So something I was mulling over the other night... how would "The Diary of Anne Frank" been different if Facebook/Tumblr/Twitter been around? I don't meant that irreverently (I have nothing but deep respect and sorrow for their story), but simply how would a situation like that play out with different technology.
I mean, other than the obvious... that that type of persecution genocide (in Western Europe, at least) would not have gone as unnoticed and unchecked as long as it did. (Huzzah for the community journalist generation, bringing awareness everywhere).
Think about it, though. Life in the Annex with internet. Would it have been forbidden? One wrong post somewhere and they would have been found out... right? But in today's world people in hiding manage to use the internet all the time. They're usually on the move, however. Would eight people, trapped in one small space, have decided it was worth the risk? Would they have submitted to a life without even scanning the news sites? (Or getting craft and cooking ideas on Pinterest...)
Would they have set up a computer with all sorts of security on it so they wouldn't have been tracked? (it's not hard to set up a new IP).
Would they have created false online identities? Would they have had to browse in pairs to make sure no data was entered that gave away their location and real identities as Jews?
Would the Nazi's have taken over Facebook as they entered a country and forced the company to reveal religious affiliation? Would Facebook (and similar sites) been banned in such countries for refusing to cooporate?
Would Anne have kept an anonymous blog? Would she have filled her time with tumblr and online shows and pouring over Pinterest?
Would they have used Miep's Amazon account to order stuff that would be shipped to Miep's house and later smuggled over?
Would the Internet have made life more bearable, or would it have betrayed them sooner?
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