Many of us now live in a digital world, connected through the internet.
What does it mean to live in a digital world? – Living in a digital world means that our primary source of human interactment is through a digital device, rather than through face to face interaction. In other words, if we interact with an input device connected with a computing unit (like a screen) or not.
Why is the digital world appealing/pros&cons? – It enables us to interact with people anywhere, anytime. Also it’s easely scalable and the messages are easely modifiable.
Thinking – One could say that because of that it enables us to do something, the choice is always ours and therefore we could decide when to make a rational decision not to use it. Therefore it shouldn’t be regarded as anything bad.
This is a valid point to the extent that not all people have that sort of self-control and insight plus those situations when we cannot control what is presented to us in our digital devices. Examples could be free websites that comes with advertisement/screens in public places/google-searches and AI-usage.
Conclusion – I would say digital devices by themselves are not harmful, but it is just like saying weapons by themselves are not harmful. It’s all about who uses them and for what purpose as they are nothing but tools.
We have already seen these tools used by people in power to preserve and increase the difference of power and money between them and the poor.
Therefore it is clear to me we have to work a bit towards a more fair society. For example it would be good to increase taxes for the very rich and have a global economical wealth taxation and police. Also it would be good that platforms like Facebook and X are state-controlled. So that rich people like Elon Musk can’t sneek in whatever he wants into his app X to change a vote of president or by other means manipulating things to increase his wealth.
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