oops! he did it again.

it happens all too often. blogicides. one generates lots of good karma from readership, then is forced (under some circumstances or other) to shut down one's blog. poof! and it's gone.

but then again, that's the benefit of the Internet. being able to call it quits on your own terms. no real consequence, besides perhaps having to set the account straight with certain affected parties. otherwise, one answers only to him/herself. quite a sweet deal, if you ask me. but many a time, the trust one has taken a good amount of time to build can come crashing down in one careless moment of catharsis. i speak, regretfully, from experience. the Internet can be a useful device, but also a dangerous tool.

old fashioned like adinahaes, i am not an advocator of "washing one's dirty laundry in public". because the Internet is a medium of such immediacy, i suppose it is thus required (for the sake of maintaining harmony and some form of social ties) that one exercises a fair amount of self-restraint when airing one's views. and even in the act of putting them out, it is important to acknowledge, like mr wang, that differing views are inevitable. i believe, that i believe in moderation.

everything comes at a price. even privacy. watching a tv programme on hackers recently was a timely reminder for me. these everyday-people, nondescript, meet up in cafes or even Internet chat-rooms to exchange precious information on credit card numbers, passwords, driver's licence numbers, and even mothers' maiden names. aagh. the world as we know it collapses around us, literally.

a friend-of-a-friend had an order of about a dozen bulldozers charged to her credit card when she purchased a book online from Amazon. the opportunity cost of a convenience borne of globalisation. instantaneous gratification. both for yourself and the party placing an order for a dozen bulldozers.

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bubblemunche/hisreason has walked out from his safari/explorer frame again. a moment of silence, please.