Web 2.0 Poetry: Voice of the Internet

Video: Rives “If I Ran the Internet” (a poem)

I’m not a poet, and I’ve never really learned how to analyze poetry.  Sad, I know.  I’ve got lots of books on how to read poetry, but little interest in putting them at the top of my To Do List, for now anyway.  I just know what I like.

Right now, I’m digging Rives.

I’m digging how he’s taken digital technology, transformed it into art, and used it to give voice to the “Emperor of Oranges.”

In “If I Ran the Internet” he pushes us to think about what we could or should do online, to consider, “not if we can, but do you?”

In a limitless world of ever expanding digital technology, where do we choose to put limits?   Should you limit the Internet?

I Put My Child On Facebook

Today, I’m thinking about age limits set by online social media.  Most require participants to be at least 13-years-old, and with good reason.

Kids don’t always exhibit good judgment, but then the same could be said for many adults.

I’m thinking about age limits on social media today because, like many, we’re breaking the rules and setting up my daughter’s Facebook account, six months before she hits the minimum age requirement.

Yes, we can break the rule easily. Should we?  Well, we did.

I didn’t do it when my daughter first asked for a MySpace account last year.  I set up my own account, checked it out, and decided this was no place that I wanted my sweet child.

A year later, I’ve shared digital travel with my daughter.  I’ve coached and guided her, and think she’s fully prepared to make good choices, but I’m on Facebook with her.  I’ve moved to the edge of the playground, where I can keep an eye on her, but still allow her some online independence.

Funny, I’m sure that Rives wasn’t thinking about parenting kids online when he created “If I Ran the Internet,” but isn’t that the incredible thing about poetry, that it can take you somewhere where neither creator nor consumer intended to go?

Voice – From Sign Language to Digital Poetry

This morning, I discovered Rives on a TED Talks Email newsletter, that included Rive’s poetic love story, “A 3-Minute Story of Mixed Emoticons.”  It was so lyrical, so compelling.  I had to look for more.

I found “Rives Def Jam,” a hilarious commentary on deaf poets who use sign language to rock their message.  I laughed, but more than that, I ended up contemplating what does it mean to have voice – through sign language, poetry, or digital media.

See, there I go again, watching a short video poem, and already I’m thinking about how digital media – blogs, microblogs, Flickr, You Tube, Facebook, whatever – has given anyone, even those who can’t talk, a voice.

And, I wonder, what are we doing with this amazing ability to connect and communicate?

Rives Gets Me Thinkin’

About Conspiracy Theories on Rives: Is 4 a.m. the new midnight?

About Beauty on Rives: Gorgeous

About Sibling Relationships on Rives: “Op Talk”

About Word Gigolos on Rives: “Sellout”

About !@#$%%?? (Caution – Lewd Content) on Rives: Dirty Talk

I wonder, as Rives refers to himself as the Emperor of Oranges, how is he like, or unlike, Wallace Steven’s Emperor of Ice Cream?

Find more Rives videos on his ShopLiftWindChimes You Tube Channel or on his website, ShopLiftWindChimes.com.  On the website, you’ll find an assortment of digital media oddities, as well as the text to some of his poems, including Emperor of Oranges.

On Living By Learning On Web 2.0

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Even those who can’t talk easily, can have a voice with digital media.  WordPress Blog Gives Her A Voice

To Blog, Or Not To Blog In The Microblog Era – Discover why blogs are too important to lose.

Web 2.0 tools are revolutionizing advocacy – How Is Advocacy Changing With The Web?

More On Living By Learning Inspired By TED Talks

Are We Overprotecting Our Kids? Questioning Gever Tulley’s advice to empower children by letting them take more risks.

Do schools kill creativity? Sir Ken Robinson argues that schools are educating the creativity out of students.

A Wish For Students: Imagination In Action – David Egger calls on volunteers who inspire students.

Crossing The Digital Divide Through A Hole In The Wall – What does it take to ensure that kids learn basic computer literacy?

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Tagged as: poetry, Rives, ShopLiftWindChimes, Social network, TED Talks, video, Web 2.0, you tube