Coming to the end of the internet — living life offline.

[SnazzyB]

It's curious to me, that through out the ages, there's always been a segment of civilization that embraces the access of knowledge, and a segment that says the access of knowledge is the doom of civilization. I mean...heck, you can go back to Adam and Eve.

To me, the internet is the access of knowledge. Maybe we should think of it like the double-edged sword, or 2 sides to the same coin.

Before the internet, people said the same kind of things about TV. And before TV, it was the radio. And before that, it was books. There were actually people who thought the common man should not have access to books, and it's arguable that the printing press was the greatest invention man ever made.

[Sand&Salt]

Originally Posted by SnazzyB

It's curious to me, that through out the ages, there's always been a segment of civilization that embraces the access of knowledge, and a segment that says the access of knowledge is the doom of civilization. I mean...heck, you can go back to Adam and Eve.

To me, the internet is the access of knowledge. Maybe we should think of it like the double-edged sword, or 2 sides to the same coin.

Before the internet, people said the same kind of things about TV. And before TV, it was the radio. And before that, it was books. There were actually people who thought the common man should not have access to books, and it's arguable that the printing press was the greatest invention man ever made.

I remember that the Pope at the time, was against the printing press since the "common man" should not be able to interpret the Bible. He may have been right, lol. Look at all the division that sprang up afterwards.

I was always proud to be part of the printing tradition since it was indeed, the major step towards civilization.

Re the internet: it is a two-edged sword, I agree. I have become so dependent on it to answer questions and learn stuff. All my recipes are on there---I learned what was wrong with my bread-baking after years of failures; learned how to make shrimp bisque, researched other countries to travel to, enjoyed so many documentaries on countries I'll never travel to....

Though I appreciate being able to order airline tickets online, for example, I get nostalgic for the easier days of just having a travel agent do it. The last time I used one was 2001, I think.

I never saw the appeal of FB or any other platform....I'm just on this one. I still read voraciously, like a book every other day and am SO grateful for Kindle and online libraries. Used to be at the library once a week to load up. Now I make sure all the books are downloaded in case the internet or power goes out.

I appreciate the smart phone for what it is, but I don't enjoy anything about it. It comes in handy for many things, for sure, but it's not fun at all. Love my laptop. But I get bored after a couple hours so back to the books. Where I can "lose myself"

[kj1065]

I appreciate the internet and the knowledge contained within, but the happiest I've ever been was a period of time when I had no home internet service and no smartphone, and my only online access was through the public library down the street.

[GoAmericaGo]

I think I’m scared that I will actually do this so I’ve spent extra time online, LOL. If I meet another woman I like I’ll probably ride out into the sunset. I think I already know all I want to know and have explored all the topics that interest me over my last ~25 years online (really 60+ years considering the hours). I feel a lot more people who spent their entire lives with internet will come to a similar place as me when they are 60+ years old and grow tired of the internet.

[farm108]

Originally Posted by GoAmericaGo

I’ve been through getting over drug addiction before (it’s bad) and I feel like quitting the internet would be just as hard as quitting any drug.

I think you can at least try to take a break from social media. For a few months and see how you feel. Or at least a week.

Take care.