The end of the age of deference - the clash of cultures.

The communication offered to the people by the internet is a great leveller - a huge step towards expanding equality.

Gone are the days when 'important' people took pride in claiming to not know what 'the web' was all about (remember when BBC presenters first started giving out web addresses?!).

Now the web is becoming ubiquitous everything is becoming more public - especially with the 'social' web.

For some this has led to demands for more control of 'privacy' so traditional barriers between close friends, friends, acquaintances, family and work can be reproduced in the on-line world. To my mind this is exactly the wrong solution. The lack of privacy/separation that the internet has introduced should be extended and it is the traditional barriers in 'real' live that should be broken down.

An end to saying one thing in private and another in public - in life as on the internet there should be one truth. This is a challenge - accepting that the act/face that you present in one arena is redundant as you will just be you in all circumstances. But it is the way forwards for the future - an honesty like the lamp salesman in Aladdin - no lies because there is no way to hide the truth.