I wasn’t raised Catholic so my childhood is devoid of confessions behind burgundy curtains, the wooden door that slides opens with a slook. I never traded Bless Me Fathers for absolution of my sins. Instead, I saved up secrets inside my head. Like pennies inside a piggybank, I’d spill them out every so often. Count out my confidentialities. There were ones I held for so long, the passage of time tripling value, to earn my never told stories- interest. I subtracted the ones I slipped to my friends and the ones my brother promised he’d keep and then, squandered on my parents. It was guilt accounting. And I was a rich, little girl.
Twenty-five years later, it was inevitable that some Israeli entrepreneur would launch www.i4giveU.com - a beta website that gives the people an Internet platform to post confessions and allows the public decide whether you’re worthy of forgiveness or total condemnation. Based on user feedback, your reputation is judged by a sliding scale- Angel or Devil. Forgetting a friend’s birthday and working too much qualifies you for the top 5 Saint category. Fanny batter, sniffing/licking bicycle seats, illegal software downloading and drivin’ over cats makes for a top 5 Sinner winner.
It’s an interesting concept but I don’t see it ever becoming a viable business model. Are they going to sell anal sex toy keyword text ads next to banners for priests standing by for live IM chat-to-chat?
