This couple flew from Phoenix a state in the middle of the country, the people selling the car met them at the airport, took them to dinner. They completed the deal, the buyers drove home to Phoenix, and found a message at their home from the sellers– they just wanted to know they got home safely.

The internet is full of strange weirdos who do things like this.

the best internet-meeting analogy I’ve heard is that there are X million people online (pick a number that fits your interest, like English speakers or people in France)… and just like a city with X million people, there are places where it’s not too smart to go, and people whom it’s not too smart to choose to meet.

And, like that city of X million, there are all kinds of people you benefit from meeting, and even greater numbers of people who wish you no harm whatsoever.

Picking up on Beth’s comment, when my brother’s children were young, the family computer was in a corner of the living room. The kids could use it, but it was easy for the parents to see where they might be going, and to have the chance to talk with them about any mishap that occurred.

I do think that preteens and young adolescents might not realize how easily people could glean too much about them from social pages — what fifteen-year-old wants to think about sleazebags? But that too is a chance for some communication between child and parent.

It can be an awfully steep climb for a parent, though.

If it wasn’t for the internet, I would never have met my fiancé. That is definitely something positive for me. I am studying to become a teacher and the internet and e-learning is very much a part of my everyday life. What are parents going to do when their children’s classes are online? That is the wave of the future. And, will they stop their children from participating in classroom blogs and wikis? Technology is not the evil being most parents make it out to be. If only they would talk to their kids before they give them a computer, then they might not be so afraid of the bad things out there.

Alan is right; we do need more positive stories. But unfortunately, bad stories are what help sell newspapers.

One of my teachers has written a book regarding e-learning, and it is really good for parents who are afraid of the whole electronic age. If any one is interested, here is the source:
Holmes, B. & Gardner, J. (2006). e-learning: Concepts and Practice. London: Sage Publications.

It was really interesting to listen to Lee LeFever’s account at Northern Voice of his and his wife’s year-long adventure and how blogging made connections and opened up doors for them.

I spent a few months hitchhiking around the country back in college. If it weren’t for the strong the relationships I had developed on the internet, I would have had to beg for places to stay from strangers. Instead I bunked with tons of people that I had never met in person but knew extremely well nonetheless.

The world is not as scary as the news makes it out to be.

Wait. No. It was a blast. Mass Media seems to forget that there are good people and bad people on the internet, just as in the real world. But showing scary things happening because of scary bad people helps boost the ratings, so they can sell more ads. Ad-supported news should be banned. That’s the single reason why Evil Scary Internet Pervs is such a hot topic (and also why we got to hear/see Anna Nicole Smith more than the war in Afghanistan)