Here’s how Wikipedia defines spam:
Spam is the use of electronic messaging systems to send unsolicited bulk messages, especially advertising, indiscriminately.
And here’s how wigs&muscles defines spam:
A misunderstood evil.
In case you didn’t get the huge hyperlink, please read the post here: http://wigsandmuscles.wordpress.com/2009/09/14/spam-a-misunderstood-evil/
Now that, in my books is one way of spam. “How?” you might think. Well what is that Nigerian prince or those estranged widows from Ivory coast going to do with all the money they have? Not to mention all those ways by which you can grow your penis longer than the Great Wall of China. Anyway, here is the essence of this post: with evolving technology comes evolving spam. Some, due to creeping around technology, but most due to our sheer brilliant ignorance. And we, as Indians I think very proudly go on with it (count me in, count me in!). Digress not.
So, spam. The inspiration to this post came up when I saw the fifth post on facebook in which people mentioned they wished to stay connected “privately” with their friends and family. In fact looking at that I remembered there are a number of letters I am to send all my close friends and family with whom I do intend to stay connected at many levels. Focus, focus. I second College Humor’s take on the issue, very nicely put: facebook laws for idiots.
So we were talking about ignorance. We often do things out of ignorance, and spread spam without even attempting to understand if it is actually true: be it promoting Child Line India to be a waste food collecting gang; or like all those doctors who are waiting for our likes and shares to save little children’s lives; or delivering justice to people who committed big crimes. The reason doesn’t matter, it probably gives us a sense of accomplishment in saying “I did my share to help some random person.” And computers are just the perfect tools for spreading them, as would SMBC agree with me.
These are, I am sure, the new kind of spam. Spam, to me, is any unsolicited useless piece of information that gives you no earthly pleasure. Since our inboxes are well filtered by our email service providers, spam has also probably evolved: to eat into our ignorance. I wonder what the spam of the future is going to be (thinking along with my extinct buddy):
My thoughts on your screen 