4 ms·

My rule for 2026 is to limit short-form media. No Twitter/X, no Bluesky, no Mastodon, no Instagram, no TikTok. If it is designed to be short-form (limited chara

My rule for 2026 is to limit short-form media. No Twitter/X, no Bluesky, no Mastodon, no Instagram, no TikTok. If it is designed to be short-form (limited characters, quick videos) then it is not for me in 2026. I had already avoided short-form video but I added short-form text this year.

jader201 9mo ago
The whole world would be a better place if all of these disappeared. (Add to this YouTube Shorts.)
taurath 9mo ago
I dropped Google news and Reddit in the last few weeks. I have watched several people have nervous breakdowns, coworkers report having to step back from everything, one even said he’d developed a twitch. However informed we desire to be, that desire seems to be usurped by this constant spin-up mechanism of current media. HN is probably gonna have to go soon too for me, I have enough ways to keep informed, and it’s hard to feel informed while pretending many events that are deeply effecting everyone I know’s lives don’t exist. I don’t particularly want HN to become about US politics, but I also don’t like that ycombinator is run by, for and with people who I don’t share values with. It seems like the majority opinion is it’s okay to commit moral suicide to make money nowadays - I never previously felt like the word “depravity” could accurately describe the day to day culture of startups and technology. There are many exceptions (enough to not leave the industry entirely) and perhaps it’s the rule that most people are appalled at Thiel, Musk and Altman, but idk. To me the only correct move against a vampire is to not let them into your house.
- Aeglaecia 9mo ago
  when vampires are knocking at everyones front door , a sizeable proportion of the populace will be vampirized , such that any barricades to your domicile will be inevitably breached
  - webdoodle 9mo ago
    You have to welcome vampires in.
    - Aeglaecia 9mo ago
      doesn't make much of a difference when you are the only non vampire left
      - disparate_dan 9mo ago
        I'm fairly sure there is a book about that exact thing, but I can't remember how it ends...
- 0xDEAFBEAD 9mo ago
  "I also don’t like that ycombinator is run by, for and with people who I don’t share values with." I think if you are careful to avoid clicking on YC startup ads or applying to YC, and you make sure to write a lot of comments calling for regulatory crackdown on AI†, then you can be fairly certain that you, as an individual user, are not contributing to YC's bottom line. † I contributed to the campaign of Alex Bores, running for Congress in NY-12 https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/TbsdA7wG9TvMQYMZj/consider-donating-to-alex-bores-author-of-the-raise-act-1 https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/TbsdA7wG9TvMQYMZj/consider-d...
SilverElfin 9mo ago
It’s a great rule, but it is still a problem when most of society uses short form stuff. Because they will be influenced by it and they will vote based on it. And they will end up affecting you anyways.
Insanity 9mo ago
I stopped watching short form content last year. I’m not on instagram/X etc, only on YouTube. My only annoyance is that YouTube still insists on shoving them in my face on the app homepage even though I don’t watch them. It just requires a modicum of willpower now not to click and go down the rabbit hole, which I’ll occasionally fail at.
- jmathai 9mo ago
  Try to turn off YouTube watch history. You get no feed at all. It’s marvelous.
- lvncelot 9mo ago
  I blocked them from my suggestions page with ublock origin
  - Insanity 9mo ago
    Yeah but that doesn’t work in the app, or does it?
    - hmstx 9mo ago
      It doesn't. I "worked around" that by setting a 5 minute daily timer for youtube on my phone - just enough to mark a few regular videos as "Watch Later". Gives me an incentive to scroll past the shorts.
    - wedg_ 9mo ago
      I'm on Android and I use "one sec" with "In app distractions" enabled for YouTube. no idea how it works but when I click on the shorts tab or any shorts in my feed (in the app, not website), it immediately gets blocked by a heroic looking polar bear saying "No shorts for you!". I believe it can block some other in app stuff like reels in instagram as well
- Tom1380 9mo ago
  I suggest to use the browser even on phones and tablets. Once you get used to YouTube with extensions you realise how aggressive and enshittified the app is

jader201 9mo ago

The whole world would be a better place if all of these disappeared. (Add to this YouTube Shorts.)

taurath 9mo ago

I dropped Google news and Reddit in the last few weeks. I have watched several people have nervous breakdowns, coworkers report having to step back from everything, one even said he’d developed a twitch. However informed we desire to be, that desire seems to be usurped by this constant spin-up mechanism of current media. HN is probably gonna have to go soon too for me, I have enough ways to keep informed, and it’s hard to feel informed while pretending many events that are deeply effecting everyone I know’s lives don’t exist. I don’t particularly want HN to become about US politics, but I also don’t like that ycombinator is run by, for and with people who I don’t share values with. It seems like the majority opinion is it’s okay to commit moral suicide to make money nowadays - I never previously felt like the word “depravity” could accurately describe the day to day culture of startups and technology. There are many exceptions (enough to not leave the industry entirely) and perhaps it’s the rule that most people are appalled at Thiel, Musk and Altman, but idk. To me the only correct move against a vampire is to not let them into your house.

Aeglaecia 9mo ago
when vampires are knocking at everyones front door , a sizeable proportion of the populace will be vampirized , such that any barricades to your domicile will be inevitably breached
- webdoodle 9mo ago
  You have to welcome vampires in.
  - Aeglaecia 9mo ago
    doesn't make much of a difference when you are the only non vampire left
    - disparate_dan 9mo ago
      I'm fairly sure there is a book about that exact thing, but I can't remember how it ends...
0xDEAFBEAD 9mo ago
"I also don’t like that ycombinator is run by, for and with people who I don’t share values with." I think if you are careful to avoid clicking on YC startup ads or applying to YC, and you make sure to write a lot of comments calling for regulatory crackdown on AI†, then you can be fairly certain that you, as an individual user, are not contributing to YC's bottom line. † I contributed to the campaign of Alex Bores, running for Congress in NY-12 https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/TbsdA7wG9TvMQYMZj/consider-donating-to-alex-bores-author-of-the-raise-act-1 https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/TbsdA7wG9TvMQYMZj/consider-d...

SilverElfin 9mo ago

It’s a great rule, but it is still a problem when most of society uses short form stuff. Because they will be influenced by it and they will vote based on it. And they will end up affecting you anyways.

Insanity 9mo ago

I stopped watching short form content last year. I’m not on instagram/X etc, only on YouTube. My only annoyance is that YouTube still insists on shoving them in my face on the app homepage even though I don’t watch them. It just requires a modicum of willpower now not to click and go down the rabbit hole, which I’ll occasionally fail at.

jmathai 9mo ago
Try to turn off YouTube watch history. You get no feed at all. It’s marvelous.
lvncelot 9mo ago
I blocked them from my suggestions page with ublock origin
- Insanity 9mo ago
  Yeah but that doesn’t work in the app, or does it?
  - hmstx 9mo ago
    It doesn't. I "worked around" that by setting a 5 minute daily timer for youtube on my phone - just enough to mark a few regular videos as "Watch Later". Gives me an incentive to scroll past the shorts.
  - wedg_ 9mo ago
    I'm on Android and I use "one sec" with "In app distractions" enabled for YouTube. no idea how it works but when I click on the shorts tab or any shorts in my feed (in the app, not website), it immediately gets blocked by a heroic looking polar bear saying "No shorts for you!". I believe it can block some other in app stuff like reels in instagram as well
Tom1380 9mo ago
I suggest to use the browser even on phones and tablets. Once you get used to YouTube with extensions you realise how aggressive and enshittified the app is