Has the Internet become toxic ?

[exxos]

I've been working on this article for the past few weeks. It covers all the types of behaviour I can currently think of.

https://www.exxosforum.co.uk/articles/toxic2.html

[HigashiJun]

Hmmm, not only the Internet...

You have also greatly summarized my workplace.

[matt020]

I believe the internet is the work of the devil, and the thing is, I'm not religious. But if there was such a thing, this internet is his work. I'll tell you why.

We are all using it. Our lives are engrained in it. We can do some wonderful stuff from the comfort of our home. Banking, shopping, booking flights, you know the things we can do. We love it. We use it. We couldn't give it up and if we did, it would not be for long.

This thing that we cannot give up thus has such an evil backbone enabling crimes that are sickening to the stomach. School bulling, to animal pornography, to child pornography, to identify theft, to lives being ruined, to people committing suicide as a result of content on the internet.

The internet is so wonderful and yet so very bad all at the same time, it's the perfect design for something of the devils work.

[exxos]

Hmmm, not only the Internet...

You have also greatly summarized my workplace.

Indeed it's not just limited to the internet just more prevalent

[exxos]

The internet is so wonderful and yet so very bad all at the same time, it's the perfect design for something of the devils work.

Indeed.

Same problems with most things. Like the "argument" about guns killing people, where it is said people kill people not the guns. Similar with even vehicles. Most people have one and yet some use them to do harm and kill. Whatever the item, someone will always abuse it to do harm.

I guess all this could spark a new article I could write about. I actually talk to a lot of local people about various topics. I know the "word on the street". A lot of very nice people out there. Some tell me they don't go online anymore due to toxic people.

[HigashiJun]

@exxos @matt020

That is why man is endowed with reason and must therefore distinguish between good and evil.

Although what is bad for some may be good for others...

[derkom]

As someone who has worked in the internet industry starting way back in the mid-1990s, I've long been interested in the psychological effects on people of mass communications. Back in the '90s, we were so enthusiastic about what we were doing, and saw the internet as the ultimate level playing field, which was going to give an equal voice to everyone. The ultimate form of democratic expression. We were young and naïve!

Seeing how things have evolved since then, it is in retrospect so obvious that this is what was going to happen. Doesn't make me feel the least bit bad about the work we were doing building out the early consumer internet, or about our youthful zeal and positive vision of a fair and equal future. It's still a future I'd like to see of course, but I am sadly far less convinced it could ever be possible.

But I actually started writing this post to relay something else... A number of years ago, as the plague of social media was starting to show its might, I read a very interesting, very simple analysis of one of the big psychological problems presented by social media. The author noted that prior to social media, and especially prior to the internet, most of the news we consumed about people outside our immediate circles came from traditional news media. As news media have always been more prone to publish stories about failures than successes, this meant that most of what we learned about other people was about "the worst day of their lives". This made it easy for us to look at our own lives and think "well at least my life isn't that bad", and feel a little better about ourselves.

But after the advent of social media, we are now constantly exposed to beautiful, successful influencers, gorgeous food, vacation photos from luxurious locales, and more, i.e. "the best day of their lives". So the comparison gets flipped. We now look at our own lives and think "my life is never that good", and feel a little worse about ourselves.

Over time, these feelings add up, and where the pre-social media feelings added up to us being more content, the post-social media feelings add up to us being less content.

I thought that was a remarkably simple and insightful analysis of one of the problems of social media, and I think about it often. Maybe that "ultimate form of democratic expression" in a way actually did come to pass, and as it turns out, it wasn't such a great future after all.

[exxos]

@derkom thanks for sharing your thoughts. Totally agree.

I stopped looking at the news 20 years ago. Got tired of the constant bombardment of termoil on TV. It's one thing to be informed but even that was to much. Then the rise of 24/7 news which is even worse on the internet. Worldwide coverage of everything which goes wrong in the world. A lot of news doesn't tell you anything. It's just fabricated clickbait. All does nothing for your wellbeing.

What news I do look at is like the war in Ukrainian. Make me feel sad, and angry that there is nothing I can do about it. There is the constant illigal immigrants problem here which everyone is tired of and nothing gets done. Everyone is fedup of the governments not dealing with the public's wishes or concerns. Again does nothing for your wellbeing.

Not measuring up to ones neighbour is a topic I covered as well. I watch goldrush where one young chap got a good start in life minding gold. Don't get me wrong, he's worked hard and now he pulls millions out of the ground. I'm pleased for him. But also it makes me feel annoyed with myself as I've been working 2 jobs and long hours for the past 20 years. I have nothing of value. I live with my mum and drive around in a 20+ year old van which I didn't even pay for. Life isn't fair to me or anyone. I just think why did I ever bother. My health is trashed so it's the end of any dreams I may have once had.

Even outside of those topics. There are motorbikes which make a row and annoy lots of people around town. Some people do it deliberately all day everyday because they know it annoys people and they get away with it. That's the mentality of some people these days. Such bikers have been confronted and just get abuse from the rider. If we kicked the crap out of such people, we would be the ones who get into trouble.

Same with some drivers on the roads. I drive back from my girlfriends at night. There is always some idiot who drives extremely close behind me blinding me. There can be nothing else on the road for miles. I half my speed to try and force them past. Nope they still don't. I speed up and they speed up. They are feking insane. It's actually illigal to tailgate other cars.

The list of it all it's pretty endless. There is always "that one person" but when such people affect every hour of every day. It's no wonder people's mental health for the good people are suffering in all this daily crap. A lot of people I've spoken to online and offline have to deal with this as well. Life isn't easy, but it's just become to much dealing with it all daily for a lot of people.

[exxos]

Think this sums it all up pretty nicely.

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But what about the two people carrying the donkey?

[HigashiJun]