Published on 12, July, 2020
Discussion topic for today - Social Media. I would be interested to hear people's thoughts on this. I believe social media has destroyed the fabric of civilisation. We have lost the ability to "agree to disagree" and to tolerate opinions and beliefs contrary to our own, screeching names and insults at anyone who disagrees with us and calling for them to be cancelled.
We have become extraordinarily self obsessed and narcissistic, endlessly taking photos of ourselves and posting our every thought to the world. Most of all though I believe we have become incredibly unhappy and unable to experience real life. Most people I see are far more interested in filming and posting their lives to curate a perfect online profile of themselves than in actually living those wonderful moments that make life worth while. For instance, if you see a beautiful sunset is your first instinct to stand there and contemplate its wonder or to post a picture of it online? There's lots more that could be said on this discussion, especially the effect on young people.
Would be interested to hear everyone's opinions
Billy87 said:I believe social media has destroyed the fabric of civilisation
I disagree. It is people who have done this.
Without the tools of social media then we would have found a different way to do it in todays hyperconnected world.
Society has a tendency to peak, corrupt and destroy itself at different times in its history. It is hard to say when exactly it peaked - I would think maybe the 60s but it would be hard to pinpoint exactly where and how it is defined.
Once we have loads of time on our hands then the end is in sight - we slowly decay, corrupt and ultimately destroy ourselves as a society.
That would be my theory - I'll see what examples I can find of this happening through history if I have the time.
I quit social media in 2010 for good.It,s all about " me me me "No thanks.
Like all inventions, social media has been used for good and bad. I think striking a middle ground is difficult.
As someone who has gone through a social media pile-on, you can imagine my feelings on it have shifted a bit. When COVID happened, my usage of it became extremely unhealthy.
My opinion is that it should be banned for under 16s. Yes, there should be opportunities for young people to use the internet to make connections but in a very controlled, healthy environment. Twitter/Instagram etc won't really do that. You could make the same argument for adults.