The Internet

Imagine a big box. This box is available to everyone in the world. They are able to store things in this box and also see things that other people have stored in the box. This fact makes the box a fantastically powerful tool that revolutionizes communication and accessibility. This is basically what the Internet is.

In fact, because of its storage capabilities, the Internet Box almost like a giant time capsule that humans can use to show future generations how powerful the things we created are (unless in 100 years people are debating the very existence of the Internet).

Naturally, people decided to start filling up the Internet Box with all of the things that we decided were most important: Computer viruses and pictures of naked people.

Well done, everybody.

What’s interesting is that people looked at the Internet Box and saw all the amazing connections being made between networks all over the world and actually said, “Hey, know what we should do? Create a computer code that destroys things. That’ll be swell.”

The Internet Box is something that people created and had control over, so you would think we would go out of our way to avoid this sort of thing happening. But no, that would be too simple. We would prefer that it includes virtual version of some of the dangers we have in our real lives.

So while we’re aimlessly wandering down the streets of the Internet Box on a nice relaxing night, enjoying the virtual breeze and the electronic architecture, at any second we can get mugged at USB point. Your hard drive is wiped out, and you’re left with only pop-ups for companionship.

How could this get any more awesome, you ask? Well turns out your files aren’t the only thing at risk in the Internet Box. Even your actual real life money or identity can be taken if you’re not careful.

Think about this for a second: the Internet Box is full of connections between countless networks all over the world and to countless people with countless criminal backgrounds, yet we’re still perfectly fine with throwing our credit card information in it. While that sinks in, I’ll move on.

To avoid sounding like somebody that unnecessarily hates the Internet Box, it needs to be pointed out that communication really has been revolutionized. E-Mail was an stupid concept that for whatever reason has become the preferred method of communication, and we keep developing more and more communication methods. With Skype, we can finally stare at somebody’s face on a small screen while talking to them. Just like in the movies!

So yes, the Internet Box has done an amazing job at connecting people in ways that have never been done before. Using Facebook, we can find up what our exes are up to without having to spy on them ourselves. Want to embarrass a friend by showing everyone a photo from last night when they might have had a bit too much to drink? TwitPic! We are encouraged to share everything with everyone using the power of the Web!

In summary, the Internet really is a big box, bursting with potential. In typical fashion, we have decided it’s best to just waste it.

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