Internet: worse than tv

From what I see with friends and family, people spend a lot more time wasting their lives on the internet. There is no resource like the internet, there is:

Porn
Videos of everything
News
Weather
Maps
Catalogs
Jobs
School/Education
Personal stories/blogs
Message boards
And did I mention free porn?
and more...

Lets make some predictions.
-THe US will be twice as fat in 10 years.
-Carpel Tunnel and other related diseases will increase
-And a loss of social skills from little interpersonal communication.


Do you concur, earthworms?





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[edit on 7/19/2008 by kinglizard]

I concur....................oh mighty sandworm.

I already have a case of double carpel tunnel.

I disagree. Even with the addition of the internet in my life I am still finding time to exercise, to go out and do things with my friends, to play video games, to read books, and most important of all to have time with my family. I also still find time to go outside every once in a while. I think that most people who use the internet know when they've been using the internet too much. And I don't rely just on the internet for news... as I know that not everything on the internet is true. I still listen to the radio for news... and I still watch television.

The internet hasn't taken over my life at all.

Well Franki, you are definitely in the minority population that can balance such a lifestyle. Don't lie, not all your friends are in shape, are they?

The internet takes over my life every summer just after the 4th of July. This is when Big Brother starts. The only reality show I watch. I get the live 24/7 feed online and I watch it the three days a week it's on tv as well. This year has been worse than normal. Because of the writers strike, they quickly came up with a winter version of BB. So it began in Feb, lasted three months and then just started up again a week or so ago.

Other than that, no the internet does not have any ill effects on my life. I will be getting up at six a.m. to work out, even though it's nearly midnight and I am still awake watching Libra freak out on Big Brother because she's on slop for another week.

reply to post by '___'eed

No... I'm afraid not. One of my friends from my high-school (which I just graduated from) was 15 years old and is like 200 pounds... so yeah... you do bring up a good point.

However, I wouldn't blame the internet/tv for this. It's a cultural thing. People like to go to mcdonalds and they eat fast food. That's how they get so fat.

Actually, he body can take fattening foods, its just our metabolism slows down when we get older, and it does not help when we sit around all day.


Take a look at any office space, and you will find huge cows.

Originally posted by '___'eed
From what I see with friends and family, people spend a lot more time wasting their lives on the internet. There is no resource like the internet, there is:

Porn, Videos of everything, News, Weather, Maps, Catalogs, Jobs, School/Education
Personal stories/blogs, Message boards, And did I mention free porn? and more...

Lets make some predictions. -THe US will be twice as fat in 10 years. -Carpel Tunnel and other related diseases will increase -And a loss of social skills from little interpersonal communication. Do you concur, earthworms?

The people I know who watch teevee are like droids. They dont know nothin.

The people I know who are on the internet a lot are solitary and alone yeah.

But theyre not stupid.

We choose what we want to know, practice, learn and become.

I refuse to become a droid, a passive watcher or a gameshow mentality.

I think porn is sick and stupid because it destroys relationships with boredom.

So I choose where I go, what thoughts I think, and whose ideas I claim.


sarc

reply to post by sarcastic

I watch television but I'm no idiot. I can watch television knowing that what I'm watching is just for entertainment purposes. I just don't watch the shows that are "junk" on it. I watch c-span on television which has some pretty informative stuff on it. You get to see politicians talk and see what senate meetings are like. I don't watch television to the extent where it makes me passive.

good point sarc,

but what if internet is the killer of the smart men in the room. I mean we are not sleestacks, but we are being bombarded by so much info and spending more time than we see. I'm sure there is an exponential curve we don't notice.

I see you point sarc, but we are a more enlightened group here.

Imagine all the children and blue pill people watching junk on the internet opposed to tv. When you look at it like that, more entertainment is on the internet (more junk). Damn, even tv is on the internet.

The development of the Internet is a resultant affectation of mankind cresting the eshcaton - that transcendental object at the end of time.

The Internet is in many ways a Fractal representation of the Library of Alexandria.

It is the place of dissemination and association, which draws out the Thinkers amongst us. These are the Interesting times. We who's minds are linked and know this to be true are taking advantage of this brief moment in time, a brief period where novelty has chosen to express itself.

We turn thoughts into electrons, and shoot them across the world unimpeded into each other's minds. This is a rare event in space and time, a confluence of events and personalities that has never happened before.

