LOOK BEFORE YOU LEAP: Some thoughts about the Internet or Web

Just like most of technologies in the world, the internet or the web has gone so far. I came a long way and as it was being developed to the way it is now, for sure there had been bumps and jagged corners where it was subjected to criticism. With the years of research and study, the cumulative efforts of thousands of people, one could say that the internet is, more often than not, considerably more reliable nowadays.

The downside of its reach and ubiquity however lies in the excessive freedom it gives to people. You could notice that basically anyone can post anything on the web and with just a few clue words, they could be accessed, regardless whether the information there is credible or not; safe or not. The net can easily give you the information that you want; however, they might not exactly be the information that you need.

One of the few mistakes people make while using the internet nowadays is searching up the diagnosis for a wide range of signs and symptoms. Honestly, I do that, too. I can't even joke about it. I remember a time I took what I read too seriously, I started overthinking. And when I finally got sick of being so crossed about it, I consulted an expert — which made me realize, OF COURSE! THERE'S A REASON WHY EXPERTS EXIST! They study this thing for years and years in order to give you the right diagnoses and treatments. In my opinion, it is not really best to trust the internet for matters such as knowing one's illness. Especially if you are someone who's like me who tends to fly too close to the sun only to trip and dwindle down a blackhole. One must know that a lot of medical conditions has overlapping signs and symptoms. It's impossible to arrive at the correct one without the aid of medical laboratory tools. Perhaps it would be okay to check those medical pages for advice when you already know what your condition is. Remedies or advice wouldn't hurt, as long as there are testimonies and studies to back them up. If the reliability of a certain page has been spoken highly of by many people, that would even be better. The point is, don't make such pages your main basis. At all times, always be critical about what you find on the net. Do your research.

Rather than facts, actually, it seems that nowadays, opinions dominate the internet more, especially in social networking sites or social media. Everyone tends to exercise the freedom of expression and speech on those side of the internet that sometimes, it gets too much. Some of these comments and statements could be borderline offensive and insensitive. Once the people who put those statements out there get a backlash of some sort, they use the "freedom of expression" card and say that those are just their opinion. I have randomly come across instances like this on the net. I just typically roll my eyes and scroll past them. Sometimes, when I do get curious, I read all the inputs down to the comments, and replies to those comments as well. Most of the time, there would be well-read and well-informed individuals who just know what to say. Having seen those things, I learned not to be too engaging on the internet. I like peace and comfort way too much. As long as it doesn't directly concern me, I actually tend to let it go. Life's too short to dwell on things that one cannot control.

To conclude, it's not easy, but we, who had been granted so much freedom, must know how to makes use of such resources wisely. We should not overstep the rights and freedom of others in order to exercise ours. A lot of people has strived to make the web a wholesome place and as users and consumers, the least we can do is to behave and interact in a way that cultivates the web into a network of information that is safe and inclusive for everyone.