The Blog of Author David Allen

Category: Uncategorized

  • Is the Internet Evil or Good?

    Is the internet evil? Or is it good? This is not an easy answer. By exploring how a technology is used, can you use it more responsibly? To express your opinion and consider the thoughts below, read on and let me know what you think in the comments.

    ****

    image courtesy of chidsey at sxc.hu "ICU"
    image courtesy of chidsey at sxc.hu “ICU”

    One day the devil was doing some administrative work. On his desk, the red telephone rang. He picked it up and sighed with a smoky breath.

    “Devil here.”

    “Yes, Mr. Devil. This is Phil. I realized I could make my own videos on the internet. So, uh, I know we had that whole appointment about selling my soul so I could make movies, but I don’t think that’s necessary…”

    The devil picked up a dart from his desk and threw it towards the closed door. It slammed into the bulls-eye of a dartboard target on the door. On the bullseye was a picture, labeled “Phil”.

    He slammed down the phone. That was the third call this week since that damn internet rolled into town.

    ****

    I pitched this story premise to a Christian friend of mine. “I disagree.” he said. “I think The Devil’s territory is the internet.”

    He seemed so sure of himself. Was he right? As a writer, I spend a lot of time on the internet. I wouldn’t want to think I was spending so much time in the danger zone. Was the internet the Great Satan, or was it God’s gift? In secular terms, is it good for you or bad for you?

    So I did some thinking about the internet. I filtered out the legal and ethical money-making potential of the technology, which was neither good or bad in my mind.

    In the end, the internet came down to four revolutionary aspects of transferring data:

    Speed, Volume, Access, and Anonymity.

    If my friend was right, the devil was in there somewhere.

    To uncover the influence of good and evil, I explored two questions with each factor.

    How can this be used to control others or make war? (Devil)

    How can this be used to liberate people from evil or help them? (God)

    I explored all four areas thoroughly in my mind. While I could post a full version, it would be far too long for this simple post. So I narrowed it down to the two biggest issues: Access, and Anonymity.

    Access

    If you wanted to be a big music star, you used to need a record label.

    If you wanted to make a movie, you had to pitch a studio that likely had its own agenda in the first place.

    If you wanted to be a reporter, you had to work for traditional media.

    Not anymore. Now, anybody can do pretty much anything. The cost of entry for a lot of industries is down, and if you can get traffic, you matter more than any gatekeeper or dinosaur.

    How can it be used for war or to control others

    Other than hiring people to flood the net with disinformation, there isn’t much of a boon for those who seek to control others.

    This is one area where freedom has been given to a lot of people, and taken out of the hands of the earlier establishment.

    Different bills have been introduced to try and change that (see here, and here), so we must be cautious and make sure that this issue is the political touch of death for any lawmaker who dares challenge it.

    How can it be used to help others?

    Today, if a story is not being told, anyone can help make that story go viral.

    As the saying goes, ‘Light is the greatest disinfectant.’

    Media has become less of a top-down structure, and more of a conversational game. People can discuss major topics and be heard.

    Anonymity

    The ugly and the beautiful. Since the computer is searching the data, and not ‘you’, your name doesn’t have to be attached to what you do online. What do you do when nobody is looking, and does knowing that make you a worse person?

    How it can be used for war or to control others?

    Online bullying can be a very nasty affair. One look at youtube comments on popular videos and we see trolling and mudslinging at its worst. Social media has put a face on a lot of these people, so something can be done if a bully lives nearby and is dumb enough to say bad things about another person online.

    The hacking group Anonymous makes anonymity part of their name. They hack, which is definitely an invasion of privacy, yet they also shine light into dark places where corruption has been hidden for years.

    Then there are the darker corners of the internet that promote pornography, hate groups, and other negative things. While people have a right to make their own choices, the anonymity of the internet lowers the immediate negative impact and accountability for  these choices. Furthermore, there is reason to believe that some of these sites can trigger addiction that can be very hard to escape.

    How can it be used to help others?

    Anonymous donations to charities.

    People need to talk about sensitive issues with somebody, but sometimes don’t know/trust anyone in their community to share them with.

    You can discuss and explore the religious and political viewpoints of others without the mocking or humiliation of peers..

    Researching information for screenplays, books, movies, and other written works without ‘big brother’ drawing weird conclusions. “In 2009, you researched eye surgery. Three years later, you searched for pictures of pyramids. Are you a member of the Illumina—“ NO!  No I’m not.

    For a search engine that replaces your IP address with 0’s, I use Startpage.com. This search engine allows you google-quality online searches without a database recording everything you do. It’s family friendly because it also comes with an adult-site filter, turned ON by default. I still use traditional search engines occasionally, but startpage is now my default.

    Have you ever acted or spoke differently when parents or teachers were standing directly behind your shoulder, watching? Anonymity can also be used to express your viewpoints about controversial topics without fear of persecution. It is a safeguard to freedom of speech. If a tyrant doesn’t know who is talking, then they cannot silence the voice. This provides a forum for real honest debate – possibly more honest than any that had ever come before it.

    With technology going the way it is, privacy may become one of the major currencies of the world – so be wise and get your share of it now.

    Click Responsibly

    So far, Access seems to provide the most good, while Anonymity enables the greatest amount of evil. At the same time, anonymity is still a crucially important part of what makes the internet a good place for those who intend to make it so.

    These writings don’t begin to sum up the potential of the internet, or its implications for our society.

    However, if it made you consider how you will use the technology for the better…

    If it alters your decisions in a positive way, then the discussion was worth it.

    What did I miss? What other factors play into good/evil on the internet? Sound off below in the comments.

