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The internet is kind of a predatory cesspit now

stephendiehl.com

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Re: The internet is kind of a predatory cesspit now

#201

Post by stackbutterflow »

akudha wrote: post #134
Biologist123 wrote: post #24

> People increasingly behave like addicts because addiction is the business model. I sense my internet addiction got a lot worse in recent years. I don’t use social media, but I consume news, blogs and newsletters - and comment threads - voraciously. I think the addiction began as soon as I started to work at a desk behind a computer which had internet access - 20+ years ago. Like putting an alcoholic to work behind…

The most dangerous part of this addiction is that it doesn't feel like addiction. Suppose we spend 4 hours in an afternoon consuming random content - starting somewhere on a Google search, landing on Wikipedia, end up reading dozens of articles on various topics in that 4 hours. Unlike alcohol or drugs, this is knowledge addiction - afterall, we learned about a bunch of things in those 4 hours, didn't we? We didn't s…

It's all about balance. Learning about various stuff from well written articles and Wikipedia for one hour is good. Doing the same thing for the whole weekend isn't.

Even reading books all the time to the detriment of other activities isn't good.

What's good is doing a bit of everything. Reading a book an hour before sleep, doing a hour of exercise two to three times a week. Reading a few blog articles, wikipedia, long and well researched magazine articles. Making time for in person social interactions. Playing games, video games, board games, card games from time to time. Engaging in a few online discussions every week. Etc

It's all about balance or at least that's the way I see it.

Re: The internet is kind of a predatory cesspit now

#202

Post by tehjoker »

linster wrote: post #81

Ok article, and has similar points to “You should quit Reddit” (which was a pretty good book). About 2/3 in, the sentences got choppier and shorter, and you could tell some context rot was setting in.

pangram says 100% the first paragraph is ai

Re: The internet is kind of a predatory cesspit now

#203

Post by bakugo »

egonschiele wrote: post #92

I love Stephen's writing, and this is so well written. > I was very wrong. The grift economy is massive. More disturbing still, it is participatory. A large and growing share of the population now appears willing to devote every waking hour to fleecing their fellow man as a career choice. I find myself worrying about this a lot. For what it's worth though, the non-grifters, the people interested in building a communi…

> I love Stephen's writing

You mean you love Claude's writing.

Re: The internet is kind of a predatory cesspit now

#204

Post by Aurornis »

TFNA wrote: post #73
Biologist123 wrote: post #24

> People increasingly behave like addicts because addiction is the business model. I sense my internet addiction got a lot worse in recent years. I don’t use social media, but I consume news, blogs and newsletters - and comment threads - voraciously. I think the addiction began as soon as I started to work at a desk behind a computer which had internet access - 20+ years ago. Like putting an alcoholic to work behind…

Internet addiction in the early millennium wasn't so destructive, because so much internet content was somehow related to quality interaction with other people. You could meet cool new people (even occasionally IRL friends) from forums and blogs, and they were a hub for discussion for real-life communities like music-band fandom or travel subcultures. Besides the deleterious nature of engagement-maximizing social med…

> Internet addiction in the early millennium wasn't so destructive, because so much internet content was somehow related to quality interaction with other people. You could meet cool new people (even occasionally IRL friends) from forums and blogs

My experience has been the opposite. The people I knew who got seriously addicted to the internet a couple decades ago were mostly not thriving online among cool other people. They were getting dragged down into swirling cesspools of the time.

4chan has been around for over 20 years. A lot of the gaming communities and forums were toxic and brutal back then. There were social news sites, content mills, and personality cults back then too.

I think there’s some glorification of the past that happens in these threads. The old internet was full of toxic and addictive things, too. It was just less common to be immerse in it because you had to go to a physical computer and, if you go back far enough, dial up and occupy the house phone line. There were natural limits to how exposed most people would get.

Re: The internet is kind of a predatory cesspit now

#205

Post by mindwok »

AlexB138 wrote: post #155
noir_lord wrote: post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think that's why historical education is so important (or just liking history as in my case), looked through the lens of history all of the current shit as bad as it is, is really nothing all that new either, the only constant is change after all. As the aphorism goes: History may not repeat but it sure does rhyme.

You're absolutely correct that history helps you see that none of this is new. However, is it better to be the person who sees the waterfall their boat is inevitably going to go over, or the person completely ignorant of it until it happens?

If we look at history, humanity has been through some pretty crazy shit and we haven't gone over the waterfall yet.

Re: The internet is kind of a predatory cesspit now

#206

Post by zkmon »

The observations appear like disconnected pieces or isolated trends. They are not. You need to step back and look at the full picture. It's just one trend with multiple manifestations. It doesn't require lengthy essays if you look at it's core.

It's the business beast riding the tech monster. Its not people. People are simply driven by the beast.

I have been to a village recently, hoping to find the foods and fruits I remember from my childhood. They are all gone. Seeds were GM modified, chemicals entered through soil and water, the entire soil layer has lost its nature and ecosystem. The livestock has changed as well. You don't get the same chicken and eggs anymore. Grains, spices, pulses, milk, water everything changed. Just like internet, the enshittification happened everywhere.

That's not an isolated trend.

Re: The internet is kind of a predatory cesspit now

#207

Post by airstrike »

stillpointlab wrote: post #162
hypfer wrote: post #129

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I (self-servingly) don't think that cynicism is bad, nor that it would be a good idea to pathologize what is simply a healthy defense to a hostile reality. It depends on how you wield it. Cynicism shouldn't cloud your judgement. That's the actually correct point you wanted to make, I think.

I try not to think in black/white, good/evil kinds of terms. I think of forces and dynamic systems. There appears to be some force that promotes one particular way of thinking, perhaps the inevitable consequence of accumulated experiences. In the case of cynicism, the balance tends to shift towards one side of a scale over time. Without a countervailing force on the other side it can tip a normally balanced system ou…

I think we shouldn't be quick to label criticism of such current systems as cynicism

Re: The internet is kind of a predatory cesspit now

#208

Post by inigyou »

paxys wrote: post #156
Biologist123 wrote: post #24

> People increasingly behave like addicts because addiction is the business model. I sense my internet addiction got a lot worse in recent years. I don’t use social media, but I consume news, blogs and newsletters - and comment threads - voraciously. I think the addiction began as soon as I started to work at a desk behind a computer which had internet access - 20+ years ago. Like putting an alcoholic to work behind…

> I don’t use social media You are using social media right now.

And it's exactly as addictive as Twitter.

Re: The internet is kind of a predatory cesspit now

#210

Post by jayturley »

I think the fundamental issue is social communication without any social consequences. In real life if you continually insult and troll people, you will be a pariah. Online, you can find others who admire and support that behavior. And all you need is another anonymous/pseudonymous account to keep doing it if you get blocked.

And no, that does not mean that I am calling for identification. It just seems to be a natural consequence of having social interaction without real consequences.

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