When you read and reply to people's comments on the internet, aren't you acknowledging their existence? When you browse the work that they created aren't you looking at the world?
I'm afraid you're missing the point. When I say people don't acknowledge each other's existence, I mean people literally within a few feet/meters of each other, who could easily see and/or speak with each other if they made even the bare minimum of effort.
When another person is in your physical presence, it's almost like you're deliberately ignoring them when your eyes are glued down on the smartphone. It's personal rudeness, a diss. "You're not even worth raising my head and saying hi."
The people on the phone are effectively only a few centimetres away, nevermind feet. So shouldn't it be even more rude to ignore internet messages?
The internet isn't some kind of fake virtual reality... it is just a communication tool. The draw to use it is created by real people sharing real ideas. I think this idea that people who are physically closer to you deserve more of your attention is misguided.
> shouldn't it be even more rude to ignore internet messages?
Who says you have to ignore internet messages? It took you a half hour to reply to my comment, and that's fine. That leaves plenty of time to acknowledge a person IRL.
The internet will still be there when we get home from being outside. That's one of the advantages of the internet.
When another person is in your physical presence, it's almost like you're deliberately ignoring them when your eyes are glued down on the smartphone. It's personal rudeness, a diss. "You're not even worth raising my head and saying hi."