise you with its explosive intensity.
Enjoyment in being the ass-person comes with letting go, into the experience. It's not being passive in our cultural sense, since your partner can be lying still with your making all the motions. Rather it's receiving and giving, their care and yours, your bodily/emotional desires and theirs, in various combination. It's reaching and
creating with your excitement, so that your union becomes fusion of give and take, in and out- a greater wholeness of being.
You can be entirely still or jumping all over, or anywhere in between. Most of the body motions are easy to learn, such as thrusting and grinding. It can get a little complicated at times, however, since if you both move your motions must be coordinated. The easiest thing to do is rotate your rear in a circular way, as he thrusts. A
tricky and subtle skill is to learn how to squeeze your anus, tight and loose, to fondle his pleasure more and start vibrating, glowing ripples up and down your rectum. You'll know if you're moving in good ways, because you'll feel a rhythmic flow inside and out. You'll begin to forget where you are, as your movements melt into your partner's.
Sam Adams, Brewer Patriot, we hope. Not the British stuff that John Cleese once described as warm swamp water with pond life in it.
Let's ask ourselves not wat the net is doing to us... but what WE are doing to the net... ;-)
Of course, if you search any academic index for articles on the Net and social interaction, say, you'll come up with at least 50 studies from the past three years alone. I should know. A group of us at the U Wisconsin just got a piece accepted for pubication on levels of Internet use and social interaction. Time spent online was a positive predictor (using two-stage least-squares regression, with controls for demographics, media use, personality and values) of civic engagement and attendence at public events. The reciprocal relationship did not hold.
That's just one of at least a dozen studies that explicitly correlate or show causal links between various measures of Internet use and positive levels of political/civic engagement. Check out Franzen (2000, European Sociological Review), Robinson et al. (2000, Social Science Computer Review), Shah et al. (2001, Political Communication) and Shah et al. (our piece, upcoming in Journalism and Mass Communication Quarterly; no, I'm not Shah) for examples. (Though see Nie, 2001, The American Behavioral Scientist, for a counter claim.)
But I'm sure glad those number-fearing, cultural-studies practicing Brits will finally tackle this ground-breaking subject.
I have travelled the length and breadth of this country, and have talked with
the best people in business administration. I can assure you on the highest
authority that data processing is a fad and won't last out the year.
-- Editor in charge of business books at Prentice-Hall
publishers, responding to Karl V. Karlstrom (a junior
editor who had recommended a manuscript on the new
science of data processing), c. 1957
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