It was not that long ago that high schools had “student smoking sections” — in my part of the US, this was a thing until the 1980s. Today, we would find such an idea ridiculous. I predict the next generation of parents will view their kids having unfettered access to smartphones as equally absurd. Gen Z and younger Millennial parents will be intensely protective of their children’s privacy. They’ll also know firsthand the perils of giving a 12-year-old a button that broadcasts to the entire planet. This was not something my cohort of parents understood as well 12 years ago. I don’t think there’ll be a complete Luddite U-turn, but I do think future generations of parents will be better equipped to handle — and more cognizant of the need to handle — the challenges of their kids living in a smartphone-enabled world.
Is Uri Berliner going over to the dark side yet another sign of rapidly approaching the End Times?
With Israel and Iran now in a hot war we seem to be about to have a moment in history. I’m reminded of a book from the 1970s I found on the shelves of a friend’s mother called The Late Great Planet Earth which purported to decipher scripture and concluded that the end times would kick off with a war between Israel and Russia/Soviet Union. Is that the West v. the Axis of Evil and China’s opportunity to take Taiwan (only after jiggling the electrode they have planted in North Korea to start some $4!+)? I suppose it's no less of a probability than California joining Texas in rebellion but as long as you’ve secured your spot in Vault 31 or 33 it will be OK? Maybe I should spend more time on social media and less on books, movies and streaming?
Excellent piece. I appreciate when writers/thinkers don’t pretend to have all the answers.
Common sense (mine, anyway) tells me that our overindulgence in screen time is not healthy. But that doesn’t mean it’s catastrophic. It’s too important, and helpful, and clearly not going away, so better for us to moderate our usage. Our individual and collective mental health is affected by many societal factors and it’s possible the “delivery mechanism” isn’t the primary cause.
As far as the NPR nonsense, I’d say we should focus more on the work product rather than the employee demographics. If they’re telling fair, honest, and compelling stories then I’m not all that concerned about their political makeup. A one-off, poorly considered argument doesn’t convince me of anything.
It was not that long ago that high schools had “student smoking sections” — in my part of the US, this was a thing until the 1980s. Today, we would find such an idea ridiculous. I predict the next generation of parents will view their kids having unfettered access to smartphones as equally absurd. Gen Z and younger Millennial parents will be intensely protective of their children’s privacy. They’ll also know firsthand the perils of giving a 12-year-old a button that broadcasts to the entire planet. This was not something my cohort of parents understood as well 12 years ago. I don’t think there’ll be a complete Luddite U-turn, but I do think future generations of parents will be better equipped to handle — and more cognizant of the need to handle — the challenges of their kids living in a smartphone-enabled world.
Is Uri Berliner going over to the dark side yet another sign of rapidly approaching the End Times?
With Israel and Iran now in a hot war we seem to be about to have a moment in history. I’m reminded of a book from the 1970s I found on the shelves of a friend’s mother called The Late Great Planet Earth which purported to decipher scripture and concluded that the end times would kick off with a war between Israel and Russia/Soviet Union. Is that the West v. the Axis of Evil and China’s opportunity to take Taiwan (only after jiggling the electrode they have planted in North Korea to start some $4!+)? I suppose it's no less of a probability than California joining Texas in rebellion but as long as you’ve secured your spot in Vault 31 or 33 it will be OK? Maybe I should spend more time on social media and less on books, movies and streaming?
Excellent piece. I appreciate when writers/thinkers don’t pretend to have all the answers.
Common sense (mine, anyway) tells me that our overindulgence in screen time is not healthy. But that doesn’t mean it’s catastrophic. It’s too important, and helpful, and clearly not going away, so better for us to moderate our usage. Our individual and collective mental health is affected by many societal factors and it’s possible the “delivery mechanism” isn’t the primary cause.
As far as the NPR nonsense, I’d say we should focus more on the work product rather than the employee demographics. If they’re telling fair, honest, and compelling stories then I’m not all that concerned about their political makeup. A one-off, poorly considered argument doesn’t convince me of anything.