Society today

These days, worldwide communication is easy using the internet. The advantages are families and friends can keep in touch wherever they are. The disadvantages are people can be more easily spammed and people abused online.

Sadly image manipulation is far easier these days. Every time an image is shared it can be abused.

In the UK people under 16 are to be banned from social media. This happened in Australia but many young people have found ways to get around the ban.

Personally, I think some means must be found to prevent young people from being harmed by accessing social media, even if using VPNs and other services. I am unsure how you do this, but the answer probably has to include biometric data and strong age verification,  Maybe all people under 16 worldwide have restricted access time to social media?

It seems to me that a simple ban is not enough. I have a young granddaughter who needs to keep in touch with family and friends. At the same time I do not want her to come to any harm.

I am sure the big tech companies and phone manufacturers could and should do much more.

Social media - NOT amateur radio

This is a mixed blessing, that some people hate. On balance, I think it is a good thing. 

We can have video chats with old friends on the other side of the Earth or just keep in touch with people. Years ago this would have been by the occasional letter or Christmas card. It was harder to keep in touch. The alternative was an expensive phone call on special occasions. Often we lost contact.

It is all too easy to live in a virtual world and forget about "real" things. There was a great phrase on TV last week that a person was half man and half laptop!! We have to be careful not to fall into this trap.

Social media - NOT amateur radio

Like many, I seem to be addicted to instant social media fixes. When waking in the morning I grab my smart phone to check Facebook, emails, blogs, BBC etc. Most of these could easily wait several hours or even days. Talk about "must get a life"! These things could and should be relegated to their proper place.