01-26-2009, 03:25 AM
ham Wrote:I always say: be careful...today's friend, tomorrow's foe who won't hesitate to use whatever he knows about you to ridicule, hurt or attack you.
That's not just an Internet lesson -- that's a life lesson.
One of the most difficult things to do when slapped is to not slap back. One of the most difficult things to do when slapping back is to slap only as hard as one was slapped and not pull out the ammunition one gathered in confidence.
Human nature is ugly. The Internet makes it uglier possibly because whatever human face it has "in person" -- whatever inhibitions we have when we can see the damage we do -- all but disappears when we're just slappping grocery lists of monikers and pseudonyms.
Cynicism, I have learned, is a good thing. Dogs will eat dogs. Humans will eat dogs. Humans will eat humans. Gestures resembling kindness are often perfumed self-interest.
But a cup of coffee -- there's something I still believe in. If it's a good cup of coffee. With cream. Especially in the morning.