No Fear

It is time to get over your fear.

Yes, I'm talking to you Mr. 'But MySpace is Full of Stalkers and You Just Can't Trust Kids and I'm Scared to Death of Being Sued and I've Never Actually Used Social Networking and Have No Idea What I'm Talking About'.

I'm also talking to you, Mr. 'I Used Social Networking in College and I'm TOTALLY Not Wanting Students to Find Pics of Me Doing Kegstands'.

And I'm talking to you Mr. 'I Hate Technology SO Much, I'm Just Gonna Have to Blog About It'.

I'm talking to you. Listen up.

The White House -- that is to say, the executive center of the free world (Canadian readers, please disregard my hubris; I'm a fully functional ironist) -- has just begun a Web 2.0 program. You can now keep in touch with Barry on Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter.

And I, for one, think we're all the better for it.

Years ago, social networking was thought of as kids' stuff. Then Obama's organization used Facebook to mobilize millions.

Ain't kids' stuff anymore.

You might wanna mention that to your students.

Web 2.0 is what you make of it. Use it to keep the powers that be transparent and honest. Use it as a force for equality and democracy. Use it to make the world a better place.

Nothing to be afraid of.