I think the distractive power of the internet is the key point, and is and will be a major sociological factor. A (to me) related book is Bowling Alone which di

I think the distractive power of the internet is the key point, and is and will be a major sociological factor. A (to me) related book is Bowling Alone which discusses the decline of community in America. I think the two are linked: in place of constant electronic stimulation people don't just sit around staring at a wall: they tend to create and participate in social organizations, whether it be casual neighborhood card games, a church group, civic organization, etc. However the Internet and television inhibit this because it is just too easy to get an Internet fix and not be aware you are sitting alone in a room staring at an lcd reading the anonymous words of people you will never actually meet or know. I have a script on my computer to disable my internet during the 9-5 on weekdays so that I can actually think. It still doesn't work; I manually override it probably 20min in everyday.