Beware, Oh, Take Care

I have very whitebread browsing tastes on the web. I live dangerously with the New York Times, Boston Globe, Portland Press Herald, and Washington Post. My dirty little secret is WordPress, where I read poetry, personal philosophy, and a bit of scandal—just every once in a while. I also research a variety of topics. Surprise! Departed are the days when my memory will remember a word-for-word rendering of an obscure quote.

Nope, there is no movie streaming, little Facebook, LinkedIn, or Instagram, and under no circumstances do I visit X.

See what I mean, whitebread? At this time of year, I like to read other people’s posts about foliage and their ruminations on their daily walks. It forms a delightful counterpoint to the Sturm und Drang of what’s on television or the radio. At least on the web, I can find a nice quiet spot.

I don’t avoid the noise; I can’t with my addiction to news, but I seek to balance it and get some perspective.

Now, dear reader, you ask, why did you choose that graphic as the featured image for this post? Well, I chose it because recently I feel like those sailors (remember, I am one). *

Coming back from liberty after painting the town red. Feeling a bit intoxicated. Around the corner lurks the Shore Patrol. The SP’s have nothing good in mind for me. They are there to make my life miserable.

The Sp’s on the web these days are the creeps spreading disinformation, running rotten scams, and scraping our data. They masquerade as our bank, Federal agents, or our old friends.

The other day, I received a notice from one of my banks asking me to call them. Rather than the number given, I called them at the number on my credit card. The bank was a bit disturbed. The message looked good—except for the part about calling them. They wouldn’t do that. It was worded and graphically identical to one of theirs. They then explained the one-time passcode scam to me. It’s nasty stuff having your accounts drained.

So, whether you are whitebread or not. Whether you fool around on the dark web or not. Someone is waiting around the corner to do bad things to you.

• The illustration is by Jan Sanders. Sanders was famous for his humorous but biting illustrations of sailors’ lives.