Jason Calacanis has penned what I think is one of the most thoughtful and insightful posts on the current obsession with social networking and web relationships that I’ve read to date. If you are at all interested in the future of this small ‘chosm -which is what it is of course, very small in real terms – we call the Web, then I strongly suggest you read it.

I won’t go on about it, but it’s a sobering viewpoint that we should note as this nascent community starts to spill out into the real world in earnest. This and Michael Arrington’s recent post on taking a break from online, are extremely powerful and definitive signposts of something greater, and we, publishers, readers and community, ignore them at our peril.

The final thing I will say is this. When we started out to use all this online stuff, the goal was not financial enrichment, it was just to communicate, to Cluetrain the conversation if you like. Very much a give and take. The first wave of dumb Web 1.0 money was risible and most of us watching the train wreck had a good chuckle and continued on our way. But this latest round of, if not dumb, then certainly obsessive, money chasing eyeballs, followers, friends, page views or whatever comes next is not so healthy either.

Yes we need a commercial side to the Web to help fund its growth and success across the globe, but perhaps we should ask just how much we’re willing to pay in terms of the loss of that early friendly community that made it all such a cool and interesting place to be. If we lose the community then really we lose the Web, to a bunch of greedy, selfish and ruthless suits, in much the same way the music industry was wrecked by legions of lawyers and accountants without an ounce of creativity in their bones. There are already signs of it, in the way the major blog properties have been bought, traded and treated like disposable objects.

The web is so much more than just a place to make some quick cash, make a name for yourself or pimp your products. It’s a destroyer of barriers, a way to remove the fear of the unknown, and most importantly a massively important way to bring the fragmented inhabitants of this place we call Earth together in peaceful communication. Idealistic? Yep. Naive? Maybe. Realistic? Definitely.

OK, that’s it, I won’t labour the point. Let’s hope we get some balance back soon. There’s no clear answer, except to be aware of the power of money and personality to damage truth if we don’t watch out. Which is why it’s essential that we support and nurture the EFF and other such organisations I guess. Peace out!