Okay, so I had to post this because it is simply WILD. Apparently, people are airing their frustration over bad drivers by posting them on Twitter. In the last few months, Twitter has become the new "blog", with people posting their opinions and stresses online in 160 characters or less. So, of course, someone decides to use this as a way of complaining about the bad drivers in Alaska - makes sense, except it also brings up the question of how many of them are texting in their grievances on their cell phones whilst driving? I know it says the people who started it don't, but that's two out of many hundred.
It just made me think about our cell phone thing and how this is yet another feature that has come about from cell phones and society's influence on where technology goes next. What do you think will be the next big revolution?
http://www.newsminer.com/news/2009/apr/27/twitter-leads-outlet-frustrated-drivers-anchorage/
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My questions are where does technology draw the line for the average citizen? Is it legal to post people license plate numbers? I think eventually this will get ugly. Someone will says something that is not true or someone will say something that is and we will read in the paper-2 found dead because of twitter. Some technological advances seem to violate privacy or are borderline unethical. I do see the positive aspects of the twitter but I definitely want to see what the future holds for this particular subject.(road rage)
ReplyDeleteSo I was wondering in what ways instutions are going to be able to regulate these acts? It is so interesting to notice that over time the laws have been forced to shape their ways toward technology. Society these days has become so technologically advanced that we have been forced to take action on it. First talking on the cell phone later became a fine, now they are branching toward texting and the hazards that are involved with that. Will blogging about social issues propose solutions or social hostility?
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ReplyDeleteWell this is interesting and something that's new to me! It's interesting because it made me think of this Twitter site as a form of creative social control... like you should be a safe driver or next thing you know someone could be blogging about you on Twitter? I don't know....On the one hand it could be a good idea, on the other hand it seems somewhat silly and useless. Some people may take the time to vent about their frustrations (blogs are obviously a popular socially-shared opinion outlet) but on the other hand I don't see this sort of thing creating any real positive social change in anyway. I mean, in theory, it could if the people driving recklessly read it, but if it isn't widely known about then what's its use as a social control tool? It makes me think of speeding tickets- people, in theory, avoid speeding because if they get caught there will be some sort of repercussion. In this case, the punishment is purely social and by anonymous individuals? It will be intriguing to see how this turns out.
ReplyDeleteDrama Mama :), who decides what's ethical anyways? Typing someone's license plate number, while it may seem to some as a violation of privacy doesn't seem so to me. It's on everyone's car, which drives around for anyone to see so that technically makes it public domain. The ethics which we are all assumed to be ruled by change with the times, as does the technology!
ReplyDeleteThe reason why I posted this originally was because I thought it was interesting to see how technology has advanced our society into a different situation than before. About the closest that could happen before this was perhaps an anonymously posted letter on a bulletin board or something. And now, here we are with our technology, airing our frustrations for the whole world. How much of this could also be caused by a divorce principle, where people feel divorced from the subject because it's online and therefore not physically in front of them? How does that help or hinder a lot of these posting cases, such as with posting road rage issues on twitter? If it were no longer anonymous, what would happen?
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