One must question if it's a case of 'familiarity breeds contempt'.. or whether it's just the natural progression of the pursuit of the lowest common denominator..
Internet chatrooms have deteriorated to an amazing extent over the past few years.. to the point at which there is no intelligent conversation to be found..
This might be in part to the misuse of the medium.. the fears of providers in keeping paedophiles away from their prey, but it would seem to go deeper than that..
While in Britain, there are only two major chat options available.. those being AT&T and Yahoo/Lycos.. those who once frequented these rooms for an exchange of ideas, thoughts, have been replaced by cliquish groups who, for the most part, are only interested in witless banter. Those rooms once dedicated to the discussion of religion, philosophy, politics, are now either empty, or devoid of a population with any interest in these subjects..
And this is a terrible shame..
Where we once had forums... we now have little more than a small village mentality, in which gossip is the main topic..
We have squandered what could have been an amazing resource.. exchanged intelligence for mediocrity..
And while the various governments worldwide have had their part in this deteriorative process, the main fault lies with those participating..
What was instant acess to global debate, has become a travesty.
Yet another great idea.. reduced to the lowest common denominator.