  • DeLoreans are for Chumps – How To Examine the Worst of Your Past to Create Your Best Future.

    photo courtesy of cmx82 on sxc.hu
    photo courtesy of cmx82 on sxc.hu

    You don’t need a car from the 80’s to make your future a better place. The toughest, coolest people on earth can do it by asking a few simple questions. Get ready, you’re about to go on a small journey back in time.

    In this journey you will visit three places. Each place corresponds to one of the three worst experiences of your life.

    Where did you go?

    What are the 3 worst times of your life?

    Can you answer for yourself what happened, how you felt, and how it affected you?

    Now stop. Rather than going on an emotional spin-cycle, ask yourself a different question: With each event, what positive things did you learn from the experience, and how did it cause you to grow?

    Don’t expect a simple answer right away.

    You’re quick answer will likely be similar to mine. “It sucked. I didn’t learn anything. And I’d never want to go through anything like that again. That answer is not wrong. The experience was terrible, and you wouldn’t want to go through it again (at least I hope not!).

    Bad experiences are not worth repeating.

    Still, ask yourself what you learned from each experience. Do it out loud. And listen to the kinds of answers you come up with.

    This process may take several days. Write those answers down, remember them, and you’ll now have something positive even out of the worst moments of your life.

    Example: I had to take care of my mom when she had Lou Gehrig’s Disease. She loved me, but she was far from perfect. It can be  difficult to see what positive things can be gained from that kind of experience.

    The answers I got? Good times and bad times are like chapters. No matter how long they may seem to stretch, they do end. Then another chapter begins.

    here’s another one: Find the most good you can do in that one day, and do it – knowing that once the sun sets, that day will never come back.

    Those sound like the exact opposite of a victim mentality.

    Bad things will still happen. It will still suck. It’s part of being alive.

    But if you do this exercise,  you’ll take a moment to frame your experience in a productive way.

    And, ironically, you will be less likely to repeat those mistakes. You’ll have a better future, but without asking where you’d be if you didn’t do this exercise, you’d never know.

     

  • Gain 20+ Years of Wisdom Instantly

    honest abe by bluepoetie

    Feedback is results that can be seen, measured, and acted upon. This can come from 2 different places:

    1. Your own personal experiences.
    2. Other people’s advice and mentorship.

    Life is too short to make all the mistakes on your own. If you want to achieve big goals that are beyond your current level of achievement, you are going to need the guidance of other people. This will allow you to apply your efforts to the activities that you know will work, making you appear much wiser.

    This may seem crystal clear to most people, but do YOU actually do it? If you have so far, then you’re a step ahead of me. If you don’t keep doing it, you won’t be ahead for long.

    Not that it’s a race, but I’ve learned that the biggest thing that I can do this year to gain the most success in the least amount of time is this: Seek out advice from people who have already done what I want to do.

    Seek out several sources. You can keep it to simple tweets to the people in question, a ¼ page email, or an in-person interview over coffee and lunch. It doesn’t have to be hard.

    Don’t put all your eggs in one basket either. If one person doesn’t respond, have several other people ready to respond to you.

    For example, several places I would like some help are:

    • scheduling radio interviews
    • learning how to network better
    • learning how to sell to booksellers
    • learning how to get started in public speaking with no previous background

    These are just a few. In any of these cases I will look for people who have succeeded in these areas in the last 3-5 years, as well as people who have been doing these activities for decades.

    If you want to take action on a simple thinking exercise, make it this one: What are you wanting to learn how to do? What are you struggling with? What obstacle are you afraid of facing? Finally, who can you talk to for answers (people you know personally or who you know of online)? Strangers? Is anyone in your network already who may know the types of people you’re looking for?

  • Plan B?

    Plan B (to do it or not)

    So what do you do if it doesn’t work out?

    When you have stated an ambitious goal to someone who is well-meaning, but intimidated by your commitment, you may have heard this question.

    The experts on success seem at odds with the concept of Plan B.  In some books I’ve read,  Plan B distracts from Plan A. Others still are strong supporters of multiple plans.

    Since it is a new year and you have thought of the goals you want to achieve for the next 365 days, it’s worth taking a look at Plan B

    Let’s straighten this out.

    Traditional View of Plan B:

    Plan A for John Doe is to get into film as an actor in Hollywood, yet culinary school is a great Plan B in case that doesn’t work out.

    From this perspective, Plan B may yet detract energy that could be put into achieving Plan A.

    When Plan B comes up in a debate, it creates a battle between the risk averse who see large mountains to overcome, and the risk takers who will climb those mountains with or without the supplies they might need.

    Plan B redefined:

    John Doe IS going to get into film as an actor in Hollywood. Plan A is to show up at auditions, enlist the help of agents and build a healthy portfolio. Plan B is to do commercials and network with independent film producers to build a fanbase and generate enough buzz to get consideration for those roles on the silver screen.

    What is the difference between the first Plan B and the second Plan B?

    The first Plan B detracts energy from your mind that you could use to further Plan A.

    The second Plan B doesn’t compromise your life goals. Plan B 2.0 causes you to think of multiple roads to get to the same destination, all of which would move you closer to the result you want.  With this type of plan B, you don’t put your emotional eggs in one basket. Your plans weave together to form a tight cord that connects you to your goals.

    Best of all, the knowledge that you’ve got several ways to make it will give you more confidence to succeed in Plan A, and all worthwhile commitments benefit from confidence.
    With this thought in mind, having a plan C, D, and E, even if you never use most of them, will make your mind sharper, give you better confidence, and enable you to move forward with your ideas.