So I just watched the Social Dillema.

Oh boy it's a ride. I am going to explain my thoughts on it having watched it.

This shit is scary. More and more over the past few days I have been unendingly frustrated with how much time Twitter and Facebook have stolen from me and my partner. It's moved me to try and distance myself. Trying to just watch a movie without pausing so I can scroll...

But then my partner wants to tell me about a Facebook argument. Or I want to tell them about some epic dunk that I posted on Twitter.

And it just upsets me. We are not even letting each other focus. Ever. And then I have to be an asshole and tell my partner I don't...

want to hear what they have to say because I am trying to focus on something that didn't happen on a phone screen.

And like, I'm not doing anything wrong. I'm not being "bad" by using these sites, but they are and have been changing me....

And while I recognize that some of those changes (like me moving left) fundamentally are a good thing on their own, it was not a choice that I made. But rather a ploy to get me to view more Facebook and YT content....

The Social Dillema is good. And I recommend everyone watch it.

But I want everyone to go deeper. The movie carries a kind of subplot about "the extreme centre" which is.... Weird. But okay I get what they are trying to say.

It talks about polarization....

While I don't think thats NECESSARILY a bad thing, the reality is that one end of those poles is fascism. It's genocide. It's oppression.

Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Google, they are collaborating (unintentionally) with the far right because it pushes engagement....

And gets clicks.

The problem with Social Media isn't just lack of regulation.

The problem is the motive. We aren't making these systems in order to enrich human social interaction. We arent building them to educate and get people politically engaged in a healthy way....

We are making these systems to generate profit.

And it has become an addictive substance.

I have mentioned several times how Twitter and FB will send you notifications if you haven't been using their platform enough. YT does this too.

The goal is not to update you when...

A friend uploads a video or a post. The goal is to get you back on the site to pull the slot machine. To sell ads to you and try and manipulate you into buying them.

The problem is profit. The problem is capitalism, and while I acknowledge the movie can't be too radical....

The solution is not to regulate.

The solution is to reframe the tool in a different society. Where the underlying goal is not profit, but humanity.