Reading Response #5

Luke Buehrer
February 5, 2010
Reading Response #5

The video “Growing Up Online”, produced and directed by Rachel Dretzin and John Maggio, brings up many issues and topics surrounding the Internet. Part one of the video revolves around the how computers have became a major part of many people’s lives, especially teens. Greg, an average American teen puts it this was, “If I were to disconnect now I would probably sit in this chair for the rest of the night, I wouldn’t know what to do with my self. You need to have the Internet on to talk to your friends, cause everybody uses it, its like a currency. If you don’t use it you’re going to be at the loss”. Part two focuses on the classroom and how the education system is changing due to this technology. Part three is about how the Internet helps teens try new identities and find them selves. Part four talks about parents being over protective because of all the hype in the media taking about predators, and how it is affecting relationships between parents and their kids. Part five concentrates on how teens hide their on-line world from their parents. Some teens lead secret lives; others hide what they are doing from their parents raising suspicions. Part six revolves around cyberbullying and its harmful affects. Some kids committing suicide with no signs of it coming. Part seven is about the teen’s graduations, becoming adults, and both them and their parents coming to terms. The parents’ realizing it isn’t all-bad, and the teens seeing there is more to life.
I personally have little use for the Internet. I only use it for shopping (good deals on stuff), and learning to do stuff with my hands on sites like Instructables. I rarely use it for communication, and socializing. I hate talking back and forth on line, it is very hard to have real conversations and seems less personal. I have there fore came to the conclusion that there is no need for the Internet. I realize this is a big claim but hopefully I can show you why. For example, before the Ipod you still listened to music. You thought CD’s were great and you were satisfied with that. But as soon as the Ipod came, a new convenience came out and CD’s lost there appeal. This is true with all technology. People didn’t just stare at the wall in their chair hoping that one day someone would invent something that would make sitting for hours more fun. No, they went out and enjoyed life, hung out with their friends, had passions and had just as rich if not richer a life than we do now with the Internet. Back then, people weren’t afraid to get dirty, sweat and earn a honest living. Today technical trades are looked at as jobs for people that can’t think, can’t work their way up to have a clean desk job, (I must admit this may be slightly bias because I’m in the trades). It just seems to me that more work, and product gets accomplished off the computer. I realize that the Internet has made things more efficient and fast paced, but why do we need that? If life worked for thousands of years with out this technology, why do we need it now? It just makes life more stressful, fast paced with a need for success, while losing what really is important in life.