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I do think this is a worthy callout, that is often missing in discussions about social media and/or any sort of complex system. The general narrative implies (

I do think this is a worthy callout, that is often missing in discussions about social media and/or any sort of complex system. The general narrative implies (but would never say) that humans lack agency and the ability to act in their own self-interest. And if only we could remove the social media site/system, would we see an enlightened, more perfect human. Don't get me wrong, I'm strongly in favor of designing systems to bring out the best in humanity. But I think a lot of what we see on social media is a reflection of who we are as humans, and what we desire and want to see. And I don't see enough discussion at the individual level, and why we act the way we do. If the discussion was at the individual level, we'd start to see our common humanity, and the conversation about social media would be less about moderating out the 'bad content' (which always just so happens to be the content that our outgroup likes), and more about the philosophical considerations with designing complex systems that help humanity thrive (and what it means to thrive).

djoldman 6y ago
>I think a lot of what we see on social media is a reflection of who we are as humans, and what we desire and want to see. Agreed. I'm curious why there aren't deep discussions about WHY people want to __insert convenient social media action__. Isn't the flaw that we have a fear of missing out, want to appear to have high status, want to belong to a group whose identity is tied into being against another group, etc.? I just see most of these discussions giving the above a pass as if that's just who we are and we bear no responsibility in engaging in such activity.
- soledades 6y ago
  Telling people to be different is simply not a viable mechanism for making the world a better place. You can inquire after however many chickens and eggs you like about why the world is the way it is, but I think most people are more interested in what can be done to improve things.
  - djoldman 6y ago
    >Telling people to be different is simply not a viable mechanism for making the world a better place. Perhaps. However this reminds me of the credit cards that are offered on college campuses. They're signed up for like hotcakes sometimes. Later in life people learn that perhaps it isn't such a good idea. Can't people be given information showing the potential effects of decisions that then helps them better make choices? >You can inquire after however many chickens and eggs you like about why the world is the way it is, but I think most people are more interested in what can be done to improve things. My point exactly. Let's stop talking about social media, which takes advantage of a root flaw. Let's talk about the root flaw.
    - soledades 6y ago
      What you call a root flaw (in your previous comment) I see as being neither root nor a flaw, but that is not interesting to me. If you take a plant out of the ground, and toss it into the sea, the plant dies. The 'root flaw' is that the plant is a vulnerable living being. The more relevant fact is that the plant is better off in the ground.

djoldman 6y ago

>I think a lot of what we see on social media is a reflection of who we are as humans, and what we desire and want to see. Agreed. I'm curious why there aren't deep discussions about WHY people want to __insert convenient social media action__. Isn't the flaw that we have a fear of missing out, want to appear to have high status, want to belong to a group whose identity is tied into being against another group, etc.? I just see most of these discussions giving the above a pass as if that's just who we are and we bear no responsibility in engaging in such activity.

soledades 6y ago
Telling people to be different is simply not a viable mechanism for making the world a better place. You can inquire after however many chickens and eggs you like about why the world is the way it is, but I think most people are more interested in what can be done to improve things.
- djoldman 6y ago
  >Telling people to be different is simply not a viable mechanism for making the world a better place. Perhaps. However this reminds me of the credit cards that are offered on college campuses. They're signed up for like hotcakes sometimes. Later in life people learn that perhaps it isn't such a good idea. Can't people be given information showing the potential effects of decisions that then helps them better make choices? >You can inquire after however many chickens and eggs you like about why the world is the way it is, but I think most people are more interested in what can be done to improve things. My point exactly. Let's stop talking about social media, which takes advantage of a root flaw. Let's talk about the root flaw.
  - soledades 6y ago
    What you call a root flaw (in your previous comment) I see as being neither root nor a flaw, but that is not interesting to me. If you take a plant out of the ground, and toss it into the sea, the plant dies. The 'root flaw' is that the plant is a vulnerable living being. The more relevant fact is that the plant is better off in the ground.