Discussion Pre Internet vs Post Internet

[wildcard]

@wildcard I am appalled when I am out in public, and I see YOUNG kids...like ages 4 through 10, playing with the current galaxy phones. Their eyes never leave their phones to even look at the world around them.

I know this may come off as sarcastic, but I am genuinely interested in why this bothers you.

I hear quite a few people say things like this and how much it gets under their skin, but, for the life of me, I can't figure out why it would bother someone. If someone was sitting quietly, reading a book, no one would be complaining. What is the real difference?

I work in construction, and any time that we are down (waiting for something to happen, so that we can go to work) every guy on my crew is glued to his phone. Some of them are playing games, some of them are looking at Tinder, Facebook, etc. There is a lot of someone's phone being passed around so that everybody can laugh at the video of the guy falling for three minutes on the slippery ice. It is all in fun. And, while it might seem counter-intuitive, there is a certain comradery to it.

I'd like to hear your perspective, @Stella 1977 .

[Plenty O’Toole]

It really depends on what kids are looking at/doing on the phones. If they’re on Insta arranging a #NoPJsSleepover at Jeffrey Epstein’s house, that’s obviously bad. But they could be playing educational games or reading, for all you know. Even if they are just watching a penguin fall down on YouTube tho, so what?

Since the beginning of time kids have found better things to do than sitting around with their thumbs up their arses looking at trees. “Bo, you put down that damned infernal hoop-and-stick and you look at that tree! Kids these days...”

(This post was last modified: 07-19-2019, 07:55 AM by Plenty O’Toole.)

[wildcard]

“Bo, you put down that damned infernal hoop-and-stick and you look at that tree! Kids these days...”

Your post is chock full of chuckles! +1

[LZA]

Since the beginning of time kids have found better things to do than sitting around with their thumbs up their arses looking at trees. “Bo, you put down that damned infernal hoop-and-stick and you look at that tree! Kids these days...”

Good way to put things back in perspective...

Ya, it's all about what you are doing... If you are actively learning, then technology is a godsend. If you are passively looking for ways to kill time, it's sad that the phones take all the creativity out of it.

The hoop and stick times allowed you to use your imagination to figure out what they can be... Using phones takes away the mental exercise of figuring things out...

Kids these days may not have the creative ability to think outside of the box... If it's not on an app, it may not be in their head.

Personally, I remember fondly the time of adventure without all that crap, and I feel sorry that they don't have it to experience as much... I may be wrong though...But it's kinda sad to think of what they are missing, and that they'll never know...

Just my 465.31 Vietnamese Dongs...

[Stella 1977]

@wildcard My brother-in-law absolutely insists on conversing with my husband via SMS. I've watched 20 minute text 'conversations' that could be had in 2 minutes on a call. Bizarre!?! Remember when you actually called people to share good news, congratulate them for something, wish them a happy birthday, etc. Now all those things are taken care of with a 5 second Facebook post. You don't have to put any effort or real emotion into maintaining relationships with people. It makes social interaction feel hollow to me.The other one that's worth remembering is why the Guinness Book of World Records exists. The reason is people kept arguing about random stuff over drinks , and back then you couldn't whip out your phone to answer. Instead we would argue about random facts for hours because no one knew the answer. That was a great time...everyone was right and everyone was wrong. It didn't matter the correct answer. The argument was the best part. Meetups were hard. Waiting around for your friends for long periods was common, because you had no idea why they were held up or if they were coming at all. Lots of value was placed on being on time even for casual things, because you didn't want to make people worried or upset. Also, you had to write down meetup times in a book, or remember them all and risk failing. Excitment over seeing someone you haven't seen in awhile. I run into someone I haven't seen in years and I already know everything that's happened and we just say hi and make small talk. It was a fun thing, giving highlights of your life in the past years. There are no highlights anymore.

[wildcard]

You don't have to put any effort or real emotion into maintaining relationships with people. It makes social interaction feel hollow to me.

Now, you may have a point. I never really thought about it that way.

There are no highlights anymore.

One could argue that only the highlights are left

[Stella 1977]

@LZA I gotta admit I hate it when people use their phone at the expense of a conversation with someone in the present.

But you know who's to blame for that? It's not the phone.

[LZA]

@LZA I gotta admit I hate it when people use their phone at the expense of a conversation with someone in the present.

But you know who's to blame for that? It's not the phone.

It's a double-edged sword. When I am out with others, I make sure I put my phone away and only check to see if people called or text, which I'll read but not respond to unless it's an emergency. I'll use my phone while waiting for appointments.

However, I do love it because it's a barrier from the on the spot intensity of dealing with people when you otherwise wouldn't have to. I have used it to fake being busy/distracted when I saw someone and pretend I didn't want to notice them. It takes away from personality skills in cutting conversations short, or making small talk, but I do think it has a place.

A text you can read, digest and properly respond to. Although I get people who just say "Hey, Chris???" or "What's up??" KNOWING they aren't telling me what they want because they usually want money. They are purposefully vague and make me respond... Then they drop the bomb... If we didn't have caller ID or texts, They'd put me on the spot and make me say no (or usually, I'm too much of a spineless bitch and end up being pushed into something I don't like) WHICH, makes me hate myself since I realize I'm not strong enough to be truthful and tell them how I feel.

But I agree, we should be interfacing with people we do like if and when that's at all possible, and when it isn't then this new communication is acceptable... Some of my friends are in other states and electronic communication is all we have.

What do you think about online dating?

[Stella 1977]

@LZA With smartphones and social media, we started using our phones all the time. Dating apps are now for everything: finding friends, hookups, a third for your threesome, another couple to swing, someone who just wants naked pics because it’s more exciting to jerk it to “real” people. IMO online dating would be so much better if all the pervert guys stopped using them, or simply learned to behave in a civilized manner. That's the root of the problem, for both women and men.

Today, most people actually use dating apps for non-social reasons. Some look for the ego boost, o see how many matches they can get, which makes them feel good. Other people swipe away mindlessly like playing a video game (blame that on Tinder, who invented the swipe).

Both those practices forget the actual human on the other side of the match. These practices also lead to a lot of ghosting and what looks like rejection to people looking for actual dates on dating apps. Add to that the phenomenon that people behave more aggressively online than they would in person, and you have a layer of outright asshole on top of it.

[LZA]

Agree 100%, people should (but don't always) know to take online communication with a grain of salt. People are much ruder since an internet account doesn't equate to a real human being.

Most internet hookups and up failing... Only a short few of people I know of succeeding. It's easier to fake a personality longer than IRL...