Technology as a Tool

One of the points that I try to make when I speak on Cyber Safety is that technology itself is neither good nor bad - the morality of technology comes in how that technology is used.

I had a perfect example of this recently. I was speaking in Salt Lake, about 45 miles from my home, and when I got back in my car to drive to my next engagment, I couldn't turn the key to start my car. Evidently, the tumblers in my ignition column decided they were tired of tumbling, and wanted a permanent rest. After coming to the realization that no amount of fidling with the key would get it to turn, I gave up and called my wife to come rescue me. We left my car in Salt Lake City, returned home, and apologized profusely for missing a speaking engagement (that is probably the worst part of this for me, but that is not the point of this post).

Since the next day was a holiday, I knew that I wouldn't be able to get the car fixed for at least one more day. I really didn't want to leave it on the street, and worried about how to fix it so far away from my house. I knew that we couldn't tow it home because I have to turn the key in order to get the car out of park, so we were pretty much stuck. Being the "computer geek" that my wife frequently reminds me that I am, I decided to turn to the Internet to see if anyone had been thoughtful enough to post instructions about how to hotwire a car. Sure enough, I quickly found step-by-step instructions. I returned to my car, followed the instructions and was soon on the road returning my car to our driveway to be fixed sometime in the future.

Prior to this incident, had I run across instructions online about how to hotwire a car, my first thoughts would have been about how this information contributes to the deliquency of minors, and teaches kids how to embark on a life of crime. While there still may be an element of truth to that sentiment, I am grateful to have found the information I needed to assist in a very valid need of getting my property back to my own home. People who want to steal cars will figure out how to do it, with or without the Internet. The fact that instructions are posted online is not in-and-of-itself evil.

As I continue to say, the Internet is neither good nor bad - it simply "is". How we use the information we come across on the Internet is where we put that information to good use or evil use. The ethics and morality of how we use technology is completely in our own hands. It is important to remember that, since there are not many things that you cannot find out about on the information superhighway today. It is even more important to teach our children this concept so they understand how to use technology as a tool to help uplift, and not to drag down.

7 Ways to Reduce Online Dangers

Education Tech news today listed 7 ways to help educate school children about online safety. I am honored to be listed as one of the 7.

How does Violence in Gaming affect our children?

Here I discuss how violence in gaming affects our children. This is an excerpt from my talk at the "Protecting Children and Families from Pornography and Other Harmful Materials" conference earlier this year.

UCAP - Filters 101

Here is my discussion of filters from the "Protecting Children and Families From Pornography and Other Harmful Materials" conference earlier this year.

UCAP - Intro to "Cyber Safety"

I posted some excerpts from my talk at the "Protecting Children and Families from Pornography and Other Harmful Materials". Take a look here:

Utah Coalition Against Pornography Annual Conference

The Deseret News today had an article about the "Protecting Children and Families from Pornography and other harmful material" conference sponsored by the Utah Coalition Against Pornography. They quoted my break-out session. Very nice write-up of a great conference!

C u l8r. Will these be your final words?

Seen on a billboard along I-15 in Utah: "C u l8r. Will these be your final words?". According to a University of Utah professor, distracted driving is responsible for more teen deaths than drunk driving. As quoted in this article, 1 in 10 drivers are talking on the phone at any given moment. And, although some states have enacted laws against texting while driving, many continue the practice. While this is dangerous enough for adults, it is even more dangerous for less experienced and more easily disatracted teen drivers.

Parents - urge your teenagers to put away the cell phone while driving. Help them understand that there is nothing so urgent that they have to respond to it while they are driving. Leaving the cell phone in their pocket while in the car could quite literally save their life.