The Technological Side of Ignorance........

http://news.lalate.com/2012/04/19/tashay-d-edwards-arrest-mugshot-photo-released-as-twitter-dispute-draws-reaction/

Social media over the last decade has become a staple in American culture. It's fair to say that its pretty much universal. We haven't cured Aids or Cancer (yet) but we can film ourselves and put it on the Internet copy a link and send it to anyone with internet access. Somewhere down the line, like most most things that are popular it eventually became tainted and corrupted. A simple yet entertaining pastime has fallen into the hands of people who unfortunately have the resources to film their exploits. What has resulted has been a influx of video footage that puts on full display an overwhelming abundance of societies ills. You can literally become a "celebrity" from camera footage sent via a cell phone if the video goes "viral"
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viral_video). (*side note)
(That kinda f**** with my head because I come from a time when you use to become and maintain famous status because you had talent of some sort.)

It is accessible to any and everyone with most site's having no age restriction. I work with at risk youth. Some of which may not be able to answer a times table problem but can navigate the internet like a damn computer hacker. With damn near as much skill. So with so much access to the internet, who are these negative images being spoon fed to? That's right the youth. We never quite know where technology is taking us. I remember being lucky enough to have computer access in the mid to late 80's when seemingly everything went thru a floppy disk. To me the computer was an extension of the Atari. Somewhere I could see digital images that made for a fun gaming experience. I never anticipated that it would evolve from such a innocent Genesis to the monster it has become once the internet changed the face of global communication. Bill Gates became stupid rich because of the internet but I'm sure his intent was not what it has become. But he is not the only trendsetter that started something which matured and later morphed into something else.I wonder if Richard Bey and Jerry Springer take credit for fathering what later came to be falsely dubbed "Reality TV"(another lane for talentless bozo's to gain notoriety. SMH).This is were the Basketball Wives and Bad Girls Club and all those other BS shows got there blueprint from.

I use social media(facebook,twitter sometimes, Instagram etc) most of the time it is entertaining. But usually no matter how hard u try to avoid it, negative images or video find a way to funnel into your news feed. Usually becoming a conversation topic depending on the nature of the material. Most of the negative stuff gets talked to death. For example the video embedded in this post had almost 2million views in one afternoon. Sex and Senseless violence still attracts us as a people. I'd be lying if I said I didn't post the article on FB which instantly touched off an extensive convo with multiple parties. After all the hoopla within days it became recognized for what it really was, a recorded crime. The young lady (19yrs old) will likely have her life altered over poor judgement.

I got a different outlook now, maybe in my late teens I would of shrugged a lot of the nonsense off and probably wouldn't have thought twice but I'm 30 plus now with a child of my own that is growing up smack dab in one of the most crazy and violent times in recorded history so my antennas are up and I'm training myself to be hip to and aware of almost everything potentially negative in popular culture so I won't have any ignorance when telling my daughter to be aware of different things.Trying to stay in "The Know" and staying prayed up are my only defense moving forward. The inernet will continue to change, grow and mature. Im trying to do the same in hopes I can help my daughter navigate this cold world and give her just enough wiggle room for her and alot of other youth to make it a better place.............