Most people don’t have people around them like that. The vast majority of people out there are low level addicts for algorithms. Nobody in my family can control themselves and I grew up with two parents who were crackheads for cable news TV feeding them endless streams of nonsense. My folks were basically overgrown toddlers most of my life and everything made them throw a tantrum. And my entire town I grew up in was full of people like that.
I think the error you are making is you assume other folks have the circumstances around them that they can exercise control and discipline over their lives… a lot of folks don’t. Esp if they never had examples in live to teach them those things, or had higher education or income levels. Poverty and low income legit has different wiring in the brain and people in that lifestyle typically don’t develop their executive control. The fact I did, made me more or less a freak-show anomaly among my family and friends growing up.
I am lucky with my friends and family, and I’m always grateful for that. As I said before, when I say something is simple, that doesn’t mean I’m suggesting it’s easy. The trouble is, no one but the addict themselves can break addiction. Of course algorithmic media, social or otherwise, should be much more stringently controlled, but if it disappeared overnight people who just move to the next source of quick dopamine hits.
You sound extremely lucky/privledged.
Most people don’t have people around them like that. The vast majority of people out there are low level addicts for algorithms. Nobody in my family can control themselves and I grew up with two parents who were crackheads for cable news TV feeding them endless streams of nonsense. My folks were basically overgrown toddlers most of my life and everything made them throw a tantrum. And my entire town I grew up in was full of people like that.
I think the error you are making is you assume other folks have the circumstances around them that they can exercise control and discipline over their lives… a lot of folks don’t. Esp if they never had examples in live to teach them those things, or had higher education or income levels. Poverty and low income legit has different wiring in the brain and people in that lifestyle typically don’t develop their executive control. The fact I did, made me more or less a freak-show anomaly among my family and friends growing up.
I am lucky with my friends and family, and I’m always grateful for that. As I said before, when I say something is simple, that doesn’t mean I’m suggesting it’s easy. The trouble is, no one but the addict themselves can break addiction. Of course algorithmic media, social or otherwise, should be much more stringently controlled, but if it disappeared overnight people who just move to the next source of quick dopamine hits.