The first time I was aware of the internet, I had just moved to Portmsouth in England. I had entered a very abusive relationship and was massively struggling to get out of it. I was aware that porngraphy was a driver for his behaviours. Seeing women as objects for gratification, rather than people, to be respected in the same way that he demanded. What has this got to do with the advent of the internet? Simple. I remember getting the first internet box installed in the apartment. Having a large bulky computer tower purchased from PC World, for what seemed like a very large amount of money.
What was the first thing that I considered for use of the internet ? Messaging family abroad, researching news, events around the world and reading. The forst use for the abuser? Pornography. In fact this remained the reason for the having the internet I believe for the entirity of that relationship. It was a fascinating dichotomy that the greater the increases in his violence the more violent and perverse the pornography that he stored on the family computer became. Nothing like saving family photos to the hard drive and finding files full of images and video clips of women in pornogrpahic poses or having full sex for the cameras. The longer that time passed the younger the women.
Without a doubt this propensity to hide pornography, gives a freedom to the proclivties of men to hide vast quatities of material. I am aware of a site called Porn hub. This as I understand it is the forum that men can upload clips potentially without permission of the females involved. Inluding violent pornography. I remember before the internet, when the pornogrpahy was on paper and I would find it hidden. Internet meant hiding vast sums of material. I often wonder if this was perhaps the reason my the internet was developed. A way of men accessing and storing material without easy detection.
The internet is amazing and I adore the freedom it allows me in work and studies. I remember what work was like before. Alot of paper and writing. Howver in this digital internet age. I still keep copies of paperwork for every aspect of life. Simply because, men designed the internet and therefore it is accessible and subject to interventions of data that paperwork is not. I remember before the internet. Like pornography on paper. Physical documents cannot be questioned or easily changed. The internet can… deleted, manipulated, accessed and changed.
Living in the pre interenet world allowed me insight into the risks internet and the very real importance of paper records… A format that was created to access pornography, one must always remain a bit wary of !!!!!