Could you ever leave the internet?

[Neoma]

Also, how would you do it if you left?

8 votes, 0 passes | Time left: Unlimited
	Yes.
	3 (38%)
	Yes, but I'd cheat and go on someone else's internet.
	0 (0%)
	No.
	1 (13%)
	No, but only because I honestly can't.
	0 (0%)
	Partially.
	0 (0%)
	I'd just boycott the websites I'd have to pay extra for because of the -insert insult- people who killed net neutrality.
	3 (38%)
	Other.
	1 (13%)
	0 DU members did not wish to select any of the options provided.
Show usernames Disclaimer: This is an Internet poll

[Zorra]

1. Retire, move to another country, and live on a quiet tropical beach. nt

[Quantess]

4. Which country does not have the internet?

If there are any countries on earth that do not have internet, would you want to live there?

[Zorra]

13. I don't believe that I indicated that any country did not have internet.

I have already lived in the place that I referred to in my post, and did not use the internet there.

I was thoroughly disgusted with the people of this country for not rising up and taking control after the SCOTUS selected Bush, and could not bear the thought of living in a country where an unelected sociopath was recognized as leader, so I left the country right after I realized that the protests of Bush's inauguration were not going to grow, and result in any further movement to restore democracy.

I did not use the internet again until Bush declared war on Iraq. I have never seen video of 9/11 to this day.

"No news of the world today, I'm just killin' time, livin' life my own way."

[Neoma]

6. Well, you'd need to watch out for the monster hurricanes.

And the likeliness that plastic from the ocean would roll up on the beach is pretty good. Oh, and seagulls might poo on you.

I'm just here to kill dreams.

[Zorra]

18. Already been there, done that, darlin'. The plastic's not a problem there yet, and I can fling

poo with the best of them.

I love to swim in the ocean for hours every day, and it's the massive jellyfish blooms that have been causing me problems.

[lpbk2713]

2. Boycott as much as possible.

I'm closing out a Verizon account as soon as I can notify as many people of my email change as I can.

[dorkzilla]

3. Partially because I'd at least want to be able to download books from Project Gutenburg and

for my Kindle. I'm pretty sure I could live with out it otherwise.

Or not.

[polly7]

5. I had to change mine from 'Yes' to 'Partially',

because I wasn't considering how much I've gotten to depend upon it for real news and information. I don't trust the msm at all, so that part of it I probably couldn't leave.

I'd miss seeing how people I've gotten to admire and care about are doing ... that would be a bit painful, but it could be done - though sadly.

[Kaleva]

9. Pretty much the same for me.

I could do without it but I would prefer not to.

[Neoma]

21. I honestly can't leave.

My college requires me to have internet to do school work on, and they send me emails to warn me that class is cancelled.

My husband is also a computer programmer, his job is based on the internet existing.

[polly7]

24. Yep, I wasn't even considering how completely lost we'd be without it

for work and education and those whose livelihoods completely depend on it. Somebody below said it well, like choosing to go without electricity ... except that for many, it's not even a choice anymore.

[Neoma]

27. It made me a little sad about it.

Can't face-to-face people replace social media?
Couldn't snail mail replace email?
Could I go through college without working on websites?
Can I read the newspaper instead?
Can't my information also come from books instead?
Could I do without netflix and youtube?

It's become pitiful actually.

[polly7]

29. But when you really think about just how much all of these things

(apart from the purely social aspect) have been completely taken over by the internet, it makes completely leaving it pretty much impossible for people who want/need to know what's going on. How much news does my newspaper have compared to what's offered online - not much at all anymore. Ongoing research can make even the best books obsolete within months, so there's that ....

The social aspect is a bit sad when you see how much some do depend on it for human interaction, but then, for many ... it's given them a whole new opportunity when perhaps they have little in real life. I remember one trip to the city, an older man who'd only recently been introduced to the internet via his daughter - he was absolutely fascinated by it and how he could 'see' his grandchildren and ggc and keep in touch, etc. This is a man who normally never talks much and keeps himself fairly isolated at the Home - he chatted on about it for the whole time it took to get there. I honestly don't think there's any going back and for the most part, I'm pretty happy about that. But yes, I agree that for many who are able-bodied, it's become harmful as a way to avoid real life interaction.

[Neoma]

30. I'm not worried about the interaction bit. That all changes once you're in a college environment...

Grew up with it though. If I didn't have the Internet I wouldn't have found my husband and I wouldn't have survived the forced isolation during my late teens.

[polly7]

32. I'm thankful that it was there for you.

I grew up with it as a source for mainly news and work-related info and education, and forget at times how important it's been for so many (sorry, my able-bodied comment probably wasn't one of my best thoughts) - I don't think there's any realistic reason we could or should completely have to give it up. It would be very, very! difficult at this point.

[Neoma]

34. Well, there might not be a choice in some circumstances.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024352282#post20

[polly7]

37. Yes, and those are some scary possibilities.

I'm also very worried about it becoming perhaps unavailable completely d/t the loss of choice and affordability, that people who've heavily relied on it as a lifeline will be pushed back into isolation. More than worried, actually.

[quinnox]

7. Well, to break this down

Could I? Yes, you bet. I am old enough to remember life before the internet, and it wasn't half bad. So yea, I could. Would I want to? No, I really enjoy the internet. So I would stay on the internet if possible.

