3 ms·

I guess Netflix On-Demand, Facebook stalking, and FarmVille do their job in cheaply entertaining us! Seriously though, murders are a distant leap from idle tee

by leelin 15y ago

I guess Netflix On-Demand, Facebook stalking, and FarmVille do their job in cheaply entertaining us! Seriously though, murders are a distant leap from idle teenage mischief, but I have to believe people commit fewer crimes when they have more to lose. If someone is reasonably happy with his day-to-day life, why risk disrupting it? Now for a really big leap-of-faith: maybe social media opens our eyes to how other people perceive their lives. As stated in Paul B's "open as in water" blog post, Facebook and Twitter have shown more people that they aren't alone in their miseries; and that there are lots of little joys in life! Last wild theory: cyber bullying is on the rise, but at least that's less deadly than physical confrontation.

msluyter 15y ago
I know that's an off the cuff one-liner, but this idea has gotten some serious consideration. Particularly vis a vis the availability of online porn and the decline in rape. For example, the paper "Porn Up, Rape Down": http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=913013 http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=913013 (Note, this idea is not uncontroversial.)
nck4222 15y ago
Interesting idea, but some studies have shown that social media can lead to depression as well: http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/311899/can-too-much-social-networking-cause-depression-teenagers http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/311899/can-too-much-social-net... Basically people present and exaggerate the best of themselves online (highlight their achievements, show how much fun they're having with life). People compare themselves to what their friends seem like online, and get depressed because they're friends seem to be doing so much better than they are.
simias 15y ago
Well, it does sound like a good point for Facebook and other social media if that's true, however the pessimist inside of me was immediately reminded of this exchange in Aldous Huxley's Brave New World: "V.P.S.?" "Violent Passion Surrogate. Regularly once a month. We flood the whole system with adrenalin. It's the complete physiological equivalent of fear and rage. All the tonic effects of murdering Desdemona and being murdered by Othello, without any of the inconveniences." "But I like the inconveniences." "We don't," said the Controller. "We prefer to do things comfortably." "But I don't want comfort. I want God, I want poetry, I want real danger, I want freedom, I want goodness. I want sin." "In fact," said Mustapha Mond, "you're claiming the right to be unhappy." "All right then," said the Savage defiantly, "I'm claiming the right to be unhappy." From http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Brave_New_World http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Brave_New_World Fortunately, we're not there (yet).
dkarl 15y ago
Now for a really big leap-of-faith: maybe social media opens our eyes to how other people perceive their lives. As stated in Paul B's "open as in water" blog post, Facebook and Twitter have shown more people that they aren't alone in their miseries; and that there are lots of little joys in life! Blogging and forums might have the effect you describe. Certainly every violent criminal takes a look at the peaceful life open to him and decides that it isn't tolerable. Whether it's a twenty year old with half a high school education working shifts at Chik-fil-A thinking, "It's shameful for a grown man to be doing this work. I can't afford a car; my apartment is a piece of shit. If I stick with this, I'm a loser and a failure. I've gotta do something" or Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold deciding that accepting their role as loser outcasts was just too painful, the decision is to reject your lot in society and go outside the rules, with little hope of actually improving your life, just the prospect of enjoying some dignity and satisfaction. Finding some anonymous fellowship online would, I think, take the edge off the shame and indignity of being at the bottom of the pack. Facebook and Twitter, on the other hand, are the opposite because they're all about cultivating public identities. The people who post regularly on Facebook and Twitter are the ones who are happiest with themselves and most secure broadcasting themselves to intimate friends and non-acquaintances alike. Unhappy and insecure people are invisible, because if they're downers, they'll be defriended. That increases the impression of inequality -- everyone else is happier than me; I just don't measure up -- and should lead to more violence, if anything.

by leelin 15y ago

msluyter 15y ago

I know that's an off the cuff one-liner, but this idea has gotten some serious consideration. Particularly vis a vis the availability of online porn and the decline in rape. For example, the paper "Porn Up, Rape Down": http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=913013 http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=913013 (Note, this idea is not uncontroversial.)

nck4222 15y ago

Interesting idea, but some studies have shown that social media can lead to depression as well: http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/311899/can-too-much-social-networking-cause-depression-teenagers http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/311899/can-too-much-social-net... Basically people present and exaggerate the best of themselves online (highlight their achievements, show how much fun they're having with life). People compare themselves to what their friends seem like online, and get depressed because they're friends seem to be doing so much better than they are.

simias 15y ago

Well, it does sound like a good point for Facebook and other social media if that's true, however the pessimist inside of me was immediately reminded of this exchange in Aldous Huxley's Brave New World: "V.P.S.?" "Violent Passion Surrogate. Regularly once a month. We flood the whole system with adrenalin. It's the complete physiological equivalent of fear and rage. All the tonic effects of murdering Desdemona and being murdered by Othello, without any of the inconveniences." "But I like the inconveniences." "We don't," said the Controller. "We prefer to do things comfortably." "But I don't want comfort. I want God, I want poetry, I want real danger, I want freedom, I want goodness. I want sin." "In fact," said Mustapha Mond, "you're claiming the right to be unhappy." "All right then," said the Savage defiantly, "I'm claiming the right to be unhappy." From http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Brave_New_World http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Brave_New_World Fortunately, we're not there (yet).

dkarl 15y ago

Now for a really big leap-of-faith: maybe social media opens our eyes to how other people perceive their lives. As stated in Paul B's "open as in water" blog post, Facebook and Twitter have shown more people that they aren't alone in their miseries; and that there are lots of little joys in life! Blogging and forums might have the effect you describe. Certainly every violent criminal takes a look at the peaceful life open to him and decides that it isn't tolerable. Whether it's a twenty year old with half a high school education working shifts at Chik-fil-A thinking, "It's shameful for a grown man to be doing this work. I can't afford a car; my apartment is a piece of shit. If I stick with this, I'm a loser and a failure. I've gotta do something" or Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold deciding that accepting their role as loser outcasts was just too painful, the decision is to reject your lot in society and go outside the rules, with little hope of actually improving your life, just the prospect of enjoying some dignity and satisfaction. Finding some anonymous fellowship online would, I think, take the edge off the shame and indignity of being at the bottom of the pack. Facebook and Twitter, on the other hand, are the opposite because they're all about cultivating public identities. The people who post regularly on Facebook and Twitter are the ones who are happiest with themselves and most secure broadcasting themselves to intimate friends and non-acquaintances alike. Unhappy and insecure people are invisible, because if they're downers, they'll be defriended. That increases the impression of inequality -- everyone else is happier than me; I just don't measure up -- and should lead to more violence, if anything.