We have the Internet to thank for some of life’s most incredible modern conveniences, like instant communication, near-instant delivery, and constant unfettered access to cat videos.
But net neutrality didn’t become such a hot topic because we’re all arguing over which awesome thing is the most awesome (and therefore most worthy of lightning-fast download speeds).
No… the world wide web is also responsible for a lot of garbage. Like ISIS Youtube videos, desperate emails from Nigerian princes…
And dumb internet challenge trends.
Yea, this isn’t CNN, so we’re gonna focus on that last one.
It’s unclear why showing off for a bunch of faceless strangers is such a compelling motivator in our time, but one thing is certain. Gone are the days when mom’s go-to gut check question, “would you jump off a bridge… etc” can be used to effectively question your decision-making. Because if the viral video phenomenon tells us anything, it’s that a hell of a lot of people probably would jump off bridges if their friends – or a few thousand strangers – did it first.
Here are 11 cringeworthy internet challenges wish we could hit “Control + Z” on.
But alas; these days, once something’s been posted online, there’s no getting rid of it.
1. Planking
Ahh, the sweet “senior citizen” of internet challenges. How simple and docile this activity was, just laying face down on your stomach and minding your own business.
And yet, it was still really freaking dangerous. In 2011, 20-year-old Acton Beale fell to his death after planking on a seventh-floor balcony in Australia.