[PeaceNikki]

8. I wouldn't ever want to. I like having information at my fingertips.

And Skype-ing with my family all over the world. Plus, it's a huge part of my career and everything with which I interact.

Is it considered 'leaving the internet' if you do business with a company who depends on it? Like your bank? Or retailers who order from vendors online?

It's kind of a silly question unless one really intends to live 'off the grid'.

[Neoma]

20. Why is that silly?

There's internet addiction for one. Doctors also recommend only a few hours on the internet a day in order to stay in shape, and most people can't even do that. This is also a question of if you can because the internet is hijacked or shut down by terrorists (which is altogether possible.) Or if there's a plague and all the power goes out. Or if there's a coronal mass ejection from the sun that would fuck up electrical systems. How much do you actually depend on the internet when you could find out the same information somewhere else? There's many ways our internet can fuck up and leave people jobless, and I'm wondering who will be the most affected? There isn't any preparation for something like that to happen. Since everyone is putting everything thing they have into the internet. People put their entire businesses on the internet, all the news on the internet, a lot of hospital records... you get the point.

[PeaceNikki]

22. As I said, you never defined 'leave the internet'.

What about on the job? Emails at work? Doing business with others who are on the internet?

I just think that unless you go totally off the grid, you are 'on the internet'.

[Neoma]

25. What else could it mean but its entirety?

[Shankapotomus]

10. Yes. If I had to in order not to be at the mercy of the isp's and cell companies

I would suspect there would be independent techies working in their garages on perfecting sending text and images through the air for free. (We sometimes forget we still have the right to network our computers together ourselves.) If the government doesn't do it, people should get together and work on creating a free internet network (at the very least locally) that is free and not at the mercy of any large corporate entity.

I would rather have a smaller, localized internet than one that is at the mercy of these damn companies. To hell with them.

[JaneyVee]

11. No, I'm even on it RIGHT NOW!

[LWolf]

12. Sure.

But why?

[Neoma]

23. This.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024352282#post20

[LWolf]

28. Okay.

There are things about the internet that I really love and don't want to give up.

Paying my bills. Buying things I can't get locally. Getting information. Checking out library books. Those are personal things.

Professionally, I like being able to communicate with parents and students through email, and being able to post information for them online. It's efficient and effective.

I don't want to give up those things without a good reason.

Social networking? Sure. I could give that up without a problem. Reading the news? I could go back to getting print newspapers. I love print newspapers. The only reason that I don't get them any more is that, where I live, they don't arrive until I've already gone to work in the morning, so if I want to read the news over my morning coffee, I need the internet.

I have a smart phone, and it has ONE "smart" feature I don't want to give up: navigation. I like being able to get directions to where I'm going while I'm in the car. I don't need the rest. I like having a phone with me, even though I don't use it much.

If I had a good reason to give those things up, I would. The reason has to be good enough. I'm not addicted; I don't spend too much time. I can do my job, and everything else, without it. It's not as convenient, but I haven't given up all the other ways to accomplish things.

[lumberjack_jeff]

14. Not by choice.

The internet is the coolest thing since the printing press.

[Earth_First]

15. How would you do it?

You mean short of an impassioned manifesto titled: "Screw you guys, I'm goin home..."

I'd probably just turn it off.

[PowerToThePeople]

16. Yes I am an internet junky. n/t

[frazzled]

17. I need it for my work, but otherwise ...

I should spend waaaaaay less time on it. I know this. But it's a bit of an addiction.

I successfully gave up watching cable news programs (with the exception of when there is some live news to watch). But it wasn't like I had to try: I just got so tired of listening to the endless jibber jabber, and it didn't seem to lead to my deeper understanding of anything. I just got bored with it.

I could give up a LOT of what I waste time on on the Internet. But it depends on what else is available in the real world. Right now I get two dead-tree newspapers every morning, and there are still bricks-and-mortar stores around, and even TV (blechhh)—these are things I worry may not exist in the not-too-distant future. But other things are pretty certain to remain: books, and knitting, and new recipes to cook, and long walks in the park ... and martinis, and conversation with real people, and exercise. These are probably much better things to waste time on than googling useless stuff. They just take more initiative.

So if I didn't need the Internet for most aspects of my work, I could probably give most of it up. (I used to do the same work before it existed, but it was way more time consuming and expensive: I used to have to send hand-marked manuscripts by overnight FedEx, while now I can just make a PDF and zap it halfway across the world.)

In the end, however, there's no going back. It's like saying you could do without electricity. Sure, you could, but it would be kind of crazy.

[KansDem]

19. I depend on it for news and information

Newspapers, magazines, and M$M have become a joke

[Ohio Joe]

26. No... For many reasons

Firstly... I love the internet, news, information, entertainment and much more all at my fingertips... It's pretty sweet. Also... I kind of need it for my job. A lot of the IT work I do would go away without the internet. I would not want to give it up.

[oldandhappy]

31. I can give it up at home and may do that if the prices continue to push up.

I would be OK with the library or an internet cafe. You have to pay at the cafe. I am really pissed with the way the at home services lure you in and then want to double the rates in a year. I complain! And so far have it at home. But am gearing up to let it go. Not sure what I will do while sipping my morning tea!!

[Neoma]

33. Read poetry?

[oldandhappy]

35. Read!! read read read

My second home is the library. I like books. But when I travel, my Nook is with me. Smile.

[hrmjustin]

36. I would just go on anothers internet.

[FreeJoe]

38. yes, but I wouldn't want to

I lived most of my life without it.