Well, at one time I considered myself to be internet and social media savvy. But I suppose that I am really not.
I like social media because I can meet people I might not have otherwise met, and I’ve met new friends..people who became IRL friends, in this manner. I’ve also managed to spread the word about events (ball games, foot races, stadiums, books. even math ideas).
BUT, such a reach leads to a cost. In one instance, I ran afoul of a small band of NeoNazis who were attempting to harass a well known columnist. That lead to them spreading fliers in my neighborhood which denounced me (yes, that is free speech). That happened well over a decade ago. There are other instances that lead to my having to expend “in real life” (IRL) energy in ways that I did not want to.
And so, this WILL affect what I post. I will still talk about ideas, controversial or not. THAT is intellectual freedom. But I will make adjustments. Yes, this is vague, and I might…or might not, talk about these issues in greater detail at a later time.
But as as the new generation: they are growing up with such issues and are “adjusting” accordingly. Here is an NPR article about that. Roughly speaking: Employers expect to see an internet/social media history, but they also want to examine said history. So young people are setting up very vanilla to down right banal online profiles to provide the “right image” and then doing things like using fake profiles to actually converse, share more honestly, etc.
I suppose the lesson here is that, unless one is in a position where they can honestly not care about what others think, one has to be as guarded online as they are in real life..perhaps more so?
Off for a wet, sloppy walk outside.
Life of an old goat 