Ron Jeremy: The Internet Makes People Stupid

By Marcus Yam
published

The Hedgehog hates the internet.

When Ron Jeremy spoke out in a debate, he said that video games were more harmful to children than pornography. Now, it seems, the Hedgehog has an issue with the internet.

"The internet has allowed a lot of crooks, thieves and squatters to become millionaires. Normally, they wouldn't get a job washing dishes," Jeremy said in an interview with the BBC. "I have a lot of problems with the internet and with identity theft. It has happened to me twice with my bank account, so I am not a big fan."

Also adding to his hate pile is that the internet is threatening an industry which he made over 2,000 movies for. "People can download stuff for free these days, so why the heck are they going to buy it? The only ones making money out of porn are the novelty companies," Jeremy added.

"I just hate the internet in general," he said.

But his hate for the internet goes beyond just what it's been doing to the porn industry. Jeremy, as a former educator, believes that the internet has a detrimental impact on today's users.

"It's good because you can research any topic," Jeremy explains. "In my day, we went to the encyclopedia for that. Nowadays, though, kids can't memorise anything. No dates, no times tables, no history. If there is anything you need to know, you just press a few buttons. We could be giving rise to a generation of idiots.

"I am a former school teacher, I have a masters degree and two BAs, and I think the internet is making people stupid."

Marcus Yam
Marcus Yam
Marcus Yam served as Tom's Hardware News Director during 2008-2014. He entered tech media in the late 90s and fondly remembers the days when an overclocked Celeron 300A and Voodoo2 SLI comprised a gaming rig with the ultimate street cred.
74 Comments Comment from the forums
  • daworstplaya
    For once he actually has a point! :P
    Reply
  • Greg_77
    Silly Hedge Hog, kids are not using the internet as an easy source of information, they are using it for pROn. And with pron constantly on the mind, how could one possibly ever memorize anything?
    Reply
  • lamorpa
    He always had a point. A real big 'point' That's why he infamous.
    Reply
  • This is seriously ridiculous. The internet is only a tool that people use as an aid for quick answers, but for real education and work, you cannot solely rely on the internet for answers, as it does not help you THINK. I have a B.S. in Aerospace Engineering..I'm sure that's more impressive than any of your three degrees.
    Reply
  • Zenthar
    IMO, knowing stuff doesn't make you intelligent; it's what you do with information that does. So Internet might make people ignorant and/or uncultured, but probably not stupid; that people are able to achieve on their own :P.
    Reply
  • anamaniac
    Don't we just love this guy?
    By the way, I believe it's about 1,750 films.
    Reply
  • Firehead2k
    Coming from the guy who got famous by sucking his own c**k on camera...
    Reply
  • fulle
    Marcus is incapable of writing an article without obvious grammatical errors. For example: "Jeremy, as a former educator, believes that the internet has a detrimental on today's users."

    Can everyone see the mistake? Or has the internet made you too stupid?
    Reply
  • foxyg
    When did toms start quoting porn star?
    Reply
  • jay2tall
    Hey, the man has a point. But I think it's technology in general. We used to remember phone numbers, now they are all stored in a cell phone. If you need to know something, you can just look it up. You can rely on everyone else to do everything for you if you had the money and wanted to. And I can see his point from his industry, who actually pays for it anymore? There are a lot of thieves, pirates, con men, and just plain criminals online. But then again, they used to be roaming the streets, now they roam online. Technology can help educated and make people know knowledgeable. It can also cause people to stop relying on themselves and become idiots. Soon, one will live above ground, the other below. HAHA.
    Reply