Corruption, disarray cause Internet to plummet

Ah, the Internet. The answer to all your problems. There is nothing that you can not do once you have set yourself up on the World Wide Web. Nothing.

But, there is a dark underbelly to this golden child of advanced technology that touts so many advantages such as paying bills, making travel plans, ordering gifts and talking with a friend halfway around the world.

There is also the specter of pornography, crackpots and yes, misinformation. Not to mention the fact that it is just one more avenue for someone of some organization to invade your privacy, tamper with your credit and just possibly obtain data that is nobody's business but your own. Still there is a vast majority who swear that e-mail, chat rooms and web pages are the greatest developments in civilization since sliced bread and toilet paper.

I disagree.

The problem lies not in the technology itself, It is the fact that there are no rules and no boundaries set for online users. There is no one to check the facts when Joe or Jane Blow posts something. Consider this too, the World Wide Web is an oyster just waiting to give up your most personal pearls to anyone with the right password.

Feeling a bit unsettled? Good. You should be.

Let's fact it, unlike other animals who set boundaries for themselves and their packs, prides, flocks, gaggles and herds, the human beast is historically notoriois for tromping all over the boundaries of other cratures and beings and even its own kind.

With that in mind, why should we expect anything different out there on the nebulous Internet, a place in time and space that is essentially abstract and uncharted.

And, before the ACLU starts foaming at the mouth, let's get one thing clear; this is not an issue concerning freedom of speech or of censorship. It is about the right of the individual to maintain privacy. It is also about common sense and good taste and presenting information that is not only informative, but also accurate.

As things stand now, anyone who can set up a computer with a modem and has access to a phone line can get on the Internet. A new software package, a couple of dollars to an online service and it's ready to roll. However, where does it say on the software package that only responsible individuals can buy and install said program?

Further, how does America Online or Compuserve know that they are not allowing the next Adolf Hitler to funnel his hate and anger out into the Universe via their service? And how does anyone surfing the net know that the Gay & Lesbian Country Dance chat room is really just that and not a front for some sick, demented Bible-thumping fanatic?

Sadly, we are now faced with the victims of the ever growing numbers of Internet hoodlums and misfits who have suddenly found an outlet for their perversions. Web crimes are on the rise and the new and unusual misuses of the technology baffles even the most enlightened computer geek.

What can be done to stem this rising tide of evil?

The solution is very clear. Guidelines must be set for users of the World Wide Web. Web pages may have to be inspected from time to time in order to insure that the page is being accessed for the right reasons.

So, what we have here is a system that is vacuous, time consuming and costly. It is also unregulated for the most part and is susceptible to the whims of its users. Add the previously noted characteristic behavior of the human animal to this equation and what have you got? Trouble.

Think about it.

Jana Pendragon is a guest commentator for the Daily Forty-Niner.