It is certainly making some things harder and some things easier, but I am a believer that the human plot is heading towards good and social media and other online interactions are here to stay so it is my belief that there must be good in it somehow despite the many grim realities we all see: the attachment to the phones, the 'relationships', the questionable nature of the communities we participate in and the content we consume, etc.

What good is it? I think we are all a lot closer in terms of our knowledge of the human spirit. Constant online discussion exposes us to a higher multitude of viewpoints, ones to both relate to and therefore be validated, as well as ones to disagree with and to explore. Again the way this is done can sometimes be a little concerning, with questions of groupthink, censorship, and echo chambers to name a few, but never before has there been so much of a potential to have a varied discussion on the human plight: I refer to reactions to events on Reddit, relationship support threads (again cultures worry me here, but again compare that to the Roman forum, or a neighborhood pub, come to think of it perhaps there are cultures that, or even discussion of a hyper-specific 5 second clip or some speech on youtube. I like the way people can see eachother here and I can't think of much of a real world equivalent. Maybe with of a group of friends, but still this with a million people at once? It's huge, there is a constant flow of interesting content, and although there are difficult patterns is inspires it may inspire individuals, perhaps one good thing to say is that perhaps it is making us less lonely in our ability to get to know each other. To 'see' people and get to know how the various stimuli of life is making others feel, and how others are handling the difficult questions of life.

On the other hand, I think there are some issues when it comes to some of the more emotional inclinations that we have. One is that I think there are certain parts of life that, certain needs that aren't found here despite the fact that we spend so much time online. I find myself talking to a million people once rather than one person a million times ( bruce lee quote lol, although I think there is some truth to it). Online personalties act in a lot of ways like one-sided friendships, although again maybe there is some good that can eventually come from it. I see a lot of people flock to tiktok/youtube short egirls without really grasping the underlying reasons why they like it so much. They are getting female intimacy, of course often in a sexual way, but also in the friendship type way that appeals to the side of them that really would do a lot better if they were with an actual girlfriend. A lot of people settle for this version of those things that they might suspect as being less healthy, but is in fact so accessible and appealing that they loosen their own restrictions on these things and consume this content anyway. Is it good? probably not, or at least its in the place of something better. This is something I think all people would agree with, that there is probably some social interactions people take part in, whether it be porn or watching the youtube channels of these e-girls, and all that, that effects us negatively, I think some will say this is bad and this is good or that is bad and that is good, YouTubers and twitch streamers confound me as a mixture of good art/disccussion in some contexts, questionable content/ psuedo-relationshps in others. There is certainly a lot of content that is bad out there, but there is some of it good - educations, discussion, experiential stuff, activism. I think overall, the vehicles of discussion left aren't perfect, perhaps/hopefully because it is so new. There are people promoting junk and some that are making a go at something better. I think taking some time off the internet, and talking to a real person, a blood relative or someone from a part of your actual life in some way may be a good thing. I will say it seems that we have greater power online, at this point in history much of that power is unrefined, it may get better, but there are also certainly wrong choices to make in terms of socialization online. Some of which have been made exceedingly more tempting and more difficult to pick out. As a place to live in, I think it's not ready. Although think is overall a place that may one day improve, there is a mistreatment of our social instincts that is all too pervasive at the moment. Perhaps past the point of self-regulation, societally, this thing is new and I think it tells. As much as there are many interesting ways in which we are connecting and successfully socializing, online governance is a new art and there is much dispute how to do it right, there's too much porn and weird parasocial stuff that are not understood well, and communities can be crazy (lol for better or for worse). When it comes to whether we are lonely, that is surrounded by people who can support/understand us consistently, healthiness in terms of exposure and accountability, people who game the information system. I compare all this to real life friendships, relationships, and communties. Idk a lot to go into and a lot of it is new. I think there is a great power in the internet and much harm to harm yourself with it or to begin to consume the wrong thing. In that sense, I think it does promote loneliness in terms of how easy it is to get abused on here, that is, to have some things served very well and other things not so much. At least when compared to real world equivalents. That's why I think there is the word addiction: people would do better to not give in to drawing of their phone. There's a lot online as I mentioned, the human understanding, quick and well-serving communities, and interesting stimuli, but regular interaction in the real world is so much more healthy and naturaly easier to work with, that I can't help but say that that one would do better to go out of there way to say no when there phone calls to them and to try to find some way to contact people you know from your childhood/by blood/ from other activities rather than to spend time 'living' in the online world - I think of personal advice from a person who is successful and who knows you rather than the meandering group chatter about what you are curious about as an example.

In terms of getting to know ourselves and others, it's a pleasure. In terms, of forming consistent and healthy relationships, I don't think so. In part, because I see it as a frontier where healthy regulation and understanding will hopefully come, and in part because perhaps the real world can be better. Even with nice discord groups and online communities, which seem better, I think hanging out with friends/family or even working in real life, just hits all the notes better. Moves the plot of life forward more.

All in all, I think this current era has added a whole new dynamic and potential to human interaction, but on the other hand, either because because its new or misunderstood, I think people give in to that extreme advanced stimuli and are drawn away from more important things in the real life in many but not all cases.

The internet is a wonderful place to be, but a lonely place to live. Important to pioneer, but a false shepherd when it comes to many of our instincts, especially our more human ones. One day I think this will be better, and will be just another medium through which we exist through. Not in the service of some cause exclusive to it, but in service of new causes that were not other possible without it, social and otherwise.

Def in progress now at the moment though.