What came first, the serial killer or the internet?

Obviously there have always been sick individuals lurking in our societies, doing unbelievably horrendous things. The infamous Jack the Ripper, the murderer wrecking havoc in London during the 1800’s, can be viewed as a prime example.
But has the internet spawned a new group of serial killers, pedophiles, necrophilia’s, or the other kinds of sick individuals who perform bestiality, masochism, etc.?

There is no refuting that the internet is a great resource for these sick people. There is also no arguing that sick people have been around even before the advent of the internet. But I ask you, through the ease, level of vast resource, and level of anonymity that the internet provides, has the internet ultimately led to the creation of more sick individuals?

Before the internet, it was harder for pedophiles to get a hold of pictures depicting children engaging in sexual acts. This being illegal and all, one would have to go through tremendous leaps and bounds just to get such pictures of this sort of erotica. The same goes for those intrigued by bestiality. They would have to go to Mexico to see the infamous “Donkey Show” in order to get their sick jollies. But now all they have to do is log on to the internet and make a quick click of the mouse to see such things.

Through the internet, you can even get in touch with others who have the same interests as you do. There have been many cases found where molesters are reaching out to other molesters to compare notes.

Even the twisted blockbuster movie Hostel was inspired by the “sick shit on the internet”. The producers of the horror flick came up with the premise when coming across certain websites that offered the opportunity to partake in sick, violent, illegal acts in exchange for money. Through the websites, individuals from poor countries were offering the bodies of their relatives and themselves for cash.

It’s hard to discern whether the internet has really spawned a new level of low in our society, but it’s easy enough to see that it is a great tool for the good and the bad in our world.