Older, anti-internet media are quite accustomed to tut-tutting this medium when something bad happens. Not long ago, the internet was the culprit when a young American man committed suicide live, and people were criticized for not going to his aid.
   I was involved in a situation, in a chat room many years ago, when I convinced a young teenager to not take her own life. Like so much in daily life—as I am sure that through conversation someone every day convinces another not to do something stupid—it’s not reported. But if it wasn’t for the ’net, that young lady could be dead today.
   And last May, a friend left a suicide note online—and a whole group of people located him and saved his life.
   I read among the Tweets today that this happened again. Someone on Reddit was planning to commit suicide, and his fellow community members online located him, called the emergency services, and saved his life.
   That’s three that I know of, two of which I was involved in myself. Thanks to the internet, three people are alive who might not have been otherwise. Of course, these positive incidents don’t make the mainstream media, because they go against their belief that they are the only media that have any merit.
   However, the interactivity and personal connections that the internet provides surely are a great merit that we are lucky to have in the 21st century. Posted by Jack Yan, 10:02  permalink

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