I think there's a strong case for turning off the Internet... Anyone else agree?

[MintyFinty]

And yes I am aware of the irony of posting this... On the Internet.
I just think its addictive, spreads misinformation and despair further and further and ruins the enjoyment of life mostly from a kind of keeping up with the world wide Jones and constantly intruding on our lives.
Yes I see the upsides but hospitals and businesses could have a licence for Internet use and then average people could have from 9-10pm available and then it's off.
I look back to the early nineties and it just feels so much better (even though it wasn't in some ways, and particularly not for me personally) but culturally and creatively, I think it was better off for not havethe Internet in every home and pocket.

There’s no way to put it back in the box now but I am very glad to have been a child in the 80’s growing up without it.

The internet has been as much of a curse (to some) as a blessing but can you honestly imagine life without it now? I have just reordered my prescriptions, booked a blood test, ordered my groceries and video chatted to DM.

I get where you're coming from but it's too late to put the genie back in the bottle. It's social media that needs more tight controls, Twitter especially is a vile cesspit and Facebook not far behind. I'm.glad my children grew up before social media became big, I feel sorry for today's youngsters with all.they have to deal with

No.
I order my food from the supermarket via the internet (can't drive so am limited by what I can carry home).
I communicate with my daughter's school, medical appointments, therapy appointments via the internet.
I can find out the times of trains/buses within seconds via the internet.
I order taxis at the press of a few buttons.
I communicate and arrange things connected with my hobby within seconds on the internet.
Any official forms (like the census) done online - quicker, no getting lost in the post.
Google maps - never get lost.
Checking places are actually open - no wasted journeys.
I watch most of my TV via the internet.
I read the news etc online. Saves buying a physical paper - which by the time it has been printed and distributed the news can be out of date.
I also like reading articles online about all sorts of random things which is both entertaining and educational.
Facebook. I like Facebook.
Oh and most important....
Kittens. Pictures of kittens. The internet has pictures of kittens.

Kittens. Pictures of kittens. The internet has pictures of kittens
Yes! The original point of the internet was to post pictures of kittens, the fact that people found a way to post other stuff is what's causing the problems.

This post is timely for me. Just got back from a quick shopping trip with DH and commented on how internet / mobiles /social media has totally changed people and how we interact with the world and each other.

Walking along we saw a group of girls, no older than 11, walking along the shopping centre with a phone in front of them dancing and pouting to music. Not one of them looking at the world around them or being mindful of others.

I agree as above the problem is social media. I see people on days out now, taking photos and you just know it's for 'the 'gram'. We watched a group of several families in Cornwall this summer. They were having a BBQ on the beach but I am not kidding they must have spent a good half hour getting everyone in position..'you sit there, put your hands up, cheer' etc etc basically being directed so they could show Facebook the world that they were living their best life.

It was an eye opener but it is everywhere. It's made me much more aware of how I use my phone and why I post stuff and I'm very much limiting my time these days. It's making the world so so self-obsessed and it's worrying.

@Chikapu yes the kittens were the ones that started all this trouble. It's all to distract us from the cats taking over the world.

@Quirrelsotherface you could say the Victorian folks and their having to sit very very still for a very long time for one of them fancy new photographs started this. Posing for pictures on a beach isn't new.

Actually, just yesterday I was thinking how lucky we were to have internet and all that information at our fingertips. As part of a conversation we googled English prime ministers by date, suez crisis, number of expats in France and vice Versa etc. none of this information was readily available when I was growing up, yes we had encyclopaedia and libraries but finding out in the evening ? Forget it.

social media needs to be viewed with caution but the rest - marvellous

No, people should take responsibility for how they (and their children) use the internet and not rely on Nanny to tell them what to do. Don't spend time on it to the exclusion of face to face interaction and other activities. Don't live your life on social media. Don't take advantage of the fact that you're anonymous to engage in trolling, bullying or abusive behaviour.

I spend some time on some social media platforms, but I also use the internet for (among other things) researching destinations and travel and booking holidays, and in my professional life, accessing academic material.

Posing for pictures on a beach isn't new

No but taking half an hour to do so and basically directing it like a Hollywood movie I would argue, is. This was a normal snap on a phone, not a photoshoot.

The internet is a fantastic development

The possibility of university education brings available to the most rural parts of the world… or those who are bed bound

the citizen science projects and medical discoveries that have happened as people have found each other.

The activism and culture change that can come from the global conversation shifting tone

Sure there’s plenty of awful too but that’s simply a reflection of what’s already present in humanity

It gives us new ways to be awful to each other bits it’s not the reason bad stuff happens and your nostalgic view of your past life is clouded by your human memory.
There was still war and suffering and infectious disease and corrupt politicians and bullying and all of the horror the internet is now giving you the opportunity to see

Let's go further and ban anything that could possibly be misused: alcohol, books, the internal combustion engine..........

Kittens... Here is a picture of kitten

How would you see this excellent picture of my excellent kitten if the internet didn't exist?

Surely it's a question of how you use it? Nobody is forcing you to use it. If you want to get offline and do other things, there are plenty of opportunities for you to do that.

@Quirrelsotherface there's a comedy sketch (possibly a Horrible History one) about Queen Victoria and family setting up for photographs. It took hours of posing and redoing apparently.

@Chikapu, that's a very cute kitty!

@Chikapu and @Sideorderofchips both kittens are adorable.

Thank you, he does enjoy being told how cute he is 😽

Congratulations - you own The Kitten That Justifies The Internet

😂I hope the fame doesn't go to his head.

No. And I'd fight to the death to keep it, I am disabled and it revolutionised my life, I wouldn't want it only available part of the day. I do my shopping online, a social life online, I did a degree online, it keeps me connected to society, I am about to start a job for the first time in years working remotely.
People who have a problem with it can turn off their router at night. 🤷‍♀️ Lots of things can be used for bad, but this has so many upsides.
Also a slippery slope of governments turning off Internet or Chinese great firewall style, hard no.
Plus cute animal pictures obviously.

I know what you mean op. It's both a curse and a blessing.

My dad is in his eighties. He had cats when he was growing up, but my mum doesn't like one so he has spent the last 60 years feeling slightly sad that he can't have one. The Internet has been great for him...he has two favourite cats that he watches videos of every day, and they brighten his day no end! 🐈‍⬛🙂

Lockdown would have been fucking awful without the Internet. I'm very grateful for it personally.

It depends how you use it I suppose. If you use it to spy on people you used to know on Facebook and compare yourself to them so much so it makes you feel inadequate then yeah, the internet isn’t great.

Really positive and useful for lots of reasons though. You can’t deny that internet shopping is largely much easier, I hate going into shops personally.