112 lines
2.3 KiB
Plaintext
112 lines
2.3 KiB
Plaintext
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====================
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The Small Internet
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====================
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If you want to say something to 1,000 people,
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Twitter is right over there,
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next to Facebook and Instagram.
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Good luck.
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Have fun.
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If you want to talk to _me_, though,
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then sit next to me.
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I want to hear what you have to say.
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You'll have to do some listening too, of course,
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but that's all part of the fun.
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On the Large Internet,
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communication is ubiquitous,
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but conversation is a radical act.
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On the Large Internet,
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communication is cheaper than water, than air.
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"Too cheap to meter."
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But _conversation_,
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full, deep conversation,
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with kindness, consideration, mutual respect:
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where exactly is that
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on the Large Internet?
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Maybe I just haven't found the right Reddit forum yet.
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In practical terms,
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when it comes to winning the lottery,
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there's no significant difference
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between buying a lottery ticket
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and not buying one.
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What are the odds
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you will have a real conversation
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or make a real connection
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on the Large Internet?
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You can comb through the Large Internet
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and take that chance if you like,
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but if it was me,
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I'd just as soon
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buy that lottery ticket.
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If you want deep connection,
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true community,
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the Large Internet will disappoint you
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over and over again.
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I think we can do better.
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Right here, right now,
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with me writing these words
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and you reading them,
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you and I are creating
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the Small Internet.
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The Small Internet happens
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when a few people
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use simple protocols
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to talk with each other
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and nobody else.
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Nothing special.
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No tricks.
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Just you and me,
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reading, writing,
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having a conversation.
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What the Small Internet offers
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easily, naturally, simply,
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the Large Internet can't provide at all,
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any more than a bulldozer can feed a baby.
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Here's the problem, though:
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the Large Internet, someone made it for us.
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The Small Internet, we have to create ourselves.
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There aren't any spectators
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on the Small Internet,
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only participants.
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Me, I think that's a good thing.
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It means you and I have work to do,
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and our work matters to our colleagues,
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our neighbors, our companions,
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our friends.
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So let's get started
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while we are still young and eager.
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That's what I think.
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How about you?
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***
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gopher://republic.circumlunar.space/0/~spring/phlog/2019-01-16__The_Small_Internet.txt
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