Call me a pessimist and an admitted mild Luddite, but I think this was always how the internet was going to go. I was early on it – started using local chat rooms around 1990. Back then, we teenagers were using it to get stuff we weren’t otherwise allowed to buy. Half of the people on our local chats were soliciting sex from other posters. Some clearly weren't worried about getting to kids. But as it went from a nerdy thing to do to mainstream, things got cleaned up – or at least hidden a lot better. In my opinion, it was awesome for a little while, providing so much information and opportunities people would never have had access to otherwise.
But somewhere, things changed. A common family argument on car rides is my three kids and me against my wife. The question: is the internet a net positive or negative thing for this world? The kids and I always argued yes, despite its downsides. My wife says no.
Recently, I have turned into a no. It is directly linked to kids’ anxiety. Adults are addicted to it. It has not made anything more affordable. It turns even the most local events into global events. For example, garage sales are replaced by eBay, Facebook Marketplace, etc. And everyone charges a premium because they have a world market. I lived in NYC in the 1990s. You could find ANYTHING there. Now, the specialty shops are all gone because specialized items are sold online. The world is homogenous because what is happening in Beijing is also happening in Raleigh at the same time.
And this might have been great. A smaller world could have meant more community, more information, and more justice. Instead, it has allowed the worst of us to seclude and fester in bad thoughts. Instead, we cannot trust anything we read on the internet, because it is as likely to be false as true (all the way down to social media). Democracy is worse off because the info has been even more winnowed down for the stupidity of the masses. Looking for 10-second clips has made political debate non-existent outside of academia (and I doubt there is any there, either). We receive half-truths at best.
The internet has become a paradox. All the good things it should be doing, it does the opposite. It is too big and too available (we walk around with it in our hands and pockets!) to too many people. Add in the profits that can be made by offering ease (appearing – anyone else notice most tasks end up harder than before the internet) and the privilege to not come into contact with another human being, and there is no going back.
It will not be fixed. People are hooked. I tried to go without a smartphone, but many parents told me it was unacceptable because they need to be able to reach me immediately in case my kids need something. WHY!!!!!!!????? The answer is simply, “Because it is expected.” Maybe the worst answer ever.
I will personally continue taking pleasure in being difficult to reach. To go to a ballgame without my phone. To not worry when I leave my phone in the car for a few days. But I am only lying to myself if I say I could imagine returning to a world without the internet. Or even a better internet.
Rant over.
Thank you for writing these, Bishop Doss. They bring me joy – in a weird sense – every time you post.
Call me a pessimist and an admitted mild Luddite, but I think this was always how the internet was going to go. I was early on it – started using local chat rooms around 1990. Back then, we teenagers were using it to get stuff we weren’t otherwise allowed to buy. Half of the people on our local chats were soliciting sex from other posters. Some clearly weren't worried about getting to kids. But as it went from a nerdy thing to do to mainstream, things got cleaned up – or at least hidden a lot better. In my opinion, it was awesome for a little while, providing so much information and opportunities people would never have had access to otherwise.
But somewhere, things changed. A common family argument on car rides is my three kids and me against my wife. The question: is the internet a net positive or negative thing for this world? The kids and I always argued yes, despite its downsides. My wife says no.
Recently, I have turned into a no. It is directly linked to kids’ anxiety. Adults are addicted to it. It has not made anything more affordable. It turns even the most local events into global events. For example, garage sales are replaced by eBay, Facebook Marketplace, etc. And everyone charges a premium because they have a world market. I lived in NYC in the 1990s. You could find ANYTHING there. Now, the specialty shops are all gone because specialized items are sold online. The world is homogenous because what is happening in Beijing is also happening in Raleigh at the same time.
And this might have been great. A smaller world could have meant more community, more information, and more justice. Instead, it has allowed the worst of us to seclude and fester in bad thoughts. Instead, we cannot trust anything we read on the internet, because it is as likely to be false as true (all the way down to social media). Democracy is worse off because the info has been even more winnowed down for the stupidity of the masses. Looking for 10-second clips has made political debate non-existent outside of academia (and I doubt there is any there, either). We receive half-truths at best.
The internet has become a paradox. All the good things it should be doing, it does the opposite. It is too big and too available (we walk around with it in our hands and pockets!) to too many people. Add in the profits that can be made by offering ease (appearing – anyone else notice most tasks end up harder than before the internet) and the privilege to not come into contact with another human being, and there is no going back.
It will not be fixed. People are hooked. I tried to go without a smartphone, but many parents told me it was unacceptable because they need to be able to reach me immediately in case my kids need something. WHY!!!!!!!????? The answer is simply, “Because it is expected.” Maybe the worst answer ever.
I will personally continue taking pleasure in being difficult to reach. To go to a ballgame without my phone. To not worry when I leave my phone in the car for a few days. But I am only lying to myself if I say I could imagine returning to a world without the internet. Or even a better internet.
Rant over.
Thank you for writing these, Bishop Doss. They bring me joy – in a weird sense – every time you post.
Another excellent piece, Joe!