There is rampant crime on the internet and we like it. There is no doubt that the Internet has become the Wild Untamed West of our time. There are charlatans wandering from browser to browser selling snake oil and bandits holding up the Internet travelers. There are also plenty of brothels with women lifting their petty coats for a few coins. Why have we allowed the immoral Internet to permeate our society? No one is Marching on Washington, boycotting web hosts, canceling associations with web browsers or even starting a shoot out. Why do we allow it to continue? Why are we not protecting each other and our children? I have some ideas.

We Like our Secret Vices

In every society people have behaved immorally. The Internet just makes it so easy. I think most of us can agree that scamming people out of their money, steeling identities, and posting child pornography are wrong. Or is wrong too strong a word? We all do little things that we hide from each other. We commit our secret crimes. Lying to your boss and taking a sick day. Inflating our deductions on our tax returns. Taking office supplies for personal use.

Our nature is to take a little more then we deserve and justify our behavior, while hiding it from our families and associates. The Internet is the perfect place to commit our secret crimes. We feel a little rush having gotten away with it, while also being safe and distant from our victims. We can watch a little soft Internet porn, without having to check out the R rated video with "Breasty" Daisy Duke on the cover. Bonus! We can skip directly to the "good part" without wasting time on the cheesy story line. We can gamble for hours having won a little or lost a lot, while also being home to tuck the kids in and read a bedtime story. We can sell questionable products to unwary customers without having to see the scammed at the grocery store. We can gossip in chat rooms without the guilt of having betrayed a friend. We can say nasty things without having to face our co-conspirators. We can spend more then we should shopping for items we don't need without driving to the mall. I think I can safely say that "we like our vice in the web safe form".

We are Distant from Our Victims

Who are we really hurting anyway. The porn actress signed up and got paid for her work. The celebrities got filthy rich with their Britney Spears sized exposure. The uneducated who spent their money on useless products would have waisted their money somewhere. The dope who signed up for that sub-prime loan would have lost his home sooner or later, one way or another. That emotionally unstable teenager would have committed suicide even if her nude photos were not posted and forwarded to her classmates. These are all just faces and names that come and go. We forget them quickly, as we open a more wholesome browser window.

There are so Many Shades of Grey

It is so easy to justify our crimes and minimize how we are complicit. All the actresses on the site are over 18. The 18 year old may look like she is 15 but I am still looking at an 18 year old. Aren't I?

How was I supposed to know that the product I was selling was not what it was advertised to be? I was just marketing it for the distributor. The buyers should have known that buying Viagra from a discount site was risky. Besides, he should not have taken it once he saw it was shipped from China. I won't even feed my dog something from China. I won't let my kids play with lead laden toys from China. What was he thinking? Hopefully he learned his lesson after the embarrassment of having his stomach pumped by that sweet nurse. I wonder if she has a web site?

We are Oblivious to the Crime and the Social Consequences.

We are all just doing the best that we can to take care of our families and put food on our tables. The skyrocketing rate of teen pregnancy has nothing to do with Internet pornography. The collapse of the housing market has nothing to do with unethical Internet mortgage brokers. The melt down of the stock market has nothing to do with risky trading and dishonest speculation. Escalating teen violence has nothing to do with Grand Theft Auto and beat downs posted on You Tube. Infidelity and divorce have nothing to do with racy chat rooms.

We can Walk Away with the Rush of our Crime Without the Guilt

We can log off, smile at our coworkers, talk to our kids about doing the right thing, attend social events, give to charity and feel good about ourselves. When we are ready for a little loose morality we can log on again for our quick fix. This is why we do nothing about the Wild West of the Internet and allow it to continue.