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hi cyber-dad-don! i thought i'd respond to your message this way [although it feels kind of odd replying to myself!] you wrote: >i am 74 years old and have had parkinson's for 30 years i am impressed by both facts >yes, i learn something new every day. but this impresses me the most >first, i want to say that i am proud of our list. you and me, both! >last night i watched "what every mother worries about" on television as i noted in my translation i didn't see the tv show you are referring to i presume from your comments that it was about the potential risks to children on the internet or other 'dangers'? i'm going to jump in with both feet here and make some assumptions: a. that the tv show was all about the 'dangers' lurking out there in the internet b. that the details of those dangers were deliberately graphic and disturbing c. that the tv directors took the most sensationalist approach they could d. that the tv producers were primarily interested in high ratings since e. the show was on the air solely to make money for its advertisers [i'm in trouble here if the show was on a not-for-profit network!] my take on all this is: there are criminals and potential crimes out there in our world who and which may have changed spots simply due to the new medium in the sense that there were no 'car-jackings' before there were cars the internet has not 'caused' crimes anymore than 'cars' have or in the sense that there were no 'obscene phone callers' before there were phones the internet has not 'caused' crimes anymore than 'phones' have producing sensational and blood-curdling programs for profit and then promoting them as 'news' or 'documentaries' [i.e. unbiased objective reporting] constitutes mis-representation and fraud in my humble opinion if there were a corporation or a person named "The Internet" this kind of scurrilous, one sided, 'awfulizing' reportage and all of its sponsors would be hauled into court for libel personally i have become a very critical television consumer if a program or its sponsors don't mesh with my values click goes the off switch as with any other form of communication all is not necessarily as it seems however, the internet is the ultimate uncontrolled democratic communication medium but the uncontrolled aspect is a double-edged sword and the buyer [internet user] has to beware the net is a wonderful gateway to the world but any gate needs a latch and maybe a lock under our own control do we allow our children to watch television unsupervised? do we allow our children to read books and magazines unsupervised? do we allow our children to speak to and play with anyone they meet? ooops those darn soap-boxes just keep piling up around here... >i am very very nervous this morning >even though i just took my meds. >a lot of you ask me "do you surf the net?" >the only one i use is our net >[the parkinson's disease information exchange = us!] >and i only go to the web sites that some one says to go to. the initial sensational headlines about the net were all about pornography i am here to tell you now that in three years i have never seen any pornography on the net why? because i'm not interested and i haven't gone looking for it i don't buy pornographic magazines for the same reason >i tell every one i have only one love, and that is vivian >and i want every one to know that i am married. >i am not a prude; i listen to off-color jokes, although i never >remember them. so if you saw the show you can see what >can happen. our list does not allow that. >i know i worry too much about children surfing on the internet see above soap-box! >thanks to barb, janet and all that watch what is said on the list. i may 'watch' what gets posted to our own private mailing list [but the sensory glands involved tend to be olfactory and not visual!] simply because i tend to be able to smell 'snake-oil style marketing' pretty quickly there is nothing wrong with selling per se; it's the disguise and misrepresentation that i find detestable >i may not be making much sense as i am all upset. i'm sorry that you are upset by that tv program to me, it's bittersweet evidence of your gentle and sensitive nature some [not all, thank heaven] of the tv media types are masters of emotional manipulation of their audience purely for financial gain >janet, rewrite what i am trying to say to the list. okay, done and did >i would be lost without this list-family. me, too! >i try to give what i can to others and share what >i have been through for the past 30 years. you have not only tried but you have succeeded generously! don't stop! >i am having more and more problems >my neuro does not know if a couch doctor [psychiatrist] would help. >i don't want to leave my house any more. >but i had to as my eyes are going bad. >it would cost $500.00 for new ones >my fonts on the computer screen are set very large. i'm not sure i understand all this but $500.00 doesn't sound like a bad price for a new set of eyes! >i still work and paint, >i've been putting mulch all around my flower trees good! try not to fall out of your tractor or chop off any of your remaining digits! >any thing to keep my mind off of PD >the reason i want pictures of the list-family PWP's is i feel safer. >and like to look up where you all live >that is why i say where i live so you all can feel safe oh, my dear cyber-dad i gather that the horrors you saw on tv have made you feel unsafe please know that you are no more unsafe today than you were yesterday that sensationalized exaggerated out-for-big-ratings program has presented a totally distorted and one-sided view; good news just doesn't make money! if it did, the show would have been all about this list-miracle and would have had you as a main feature! >and i can visit you all on my maps. i'm a silly old man. you are not silly but your map idea is great so please do one for me [this is a challenge!] 285 Ann Street, Almonte, Ontario, Canada K0A 1K0 >some television shows, i just found out, can cause stress to some. >i am open to any advice. my advice? watch pbs!!! and send them a big fat cheque!!! with much love for you and vivian and the girls sis a new voice: http://www.newcountry.nu/pd/members/janet/index.htm 51/10 - almonte/ontario/canada - [log in to unmask] janet paterson