I remember the early internet and how it seemed to hold so much promise. Hell, I started this blog back in 1998 if you can believe that. If I were to go back in time and be some kinda hero in a “Terminator” movie plot. “No, we must destroy the internet for it becomes a power for evil!”. No one would have bought it.
“Can the internet, in fact, be fixed? "There may come a point when that's no longer possible, after which time the adverse consequences can no longer be controlled. The internet is headed for a point of no return, and Big Tech is probably already aware of this, too. Mark Zuckerberg has moved away from his social media platforms and launched Meta, as if nothing's wrong and we can just start over again, but it's clearly already broken."
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"This price is a psychological one in the first place. Not only are a lot of young people suffering from a distorted self-image and anxiety disorders, there's also been an externalization of functions: certain critical functions of our brains are being outsourced. Our short-term memory is getting worse, and our attention is becoming increasingly fragmented and very specifically directed."
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Repercussions are also to be expected here as control becomes increasingly more sophisticated. "In China, it's already the case that you can't board a train if you have a 'wrong' opinion. In the United States, you have to share all of your social media profiles if you want to apply for a visa. Things don't seem to be so bad in western Europe yet, but your online activity is so traceable and visible now that there's a real possibility that at a certain point people will no longer be able to travel or get a mortgage or insurance."