We Are/Aren't Built For This
More voice, in a world full of voice.
I am not doing so well in this moment.
Sometimes I try my best to remember the positives from this last period of growth, but there is this unfortunate tendency to fixate on the negative. Which is always one of the strangest things about humanity- some messages of abject nihilism can be received so positively and result in the most unsavory of outcomes.
What’s even more unfortunate is when those you care about fall prey to the very forces that demoralize. As a result, you distrust the spaces that you used to frequent online. You witness one more person offline and the space is worse off for it.
I genuinely am concerned about the effects of when you use social media at scale. It’s why I remain passionate about moderation. Many won’t have to deal with its edge cases but when they are encountered, it is disastrous.
For those who were clumsy and awkward like myself, one bad day at the school cafeteria would live only in that day. Now, that moment would live on social media as a reminder of that embarrassing moment to be repeated in the minds who spectate in that social circle. All of these impulses, to look at train wrecks, and to engage in drama is natural, and feels good. It’s why we keep falling prey to it, I know I do.
My fear is that with the constant pummeling, builders and writers become more reluctant to share their work as the cost of commentary is low. While the price of feeling betrayed by ones own labor of love is high. The world is better off with more creation and less curation.
It’s not healthy to come back to a feed where you are forced to consume vitriol. Facing this for the first time really had me feeling depressed.
I am going to take some time to process this year. I can’t wait to share with you my thoughts.
It’s a rough world out there, let’s remind ourselves to be kind and charitable to one another.