There are those amongst us who appreciate, who see this for the treasure that it is - a fractal Soliton beginning to present itself for the first time in our history.

This network is a product of the modern Bifrocation; we are the ones we have been waiting for. This is the waiting room in which we converse, awaiting the chance to heed that unheard call.

reply to post by TruthTellist


I like that post truth tellist. Who burned Alexandria anyway? was it the jews?-ha

I feel like ATS is the waiting room.


I guess in the end,


"Too much of anything is not good for you".

reply to post by '___'eed


Per the topic itself: Internet: worse than TV?

I would disagree. People probably do more data sampling on the internet about various subjects, which for your mind is at least a good thing. Even though TV sometimes has the advantage of telling you more about something you might not know, as you just need to listen. Assuming you don't just watch TV purely for its frivolous entertainment [comedy, drama,...] and trash programs all the time. Where as with an article on the internet I find that I skip some of the text as I just can't always be bothered to read every word. Unless the subject and sometimes the author are very interesting in what they have to inform us about, or how they say it.

In terms of physical fitness; TV makes you even more lazy than computer use, as you only need to operate a remote now and then. With a computer you are physically interacting with it far more than you would with TV. But at the same time since you are more active with only a few select muscles, tendons,... Carpal Tunnel syndrome, and eye strain problems can arise.

What worries me more than TV or the internet is the amount of time I see young people playing video games. One of my nephew's spends hours a day playing just one game with his PSP3. Day after day. Week after week. This has been consistent now for over 6 weeks, and he's only ten years old. When he as a friend over, they usually just sit in front of the TV and play the same video game that he plays most of the day.

I definitely see obesity as being more of a problem over time. And it will probably get worse until parents can be taught how to limit their kids access to things that keep them sedentary.
Definitely seeing more people with Carpal Tunnel syndrome as well, but this seems to be because the people I know also use a computer at work and spend too much time typing.

[edit on 28-2-2010 by ETL71]

reply to post by '___'eed


The difference is that we'll be billions of better-educated slugs.
Or at least better porn-equipped slugs.

There is so much crap on the internet. I don't know which one's worse... I will say though that the internets brain washing abilities far exceeds that of televisions... but then again, so is it's ability to educate.

What I would really like to see is the television and computer combined in the ultimate home entertainment system!

[edit on 28-2-2010 by Crapsghetti]

Originally posted by Crapsghetti

What I would really like to see is the television and computer combined in the ultimate home entertainment system!

[edit on 28-2-2010 by Crapsghetti]

Isn't this what Micro$oft had in mind with Media Center?
Linux has a few permutations of it too.
Guess which one is stable.

We were trained in mulitasking to be able to cope with all the information that flows in and out of our offices. It's a work trend, which was popularized in the media in tune with the Internet development. We're living lives consisting of endless distractions, dressed up as entertainment, to keep us busy on social details instead of seeing the larger picture and participate with the raw force of nature. We can google every concept we run into, but do we have the patience to complete a novel, compose a symphony, rearrange the garden, or teach the kids to read?

reply to post by Crapsghetti


Well if that's what people want then there's multiple options, many of my friends hook their computers up with their TV's, personally I enjoy having the ability to watch TV at the same time I'm surfing.. Right now I'm watching Seinfeld and they're killing independent George!

reply to post by '___'eed


I can only suppose it goes back to the old adage, "Everything in moderation." I will certainly agree the internet and the increased popularity of a sedentary lifestyle has created a majority of humans (in modern nations) who are going to suffer from said lifestyle detriments, if they do not already. This is how it will be as long as people are given simpler ways to accomplish goals, regardless of the side effects. It is what society has made with itself, corporate influence or not. It is upsetting that many will fall into the mire of sloth, media inundation, and the loss of intelligence it begets, but I think your fury on the matter shows you are intelligent enough to know it is not a wise lifestyle choice for you and avoid it. I applaud you for that. There's unfortunately little that can be done beyond following our own path of what we feel is best for us, and allowing those who choose their path as much respect as we feel they should give us. I embrace technology, but I do not let it consume my life, nor do I let my nihilist tenancies consume me either. That's just me, and I am sure there are those who choose other paths. Aren't we fascinating like that?