Article #4

What article did you choose to read for your fourth article?
I read "Tangled in the Web" by Name Withheld

What were the most important things you learned from the readings?
I learned that the Internet can become addicting just like anything else. What may start as a half hour of entertainment can lead up to seven hours of wasted unproductive time. The person who wrote this article tells us that at first she would just get on to play some chess. But after some time, she began building relationships with men who competed with her. She was constantly on the Internet and spending less time with her husband and family. The lives of her chess friends, their problems and activities, became her life. She also allowed one of these friends to weaken her testimony of the church and question her believes. She knew that she needed to get rid of her addiction to the Internet but she did not how. She finally talked to her bishop and came to her senses and is now back on the right path.

The Internet is a great source for information and entertainment. But we have to learn how to manage the time we spend on it. We can not allow for the Internet to disrupt our lives in such a way as the person who wrote this article. We should not allow for relationships with total strangers to become more important than that of our family members. In order to avoid these things, we should be responsive to the people that love us when they are giving us advice, and simply take the Internet away from yourself if it is necessary. Make it hard to access it.

How will what you have read influence your actions as a parent and/or teacher of children and youth?
I will always have my home computer in a place with high traffic. This should make it more difficult for my children to get into troublesome websites. I plan to have a schedule that my children will have to follow. They will only be allowed to use the Internet for about half an hour a day. They shouldn't be spending all of their time on the computer; they should be spending time with their family and other positive influences. This article has influenced me to really supervise how much time someone I care for spends on the computer. I know that even I can spend too much time on facebook or my email, but I should not be letting these programs run my life.

How can you use what you have learned from the reading to have a positive influence on family and friends?
I realized that staying informed with new programs and sites that may become addicting is important. I need to stay on top of things so that I can correct any problems that come my way. I also realized that it is good to keep track on how much time my children will be spending on the Internet and what they are doing. I need to be aware of who they are talking to because they do not need to be surrounded by negative influences and people who just want to damage them.