Theos-Talk Archives (August 1998 Message tt00484)

On Wed, 26 Aug 1998 18:02:16 -0500, you wrote:

>At 10:27 PM 8/26/1998 +0100, you wrote:
>>mkr wrote:
>>
>>>Here is some interesting info in today's news. Presents a great opportunity
>>>to present theosophy. Is anyone interested and awake?
>>
>>What are you suggesting mkr?  The 202 million US adults are here just the
>>same.  Why do you feel the internet is going to make such a difference to
>>the 70.5 million or the 202 million US citizens?  It is just another super
>>highway, a broad path in an ever changing world.
>>  
>>Martin Leiderman gave a measured reply, and one with which I sympathise,
>>using words like aura . . . .
>>
>>The internet is a souless place for many.
>>
>>And regarding an earlier mail:
>>>The point that is of importance to theosophists is that all the classics
>>>will be immediately accessible at *almost* *no* *cost* (other than one's
>>>time) and everyone interested can benefit from theosophy classics. On the
>>>other hand, some of the classics are already available on the web. But some
>>>theosophical organizations are still wedded to print media. How long it is
>>>going to take for them to understand the possible shrinking *market* for
>>>printed media which can be sold where as info on the net is free for most
>>>part.
>>
>>It is interesting that so far the opposite is happening.  People are buying
>>more books as a result of the internet.  Very clever really.  People read a
>>bit of the book on the Internet, and then want to buy the book.  A good
>>marketing ploy.  
>>How is it really going to help humanity, spread brotherhood, reduce poverty
>>and disease in all the kingdoms of nature around the planet, more than
>>anything else?  The internet can certainly divert attention away from
>>Reality.  It is only as good as the people that use it.  
>>
>>Tony
>
>Like other tools, Internet is just a tool. What one can do with it depends
>on one's creativity.
>
>The recent success in banning land mines was possible because all the
>coordination between activists in various countries was done using e-mail.
>I am sure there are other applications where it is showing its
>effectiveness as a tool.
>
>mkr
>
Our little TS office in New Zealand is getting things moving much
quicker with e-mail. We rely on overseas speakers to come once or
twice a year and now we can make arrangements much quicker and find
out what we need to know, overnight. That is a big help down here
where we are more isolated and out of the mainstream of things. We get
enquiries from all over about theosophy as it may pertain to NZ from
our web site. We also have begun using Amazon book site for ordering
books for our branches and the Auckland Book shop. 
The members on e-mail have a good link with each other via the NZ
discuss group and most of us meet at Convention so we know each other
personally too. There is always a downside to most things but one
needs to use the positive side constructively and sidestep the
negative as much as possible. I feel that the Internet is a great
source of information. Sometimes I think it might be overkill but I
have to decided how much I have time to deal with. 
Cheers
Bee