The Internet, Social Media, and the Mind

The internet is, by far, the most significant advancement in modern human history.

It revolutionized the way we communicate, do business, get the news, get educated, and entertain ourselves more than probably any other feat of advancement since the development of writing systems.

The internet morphed into the social media hub that it is today, and with the advent of social media came a time where humanity has never been more connected and information has never spread faster or to so many people at once.

This was thought to be a good thing, and in many ways it is, but it has a component to it that is detrimental to the health of our nation and our world. 

That component is the mass proliferation of deception across social media platforms and the internet as a whole.  Coupled with the other depravity the internet has enabled or exascerbated, this mass deception and mass confusion that comes with it has contributed to a great many of our current crises and current social ills. 

Dangerous and extremely twisted conspiracies can spread like wild fire across the internet and through social media, and they can be hard to contain or rebuke.

I think, though, that the main detriment to instant communication and the massive information accessibility of the internet is what it does to people's minds. Our awareness, our ideas, and our social lives are all greatly impacted by the internet.

For better or worse, social media has an undisputedly profound effect on the health of our relationships and the way we interact with each other.

Our mental health is affected. Our self image is affected. Our sense of the world is affected.

Aside from the personal quandaries of the internet and social media, the internet exposes a significant vulnerability in our security; our inability to regulate deception.

The internet makes it easier for our enemies to exploit the naivete and baser natures and instincts of people to put a potent wedge between the American people. Potent enough, I must say, that this wedge has the potential to greatly destabilize our country. From my perspective, it already has.

Yes America has been divided in the past, but how the mass-propagated ideas and ideologies the internet has broadcasted to the minds of the people seem to take over peoples thoughts, behaviors, and their very lives have been amplified and the flames heavily fanned by social media.