The genesis of the idea for this web site was derived from conversations between friends who often write for our local paper. Frustrated with the speed of publishing and what looked like some local censorship, we began to discuss alternatives to our local paper.
Citizens, and in particular parents, are waking up to the concerns social media is bringing to us all. It is not technology per se, but the concentrated control of some technology and its potential misuse in everyday life that has become the concern. A recently filed lawsuit in Colorado has at least one parent concerned enough to take Facebook to court over its practices. Will this blossom into a class-action, only time will tell. But it is the signal sent and not the anger and pleas of a single parent that is the message.
Social media has at least the potential to be the great breeding ground for learning and communication of knowledge. Instead, it has become the opposite and often a place of contention, altercation, and what we would consider to be a general “dumbing down” of our youth. It has become a place where speed and “snappiness” of response have a higher value than carefully thought-out conversation.
Of greatest concern is the concern of growing narcissism among our youth that is either a direct or indirect result of social media. Our children have learned to place a value on “likes” and responses from people they have never met and will never meet. In extreme cases they may derive value, or worse lose self-esteem, from computer generated responses.
Because the United States is the great melting pot of people from many nations, almost any language can be heard on our streets. But our nation has at its roots the English language as a common denominator. Speaking and writing well is one key to the preservation of the culture we all enjoy.
A well-educated populace is an important key to the survival of a republic. Voters must have the skills to read, write, and analyze the information needed to elect qualified representatives. In our republic all have a voice, but not always a well thought out or articulated one. Our founders chose this path knowing that a pure democracy can become nothing more than mob rule.
Our adversaries understand this, and they now use it to exploit us. “Can the current trends be reversed, and a more civil national discourse reemerge? We believe so, and so this journey begins…
