The other day, I went searching for information on what happens when the earth’s magnetic poles flip. I found it. It didn’t really fit into the essay for that morning. So, I moved on. The internet, however, has not moved on. Everywhere there is any sort of news feed, I now see links to articles about the magnetic poles flipping. On my computer, on my iPad, on my iPhone. Everywhere. It feels as though the digital universe is doing its dead level best to amplify my concerns, show me there really is something to worry about.

Of course, for anyone paying attention, this is nothing new. During the entire week Texas froze I saw an endless stream of ads for cold weather gear, as if anyone could deliver cold weather gear to me. Now I’m seeing ads for some sort of device to use when I lose power. I’ll probably click one of these days, just out of curiosity. But for now, I’m being an obstinate old man. Generally speaking, I like ads for things that interest me. I’ve actually bought one or two of them. It just occurs to me, however, that if you’re a worry wart, then you might want to avoid the internet, because it’s designed to help you worry.

A lot of people are hot and bothered about all of this, just as they were hot and bothered about what television would do in its infancy. People put a lot of effort into making television educational and enlightening. But look where we ended up. The Bachelor. I imagine the same thing will happen to the internet. Although, here’s hoping the smart people running things decide to do good, or something approximating good. It’s just that if history has taught us anything it’s that bad people sometimes triumph, and all you can really hope for is that you were there before it or right after.