Our "Oh-So" Reliable Internet

It's very true that the Internet has completely changed the way of our world. It is a powerful and legitimate resource that has created ways for the "average joe" to create extreme incomes. It has changed how we buy and sell, how we communicate, how we gather and distribute information and even how many of us behave. I, for one, would be devastated without it. Isn't that true of most of us? Is your Internet service considered to be a necessity these days, just like electric, water, and gas? In our house we have three computers online, and we'll soon be adding a fourth once my new office is complete. My oldest daughter attends cyber- school from her bedroom, my five year old plays online games through websites such as NickJr and Disney, my husband and I both use the Internet for work, not to mention all of the other ways we utilize it. We do our banking and shopping online - honestly, we even met through a chatroom about 7 years ago. Without the use of the Internet I'm just about positive we would have never met, we lived over 2200 miles away from eachother! If not just for that reason alone I am very grateful. But, it's the fact that we rely on the Internet so much that tends to worry me at times. The way things are going nowadays there is always some speculation as to whether the World Wide Web could be attacked by some malicious group or even during a war. It's not something that any of us want to think about, but don't you think it should be given just a moment of thought? Many of us are under the assumption that the Internet will always be there, and the fact is, there is the possibility that we could wake up one morning, stop at our computers to check our email and NOT be able to log on. This is not something I believe we should all panic about, but I do think it's something that some of us should be prepared for. Do you run an online business? Think about the effort you have put into it - the sweat, blood and tears. Personally, I know how difficult it can be to start a business from scratch, the hours taken away from family and other responsibilities. I realized that I relied Totally on the Internet as my income source, and that created a churning feeling in my innards that forced me to set some time aside to create an alternative business plan. You might want to ask yourself the same question. Does your income rely on the absolute stability of the Internet? And if it does, do you have a secondary plan of action? Even though I don't believe it's something we need to go crazy about, doesn't mean we shouldn't all be prepared!