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Era of Distraction

raymundtamayo.com

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Re: Era of Distraction

#11

Post by habitue »

HenryTheHorse wrote: post #9
sarreph wrote: post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree. The link/extrapolation here to general consumerism is tenuous at best.

There is a very real problem of people not being aware of their impulse to buy. In fact, it's the foundation for all advertising: plant messages in the buyer's mind well before the buying occurs. I know that sounds Manchurian Candidate-ish but that's the nature of Marketing and Advertising. So perhaps the author is not entirely wrong in positing that distraction is, in a way, fueling meaningless purchases?

It's certainly possible, but if true, its in spite of our tendency to have one device we use all the time, not directly because of it

Re: Era of Distraction

#12

Post by JoshM33k »

I think most of the problems with distraction the author points out would be better phrased as over-connectivity. Knowing you are holding the window to the internet, all possible entertainment, and all your friends literally in your pocket makes it very difficult to not be constantly engaged.

Over the last several years, I've drifted farther and farther away from Facebook, without really replacing it with anything in my life (aside from closer, more meaningful, more personal relationships). That twitch instinct to constantly check Facebook is now gone, and instead of feeling disconnected by pulling away from my social network, I actually feel closer to my friends and loved ones, because I now have to connect with them one one one, and have real conversations, instead of passively absorbing their lives.

Re: Era of Distraction

#13

Post by dopeboy »

I don't think the author should be using the "we" pronoun. He's welcome to talk about himself but it's a step too far in generalizing that everyone has those behaviors and tendencies.

Second, he needs to take a deep breath and relax. There is a balance that can be achieved through focus and discipline. How about changing the discussion to educating parents on these distractions and nipping the false sense of anxiety at the bud? How about having a psychology class in high school that confronts these desires and shows how artificial they really are?

Re: Era of Distraction

#14

Post by Karunamon »

frou_dh wrote: post #7
mbrock wrote: post #4

Consumerism is destroying society! Buy my book about it for more dazzling critiques!

We're told to refrain from lazy gratuitous negativity on HN.

This is pretty blatantly a book ad...

FTA:

Writer's Note: This is the first chapter of my book "Simplify Life... and Make it Count." Get it in Kindle.

Re: Era of Distraction

#15

Post by buckbova »

thegainz wrote: post #10

I've recently given up a big temptation/distractor in my life. I packed up my gaming desktop and gave it away, and now I just use my laptop which I long ago set aside as school-only. This thing couldn't even play games if I wanted to, but it CAN ssh and compile code. I mean, after 9.5 years of playing DotA, what's the point? My grades have improved and I'm overall happier as I invest more time learning skills that I…

Good for you.

This is why the last console system I purchase was the PS2. I can't trust myself not to binge on games.

Re: Era of Distraction

#16

Post by buckbova »

Karunamon wrote: post #14
frou_dh wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

We're told to refrain from lazy gratuitous negativity on HN.

This is pretty blatantly a book ad... FTA: Writer's Note: This is the first chapter of my book "Simplify Life... and Make it Count." Get it in Kindle.

In these circumstances I support snarky sarcasm with upvotes.

Re: Era of Distraction

#17

Post by jcromartie »

thegainz wrote: post #10

I've recently given up a big temptation/distractor in my life. I packed up my gaming desktop and gave it away, and now I just use my laptop which I long ago set aside as school-only. This thing couldn't even play games if I wanted to, but it CAN ssh and compile code. I mean, after 9.5 years of playing DotA, what's the point? My grades have improved and I'm overall happier as I invest more time learning skills that I…

One of the skills I truly want to learn is game development (not just for games, though). I'm learning Unity at the moment. I find that to be much easier to do on a powerful PC, although it wouldn't be a total obstacle if I just had a laptop.

Re: Era of Distraction

#18

Post by voidz »

dopeboy wrote: post #13

I don't think the author should be using the "we" pronoun. He's welcome to talk about himself but it's a step too far in generalizing that everyone has those behaviors and tendencies. Second, he needs to take a deep breath and relax. There is a balance that can be achieved through focus and discipline. How about changing the discussion to educating parents on these distractions and nipping the false sense of anxiety…

I guess one of the things that occurs when one becomes aware of realisations like his, is the idea "oh my god, it's not just me, it's everyone!"

This happened to me too, years ago. And then I realised, "wait a minute, maybe I am just focusing on that side of my life." And of course on the side of life where more of like-minded people can be found: the Internet. And thanks to this realisation, the idea that everyone is like this, waned.

I do agree with what you're saying - not everyone is like this. I for one am not, I keep focusing on my belief that being in contact with others is not something you do with gadgets - it's what you do with focus. So I don't put much value in the technology, and the older I get, the less importance all this tech has to me.

But that's just me, and I do still often feel like the odd one out. And not only that: I'm also really disciplined in the pursuit of my idea, that the less you have, the more value the things you do have, are. Most of them immaterial too.

Re: Era of Distraction

#19

Post by JadeNB »

> I don’t want to offend anyone, and I’m saying this with absolute care and humility… but if only they hadn’t had that much stuff then they would have had an easier time evacuating their homes and focusing on making sure their families are safe.

I've never understood these "I'm not a racist, but"-type comments. This is offensive, and does not demonstrate care and humility. Someone who learns from such a tragedy principally that others shouldn't have so much stuff is, I think, learning the wrong lesson.

EDIT: To be clear, I don't mean that I don't understand the purpose of the disclaimer, but rather that, if not always then at least in a modern rhetorical environment, it seems like a poor way of achieving its goal. For example, if the author correctly recognises that his statement sounds offensive, and absent care and humility, why not explain why he thinks that perception is incorrect, rather than trying simply to deny it by fiat?

Re: Era of Distraction

#20

Post by frou_dh »

Karunamon wrote: post #14
frou_dh wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

We're told to refrain from lazy gratuitous negativity on HN.

This is pretty blatantly a book ad... FTA: Writer's Note: This is the first chapter of my book "Simplify Life... and Make it Count." Get it in Kindle.

All your quote shows me is that you home in on something (anything!) to be offended about. What's wrong with an author's book excerpt?
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