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I Used to Be a Human Being

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Re: I Used to Be a Human Being

#171

Post by int_19h »

What I would say to this guy is this.

Your "virtual" life is also real. The news that you read, happen in real world. The people whom you talk to are real people. There's no "real life" and "non-real life". Everything that happens to you is "real life" by definition. That includes social networks etc.

The only thing that matters is whether it is a life that you're comfortable with, or not. And there is certainly a point that many people are not actually comfortable, but forced into comforming.

Being uncomfortable about it because it's "not real" is a fallacy, though.

Re: I Used to Be a Human Being

#172

Post by fudged71 »

agentcooper wrote: post #122

Shameless plug: I created a Chrome extension which makes me wait 1 minute before proceeding to the one of distracting websites, helps me a lot. Maybe it will help you too: https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/better-things-to-d... .

Thank you so much! This is great

Re: I Used to Be a Human Being

#173

Post by tim333 »

bernardino wrote: post #49
tim333 wrote: post #25

I rather like the internet connected version of living.

How so?

Well at the everyday level you can keep in touch with your friends, catch Pokemon, access the world's information and the like.

More speculatively you have the points made by Louis C.K in the article, that "Underneath in your life there’s that thing … that forever empty … that knowledge that it’s all for nothing and you’re alone …" "you just feel … kinda satisfied with your products. And then you die." As an engineering type I think a lot of that can be fixed by technology, that as computers equal and pass human brain capacities a lot of cool stuff will be possible maybe including fixing the alone and dying stuff and it's interesting to see things progress.

Re: I Used to Be a Human Being

#174

Post by callmeed »

blisse wrote: post #168
callmeed wrote: post #145

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Respectfully disagree with your view. Technology in and of itself is not bad. But when technology is run by technology companies whose motive is profit, it can be bad. I think what we're seeing is new externalities caused by technology. I think junk food + soda + obesity is a more apt analogy than alcoholism. It's easy to say "don't get addicted to junk food or soda" but you have to remember that these companies spec…

But with your junk food analogy, there are still alternatives and it's up to you to decide how you live your life.

Apologies if I'm using the wrong terms, but this comes off as a kind of myopic, libertarian view.

Do you have children? I have 4. A lot of this is easier to understand by watching them. Yes, I know it's my job to teach them how to make good choices. But why do devices suck them in so easily if I don't direct or enforce their behavior?

Of course there are alternatives to junk food. But am I completely, 100% in control of my decisions without any influence from external sources?

There is an entire industry whose sole purpose is to influence your decision making. People in this industry spend about half a trillion dollars a year globally. It's called "advertising" and it wouldn't keep growing if it didn't work.

Re: I Used to Be a Human Being

#175

Post by tim333 »

morgante wrote: post #115

To me, this reads like an alcoholic ranting about how everyone should stop drinking. Yes, technology can be addicting. That doesn't mean we're "helpless" or even that it's bad . I'm really sick of these hyperbolic luddites. Personally, it's not at all a problem. I'm not a technophobe—I have an iPhone, use Facebook, etc.—but it's done nothing but positively improve my life. I can keep in touch with friends around the…

I don't feel the author is a luddite but her problems may well be down more to her mother's "screams of frustration and misery" and going to mental hospital regularly throughout her childhood rather than too much Facebook.

Re: I Used to Be a Human Being

#176

Post by maus42 »

bzbarsky wrote: post #152
morgante wrote: post #134

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Sounds like you're just saying "deal with it" because you don't personally struggle with it. Sorry if it came off that way. Like I said, I don't doubt that some people might be addicted to it. I absolutely think they should pursue the remedies they need for themselves, whether that's quitting social media or pursuing a meditation practice. I have friends who quit Facebook and I don't hold it against them (though I…

He is not calling on all restaurants to do this. He just thinks it would be good if there existed some restaurants that did. Just like there are some restaurants that don't serve alcohol, note. Or restaurants that don't serve meat.

Non-alcoholic restaurants? Maybe that's a nice idea, but I don't think that actually solves anything.

The main problem with alcohol (at least in my culture) is that it's not given that you can go and drink non-alcoholic stuff in a social gathering without others making it a huge problem.

