@db @lovelymiss 23 years ago I met up with IRC friends at a security convention in Las Vegas as a minor, on a plane ticket bought with stolen Air Miles, and a hotel room booked on a stolen credit card.

It was the best weekend of my teenage life. We got arrested by LVMP & my parents had to fly 3,000 miles to pick me up as they couldn't ROR a minor even if charges were being dropped.

We drank Spanish absinthe and destroyed a hotel lobby which I am to this day banned from both the hotel & the security conference.

Every single person in our crew of 20 was exactly who they said they were. Nobody was weird.

It further cements in my mind that the old Internet was a good thing & the new Internet is bad.