Honestly, the internet was at its best when it was the fever dream of stoned, sexually frustrated grad students at Berkley. Infinite potential - it could’ve been anything. Could’ve. But wouldn’t. The real thing, after it became fully saturated in everyday American life, was always going to be some mediocre, watered down corporate cesspool of lowest common denominator, hyper-sanitized garbage. Because that’s what people like. They like safe, familiar, predictable, and uncomplicated. Well, most people.
Forget shitposts, there were legitimate flame wars in Pompeii graffiti:
Successus textor amat coponiaes ancilla(m)
nomine Hiredem quae quidem illum
non curat sed ille rogat illa com(m)iseretur
scribit rivalis vale
Translates to:
Successus the weaver is in love with the slave of the
Innkeeper, whose name is Iris. She doesn’t care about
him at all, but he asks that she take pity on him.
A rival wrote this
A response to this translates to:[6]
You’re so jealous you’re bursting. Don’t tear down
someone more handsome―
a guy who could beat you up and who is good-looking.
The internet was better when it was Usenet and Gopher.
Honestly, the internet was at its best when it was the fever dream of stoned, sexually frustrated grad students at Berkley. Infinite potential - it could’ve been anything. Could’ve. But wouldn’t. The real thing, after it became fully saturated in everyday American life, was always going to be some mediocre, watered down corporate cesspool of lowest common denominator, hyper-sanitized garbage. Because that’s what people like. They like safe, familiar, predictable, and uncomplicated. Well, most people.
The internet was better when it was a pair of tin cans and a string.
Wi-Fi back then was using carrier pigeons.
Oh sure, like that was an improvement over cave painting.
Cave paintings are overrated. Hand shadow puppets on the cave walls were always more dynamic.
I definitely preferred oral history.
There have been examples that are effectively primitive shitposts found carved into walls in Pompeii. People never really change.
Forget shitposts, there were legitimate flame wars in Pompeii graffiti:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_graffiti