Ah the internet

The internet is a place where we can go to see places we would never see; to get information; to connect with others; to pay bills; go to school; video chat with family.....the possibilities are numerous. There is a bad side however, to the internet. It allows people who have bad intent, who are misguided, who are emotionally or mentally disturbed,or who are problematic, a platform to spout nonsense.

Worse yet, it allows people to perpetuate the perfect bull. The best way to get away with telling a whopper of a lie is to make sure there is a lot of truth to it. Many people don't check things out at all. They believe if it is on the net it is true (which probably happens less than half the time). I have written many times about not passing along all those "warnings" your friends and family send you . You know the ones about how it is easy for someone to rob your house if you do this, clean your oven if you do that, steal your car if you are here or there....it is endless.

There are places to check this information. Not only are there sites that deal with all the BS and sort it out for you, but there is common sense. There are reliable news sources. Make sure that you check several of those also. Then there are the spoof sites, they write witty satire in a way that gullible people latch on to as real. Make sure you aren't being pranked by a site like The Onion.

Then there are the really bad guys. They have big soap boxes. Webpages, pages on Facebook and other social networking sites. They are negative as can be, and take the stance that they are helping, or exposing. I assume you have heard of the Westboro Baptist Church. They are a prime example. There are many sites and pages now that claim to expose wrong doing, bad people, and more. I don't know who made them the Karma Police, but apparently they think it is OK to enforce their beliefs on the world. They do that "good lie" thing, they start with a fact or facts, and either embellish or make that fact look like a very bad thing. They get their self esteem through putting others down. They are passive aggressive people who have nothing better to do than try to make others look small so they can look big.

I was going to name sites this morning, but then thought...why give them more press, they would love it. They are easy to spot. They don't do it for profit, they do it for an emotional high that makes them feel like they are saving the world. 

When any site tells you someone or something is bad, check it out. Check it out several ways and in several places. When there is one iota of untruth, stop, disregard the whole thing and move on. Sites like these ruin people's lives, businesses and relationships. They are nothing but mean, spiteful and hateful, with a big dose of Holier Than Thou. Bypass them all! Nothing good will ever come of any person saying they have the scoop on who is good and who is bad. Gossip is gossip, even if it is on a webpage.

Be careful out there because there is more MISinformation, than information on the webpage these days.

...and while you even think for a moment of spreading the rumor, remember these two things:

DO UNTO OTHERS


DO THE RIGHT THING FOR THE RIGHT REASONS!



Peshaui Wequashimese



(C)2013 Dr RM Wolf , may not be used, copied or reproduced without prior written permission.