[Desafinado]

Social media has it's uses. For most people it's a way to kill time, which they usually have too much of. I don't see anything wrong with that.

Like you I find a lot of what people share boring, but I have had a few nice friendships made possible by social media. Without it we would have lost touch a decade ago. And there are many others who are only a click away because of it. Maybe some of these relationships aren't that important, but so what? Why not maintain ties?

To me the real enlightened view is to use social media as a tool while not letting it consume your life. Take advantage of the ways it adds, while avoiding the negatives. But to each their own, if people prefer to get off of it completely that's ok too.

[_v9nk]

> To me the real enlightened view is to use social media as a tool while not letting it consume your life.

That's where the trouble starts. You don't have control when you use social media. By its very nature, it draws you in like a vortex. You can't get out.

[Desafinado]

I think it can depend on who's using it.

Personally, I live in a city with no natural community. I'm married but have no family here and only a couple acquaintances. I tried to quit Instagram a couple years ago but just ended up more isolated than I already am.

I think this type of situation is common for a lot of people. Social media is the glue that ties us to friends in distant places, which is why it's successful.

If you have actual community available to you quitting is much more doable.

[_hcuq]

I think the problem starts when you have no real life community. You are prey to the algorithms with nothing to balance them out.

You may be ok, but I know a few people who have been possessed by the algorithms and influencers. They have one thing in common, they live in isolation with no community.

[_v9nk]

I agree with you at some point.

[skydhash]

It has its advantages as you pointed out, but the issue is the torrent of garbage information it pours out. If it was possible to restrict your feed to only what you follows and have working filters, it would be great. But you don't.

And this amount of information on a singular person was only available if it was a roommate, coworker or a close friend. Which amounts to a small number of people. I don't think we were meant to deal with this.

While we also have a lot of information, interactions are starved. No real conversation is taking place. And it tends towards selfishness.