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Okay, so we’ve all heard about the permanence of our actions online (here’s hoping these blog entries won’t be judged too harshly by my grandchildren), but I want to explore this idea a little bit first. This post is going to be be a bit all over the place…but hey, it’s a blog, right?

A Caveat
First of all, I’d like to point out that the argument about the permanency of internet posts, etc. is dependent upon indefinite and endless storage capacity. As we are discovering, however, server space is not unlimited and digital files can degrade over time. However, maybe storage space will be expanded, or maybe things won’t be permanent, but will hang around longer than we’d like them to.

Think Before You Post Videos
The “Think Before You Post” videos demonstrate this concept pretty well. I think one of the best ways to get teens to think before they post is to hammer home more immediate consequences, rather than focusing on the long-term.

Speaking of Long-Term Consequences
Another wrinkle, however (and one we like not to think about), is the online legacy we leave when we pass away. Teens in particular, are generally not thinking about the possibility of unexpected death. This Toronto Star article highlights the complications surrounding ownership of online identities after a death. Makes me want to write down all my passwords somewhere. Not that I’ve done it yet.

Parents
Of course, the idea of online permanency makes parents crazy. The author of an article “Smile: you’re in the internet” argues that “Once upon a time, kids could go a little wild, and no permanent harm would be done.” First of all, this statement simply isn’t true: kids have always gone a little wild and some kids have always suffered for it the rest of their lives (drinking and driving, for instance). The author asks: “Who’ll see those images? Colleges? Future employers? The parents of your child’s serious boyfriend or girlfriend?”

The article gets a bit better near the end with the point that in order to protect our children, we have to actually parent them. I couldn’t agree more.

I have several thoughts about the kind of fear-mongering that is raised at the beginning of the article, however.
1. If everybody has regrettable material posted online then how can we expect anyone to feel ashamed about it? How negative an impact can it have if everyone has embarrassing pictures up? Maybe we should be encouraging reckless posting to even the playing field… Just kidding.
2. Is this much-feared lack of anonymity really anything new? Are we simply re-creating a world where we are accountable for our every action – much like the small towns of yester-year where anybody’s business was eveybody’s business and indescretions could plague you for a lifetime? And what will our response be? Maybe a little accountability isn’t such a bad thing.
3. I wonder sometimes when the ultra-conservative backlash will truly start, because I feel it in the air. I’m not sure what’s scarier: hyper-sexualized, liberal, careless teens or neo-conservative teens who are interested in quashing liberal ideas and re-insituting orthodox sexuality (I’m thinking uninformed teens wearing “promise rings” and giving or receiving unprotected oral sex).