Interesting, I was introduced to Hacker News by CGP Grey on the Hello Internet podcast, declaring he was taking a long break from Twitter, Reddit, and HN. About a year ago I decided to avoid all media as a sort of test. I later also deleted all of my social media accounts.

Media does seem to have significant psychological effects, comparable to drugs. I think reading books has to be the healthiest way to consume media, because unlike movies, shows, podcasts, surfing, and scrolling, it takes an active effort to do, and thus you get out of it everything you put in. Passive media consumption leads to spending more time with what has no value to you. I believe it should only be done with other people, to establish context and references between each other. I feel the same way about recreational drug use. In general it is good to choose activities that connect you to others, rather than separate.

My time spent away from the internet and media, really has broadened my view of the world. I've thought a lot about motivation, narrative, and relationships. I seem to be bent on figuring these things out, and trying to uncover the inner workings of life. This does me no good though, and the analysis and overthinking is crippling. My focus recently has been on not complicating life. It is not an optimization problem. Instead I'd like to let go of the need to understand, and simply experience and appreciate more.

As for Hacker News, I am quite pleased with the postings I've seen so far, and is inspiring and motivating to me. I will be wary of HN leading to a decrease in productivity and becoming a time sink.

Apologies for the slightly off topic rant, I just had some thoughts I wanted to get out.