Why I hate the Internet.

What? "Hate the Internet"? Is he serious?

Yes.
Yes I am. Somewhat.

Well, maybe I'm overstating it - actually I am, but there are things about the internet that I just cannot stand. One of them, and the main reason why I started writing this post, is message boards. I hate message boards. So maybe that would make for a better title but I'm already this far and don't want to lose any momentum in my writing.

Message boards are everywhere and are linked to every single topic that exists in this world. From adult entertainment to zipper enthusiasts and maybe even a combination of the two. Maybe I don't hate that there are places for people to talk about these topics, it's just the way people talk about things that bothers me.

It's really all about spelling and abbreviations. I hate unnecessary abbreviations. Hate. Hate. Hate. For example, on a movie site that I frequent people were talking about Judd Apatow's latest project and instead of writing out "Knocked Up" someone wrote "KU" as a short form reference to the film. Really? "KU"? Is "Knocked Up" too long of title for you to type out? On a similar site I saw someone abbreviate "The Hurt Locker" as "THL". I had to re-read the post three times in order to come to the conclusion that they were talking about "The Hurt Locker". If that happens, then the point of abbreviating seems to have lost it's meaning.

There are some appropriate abbreviations like "CSI" or "NCIS" or "Law and Order: SVU" but the cons outweigh the pros. It's become an excuse for lazy people, in this Twitter-140-character age and it seems like a lot of getting lost in translation at the expense of the instant gratification generation.

Spelling. Spelling is another thing that bothers me and it all relates back to the Twitter-heads and their limited characters. I should say limited vocabulary or limited brain capacity but there are smart people on Twitter. (I don't know who, since I don't use Twitter but I'm sure there are some.) I see things such as "ur", "u", "r", "kewl" (which contains the exact amount of letters as cool, it's correct spelling), "l8r"...etc. and I just think that our society is regressing and that maybe Mike Judge's vision of the future in "Idiocracy" is actually more of a reality than fantasy. Maybe that's harsh, but is partially true.

It's not just these short spellings/alternate spellings it's also the lack of common sense when writing out sentences. A lack of punctuation, possessive apostrophes, apostrophes in general, periods, etc. have made deciphering what people say more difficult. Here's some examples I pulled from a Yahoo! Sports comments page and ESPN page respectively:

"Nevada loss to Hawaii yesterday absolutely killed any hope they may have had for NC game but if they win out they could get Rose Bowl invite...just sayin"

"for the record I dont think Tennsess is any good or anything. Their record speaks for itelse and Vols fans would tell you the same."

Yes I'm being a bit of an asshole and a bit picky but it's very easy to make "loss" to "lost" and I read NC and immediately thought of North Carolina then National Championship (the intended thought). Ugh, I know people are in a rush when they write these type of posts but c'mon take one minute after you finish writing and proofread and don't try and sound smart by abbreviating things that don't need abbreviating.

So maybe I overreacted when I said I hated the internet. I just hate the idiots that occupy the cyberspace but the idiots are a part of a whole. A whole mess of pages and message boards where even the person with the worst typing skills can voice their opinion, which is what makes freedom great. But freedom isn't for everyone.

YTMND of the Week: I Can Break These Cuffs

"Cops" is one of those shows that is always on but I never watch it fully. Most of the time it's just routine traffic stops with drug addicts and drunks being pulled over and the cops finding drugs or other paraphernalia. Then there are times when the show becomes something more, something (dare I say) great. This is one of those moments.

I Can Break These Cuffs

Stemming from this one video came some great YTMNDs. For example: Love in these cuffs & Olympic Cuff Breaking Event. But it's the original that I'm highlighting this week because it just demonstrates the stupidity of our country that I can look at and laugh at because I know that there is someone out there that is being dumber than me. Enjoy.

Making Sense

I just realised that in Animaniacs Yakko and Wakko were the Warner Bros. (duh, like they said in the title song) and their Warner Sister, Dot, is named after the actual dot at the end of Warner Bros.

It took me long enough to figure that one out but now it all makes sense. The good things in life always come back around to you in the end, albeit many many many years later.

YTMND of the Week: The Original YTMND

If you don't know what YTMND is then what have you been using the internet for? The site started with one simple line from a very good movie with Sir Sean Connery:

"You're the man now dog!"

What has stemmed from this simple page are pages and pages of inane, idiotic and at times utterly hilarious GIFs, JPEGs and video with it's only purpose to entertain. I love this site and visit it frequently but in order to "appreciate" other pages you must start at the beginning to see what you are in store for - which is why I linked to the original YTMND. To browse other pages simply go to www.ytmnd.com and take a look around and see what's there. More times than not it will be stupid and not funny, but every so often something comes along that will leave you with a smile on your face and a LOL out of your mouth.