Honestly, honesty is the best policy. If you don’t like something, admit it frankly and move on. Just don’t lie about it.
Maybe my views are a little skewed but I would rather hear the truth then the nice. And although I appreciate the truth, I don’t go around giving it to people ‘just cause.’ I was not brought up to go around insulting people.
It’s easy to define insult. However, what will offend varies from person to person; based on gender, generation, even just the person themselves. You can never be sure whether something seemingly innocuous might be mistaken as an insult.
It’s hard to define ethics. Most ethics are based upon the idea that values are not absolute but, instead, relative to those holding them. As personal preferences, they have never been mandated. While it is possible to define some things as right and wrong, others are not so clear. And cyber ethics are a relatively new field to further muck up the issues.
The times, they are a-changin’
Bullying is not a new concept. But like everything else, what was bullying does not resemble the bullying of today.
When did it become such an epic problem? Have we all just become too sensitive? I remember some kids being picked on. Okay, most people were picked on at some point. I remember being teased. Anyone who has met my dad has been teased.
But now there are stories of cyber bullying so bad that parents have to re-mortgage their houses to pay for their children’s’ legal fees. No longer is it settled in the schoolyard and forgotten the next day. It is called slander and defamation of character to be settled in court.
We are living in a new world and there are no guideposts to behavior. What might be thought as simple teasing can quickly escalate into a full on legal issue. With such serious concerns arising, it is apparent that there is a need for regulations.
Part of the issue is that the current generation is growing up with new tools at their disposal. When the telephone first became a communication tool it was in no way as widespread as what is available today. Now, before a system has even been fully implemented, it is accessible.
How can we expect children to be better when we tout examples of worse behaviors? We tell them to stop the slander yet elect officials based on who can tell the best lies. We have magazines whose sole existence is to perpetuate gossip.
I was raised with the idea of “if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all.” I spent a lot of time when I was younger being quiet. What happened to that belief? Is it only true in the classroom? As long as people are going to act like preschoolers, they should be treated as such. They can stand in the corner until they act like adults, and no talking until then.
