Other people can tweet, too!

Government Computer News Magazine, May 18, 2009 - a little side article called "Night of the Living Tweets" spoke of the CDC's use of Twitter and other "Web 2.0" tools to disseminate information concerning H1N1. Now, here is a great use of the internet. A real authoritative resource getting information out to the masses!! Bravo.

But as the article points out, “The Downside: Other people can tweet, too.” Hmm, I think I addressed just this topic in an earlier post. So, while the CDC is trying to get out pertinent, reliable information, Spoofers and idiots are cluttering the wires with satirical stories and bad information. One story originates from a site designed to look like a BBC web page – complete with links and statistics. The article states, “It was clearly a spoof, so no harm done.” I’m not so sure about that. I’ve heard people talk about The Daily Show and The Colbert Report like they are the only places they get their news. THEY ARE COMEDY SHOWS PEOPLE!! Get Real!

GCN ends the article with this warning: “But it’s worth keeping in mind that in a crisis, which can lead to panic, the unscrupulous might take advantage of these open tools.” - Not if you close them up!!!

OK, OK! I can hear it now! “OH COME ON! We can't shut it down because of what might happen.” Yeah, you’re right. But we can ebb the flow. Not every idiot should be allowed to post just anything. Just the simple act of charging to post would slow it to a crawl.

“Whoa,” you say. “Information should be free.” – Without getting into a whole philosophical discussion about intellectual rights, assuming the information is free, the costs to buy, build, and maintain the servers and infrastructure to disseminate it is not! And we should stop acting like it is and it is our God given right to do whatever we want with it. GROW UP!

ZOMBIES GO HOME!

Dennis Leary tells it like it is for HULU

You gotta love the absurdity of the HULU commercials - they tell it like it is, making fun of us all the way and still expect (and get) us to come right along and use their product. What are we? A bunch of Lemmings? No I haven't missed the point, their supposedly aliens! Perhaps you have, though.

“See, I just told you the truth and you’re still watching” he says after confirming TV will “rot” your brain. But, oh, the best part - “so here’s what I want you to do….”

Share on your “bliggidty blogs, and your facey spaces and your tweety pages…..” Sure go ahead, perpetuate the stupidity!!! After all we’re just lemmings. We’ll go over the cliff with you……

Dilbert hits it on the head again!

I just love Dilbert! And today's comic hits it on the head again, further making my point. First frame two ladies are visiting as a gentleman walks up. One lady says "My first baby weighed 12 pounds. I gave birth in the cab of a stolen backhoe." The man ("Topper") says, "That's nothing!" Second frame, he continues, "I once passed a gallstone so big that it became secretary of labor in the Clinton Administration." Third frame: The woman says, "I find that hard to believe." to which the man replies, "Give me ten minutes and then check wikipedia."

ARE YOU GETTING IT YET!!

Another perfect example of blogs that waste my time this morning. Admittedly, I have only myself to blame. I wasn't looking for an article on "Suspect detained over ‘extremist’ bumper sticker" - but it caught my eye as I was investigating another matter for a patron. Now this blog looks all official and business like - "Headlines" that looked "newspaper-ish"- does that give it credibility??

So the article is about this motorist that is supposedly stopped and detained for having a "Don't Tread on Me" bumper sticker. Only problem is the source of this information is literally "a relative of the victim" - no name given. In fact the article insinuates the writer attempted to verify the stop with the police department involved but was told they know nothing about any such stop and detainment.

Let me get this straight - some "relative" of the "victim" says this happened. The Police say there is no record that this happened. Yet this is NEWS! Sounds more like urban legend to me.

It's also defamatory and irresponsible. Writing this type of dribble can incite negatively, making it dangerous. And what erks me about all this spew is there are way too many simpletons out there ready, willing, and actively believing it and acting upon it.

Oh you Swine!

Twitterers are making my point for me! You cannot get Swine flu from eating pork!! Not to mention all the other misinformation and hysteria being propagated by the ultimately stupid technology! But in all fairness, the same stupidity and hysteria is being spread through other "Web 2.0" "tools".

"Twittering" may be the worse. At least with the typical blog you actually have to sit down and do a little thinking about what you intend to write. Not so with Twittering! Just throw it out there.

Think I'll go get a cup of coffee now - that would be with cream and two sugars.

News? You think this is News?

I just watched a YouTube video "on the CommonCraft Show" called "Blogs in Plain English". In this they explain that Blogs are "news". News? You call this news? - I'm not writing news, I'm stating my opinion. No facts have been checked and double checked here. No events reported on. No useful information what so ever is being published for the benefit of anyone or anything. NO NEWS here folks. Yet still it's blogging!!!!

All these "Web 2.0" tools are being touted as the next great revolution! The internet is going you know where in a hand basket. What use to be an effective tool for finding valuable information is becoming cluttered with worthless dribble, half truths, and inaccurate information by well meaning characters who think someone gives a care about what they think.

So, what's the harm? It wastes my time! Do a search on any subject and one of the first results is a "Wiki" - ANYONE can post anything to a wiki. It isn't a source. News Flash Students!! Wikipedia is not an authoritative source! While there may be some factual and very good information within any one wiki or one article in a wiki, there's no guarantee. Other search results could be someone's blog where they happened to have typed the particular words you used in your search enough times to trigger the search engine. That doesn't mean they have any useful information about my topic. If I'm sucked into clicking the link and visiting their blog, what a waste of my time!!!

More than that, this instant gratification that often results in us receiving inaccurate information is forcing what once was reputable news sources to ever increasingly shorter deadlines that make the necessary double checks to insure accurate facts difficult, if not impossible to do and results in an ever increasing potential of inaccuracy. News papers are falling by the wayside, which in itself is not necessarily bad, if what is replacing them is an online version of real news coverage. But if we are in ever increasing numbers relying on unreliable sources for our news, we are worse, not better, for this new found freedom of expression.

Now our schools are touting Blogging and other Web 2.0 tools as the next best teaching tool. OOOHHH, our students are going to be so intelligent because they know how to blog, twitter, post wiki articles. Pish Posh!! We're worrying more about the medium and less about the content. We're giving our kids an over inflated sence of their importance. REALLY - who do you think cares about the ramblings of a 12 year old. Their parent! And that's about all - you don't need a Blog to have the audience of your parents.