Wednesday, July 19, 2017

evolution vs devolution



two roads diverge in the Web

evolution is at war with devolution in the Internet:
so many answers to so many questions just a click away,
crowd-sourcing where the brilliance of the aggregate
finds the amorphous middle
where neither sycophant nor cynic rules,
Trip Advisor helps us know where to eat, sleep,
people share tips from where they’ve hiked,
Wikipedia works to hold and improve answers we need,
Uber organizes rides with collective power and efficiency,
our son answers questions online, specifically for programmers,
just because he can and wants to help,
cooperation leads us forward, together,
even in finding the best way through traffic
by crowd-sourcing others' current experiences,

the same Internet also allows the worst within us
to find support for our hate in others’ posts,
no fact-checking and correction by the aggregate,
but rather the wisdom of the mob, the bully, the lesser,
the fever of paranoia that once yelled from a street corner
now amplified and insinuated into vulnerable readers,
who spread contagion and not healing,
with a click of the mouse,

two roads diverge in the Web,
and woe be unto us
if we continue to take the darker.



by Henry H. Walker
July 16, ’17

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