# A somewhat painful reminder of what the Internet is.

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-somewhat-painful-reminder-of-what-the-internet-is/577255>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [April 5, 2011, 11:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-somewhat-painful-reminder-of-what-the-internet-is/577255 "2011-04-05T11:36:44Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\
**Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 11:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-somewhat-painful-reminder-of-what-the-internet-is/577255/1 "2011-04-05T11:36:44Z")

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It’s everything every placed there forever. In a thread from July of 2002 ( [Who would you want at your dinner part, alive dead or fictitious?](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=126366), I listed several real people who had died and whose deaths had greatly impacted me.

I miss them. I thought it a fine thought to bring them back to a dinner party along with the other historical notables I listed in my post.

Last night a PM was sent to me by a Doper. He was the brother of one of those people I wanted to invite until they died suddenly in the summer of 1980. He wanted to know how I knew this person and who I am. Of course I replied and we will have a conversation in the next few days either by email or phone.

My heart aches. Someone read this. Someone whose heart ached suddenly because I wrote a name that means so very much to them.

It will be bittersweet to talk to this person, but surely I owe them the kindness of sharing all I knew about their loved one. I do look forward to meeting him by word or voice and getting to know him now as an adult.

I will do well not to forget that the Internets, they don’t forget.

Cartooniverse

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**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\
**Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 11:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-somewhat-painful-reminder-of-what-the-internet-is/577255/2 "2011-04-05T11:49:48Z")

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This seems like an entirely good thing to me. An aspect of your friend lives and is renewed in shared remembrance.

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**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\
**Post date:** [April 5, 2011, 11:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-somewhat-painful-reminder-of-what-the-internet-is/577255/3 "2011-04-05T11:51:33Z")

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Couldn’t agree more. It _is_ a good thing. I don’t dread the conversation- much to the contrary. I likely will fill in a few gaps and answer a few questions from 30 years ago.

Everyone deserves answers.