A Little Internet Is A Dangeous Thing

I am such a huge fan of the internet. If you visit the right places you can find whatever information you want. I've researched everything from how to build roof gables to how to make brown gravy. The problem with the internet is, there's a lot of bad information out there, especially if you're looking for it.

Are you suspicious of vaccines?  Well, you can find a place on the internet to back your claims?  Do you think aliens run our government?  There's "proof" on the internet.  Want to see Justin Bieber spit on his fans? Well someone has photoshopped a picture for you.

The problem with the internet is that there is no accountability and any one can claim anything for their own purposes.  Then, good people end up on the wrong web site and out of true belief or even embarrassment stand by what they "learned" on that visit.

So how do you make sure you're getting accurate information? Well, in a lot of cases you should be able to tell from the web site itself. You should be able to tell if it's a fringe site or a real site.  For instance, the vaccine thing, which prompted me to write this blog was a website that had no medical affiliation what-so-ever.  It was one of those holistic sites that was more opinion than science, yet people were sharing the info on the web as if it were the gospel.   Next, just be open to the fact that you may not have the definitive answer on a topic.  Other than that, the internet as a whole is "buyer beware" and if you have some information that few people seem to know, then chances are very high that information is misinformation.

Be careful out there.