In that situation, who would go into the non-alco restaurant? Especially would you like to ask your friends "let's go to the non-alco place instead of the usual one", if the drinking is the thing you find problematic? Yeah, I've never heard much about non-alco restaurants.

The existence of gimmicky restaurants isn't answer to these kinds of problems, because the inherit reason is ... how I would say this ... in the societal background of "what is normal": the overall framework what is expected of you, what you can reasonably expect of others, and what options you are left with if you think you have a reasonable, principled case against the way things currently stand and disagree with the behaviour that is considered "normal"?

The parallels to over-indulging in predatory social media products are left as an exercise to reader.

Re: I Used to Be a Human Being

#177

Post by mitchty »

mikeash wrote: post #37
simonbarker87 wrote: post #8

I read somewhere recently that smart phones have essentially become random gratification engines in the same way as slot machines. Sometimes on a slot machine you win the jackpot, because of this every pull gives you an endorphin kick, each time we pick up our phones or get a notification it might be an important/interesting thing, therefore we get a little endorphin kick that keeps us checking. Because of this I tur…

I've been saying this for years. You open Twitter and you may or may not get something cool. Same thing for Facebook or mail or whatever. It's inherently addictive.

I must be defective, I get really annoyed with the inconsistency and just give up on things in that case in general.

Re: I Used to Be a Human Being

#178

Post by wott »

marmot777 wrote: post #157
stnmtn wrote: post #140

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I was reading a book a couple weeks ago and there was a throwaway line that really stuck out to me. I think it was a David Foster Wallace book It was something like all the great themes are taken. We've taken all the great themes and adventures and created theme parks where you can go to experience a fantasy yet know this isn't real. You know it's not authentic. I'm butchering the meaning of it, wish I could figure o…

I didn't buy it when someone said, "there's nothing new under the sun" and I don't buy it now. :-)

Because this has been said and done already, too...

Re: I Used to Be a Human Being

#179

Post by wott »

Raphmedia wrote: post #24

I fixed my brain by cancelling my internet services. All I had was 1gb of cellphone data. Never been happier. Right now I am back with an internet subscription and I'm miserable. I am an internet addict and having internet at home is very bad for me. I strongly consider cancelling my internet suscription again.

I have no smartphone, I don't use mobile Internet. Fixed Internet is enough of a problem for me.

What I would love is to go back to dial-up times. I mean, paying by the minute/hour, or a limited plan + by the minute/hour after the limit, or a fixed limit in hours or Go per month. Something like this. That would help me a lot.

People might tell me to implement it on my side, but I know it is not going to work for me: there's no way I pay full price to have a 24/24 connection and then limit myself. And as operators are not going to propose such schemes that would lower their income, I am screwed. Only satellite operators still have such systems.

----

I had an ADSL failure that lasted 8 days a few months ago. The first 2 or 3 days were tough (launching compulsorily the web or mail browser, wondering how the hell I am doing to do X or Y, having to remember that there is no point in doing X and to remember the 'old' way of doing Y), but then it was a relief. A breath of fresh air. We (the family) began to talk to each other. We even did things together!

Then the ADSL was fixed and the Internet addicted behaviours started again, same as before..

Re: I Used to Be a Human Being

#180

Post by Retra »

callmeed wrote: post #174
blisse wrote: post #168

Earlier quoted context omitted.

But with your junk food analogy, there are still alternatives and it's up to you to decide how you live your life.

Apologies if I'm using the wrong terms, but this comes off as a kind of myopic, libertarian view. Do you have children? I have 4. A lot of this is easier to understand by watching them. Yes, I know it's my job to teach them how to make good choices. But why do devices suck them in so easily if I don't direct or enforce their behavior? Of course there are alternatives to junk food. But am I completely, 100% in control…

You could say the same things about schools. We spend massive amounts of money on education, solely to influence your decision-making, and we wouldn't continue to do it if it didn't work.

The problem is that you're comparing technology to junk food and alcohol, when you could be just as well comparing it to human contact, clean air, or exercise: things that are also just as addictive as technology.

Which isn't to say ads are good; I very much despise them. But I don't really have much experience with them, because the technology I use doesn't effectively force me to.

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