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Comment by stunt | Hacker News Reader

It is sad to see what is happening to people. Just take public transport and you will see so many people scrolling social networks and consuming useless content.

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When I was young they read newspapers, books and magazines.

Nobody made eye contact, let alone talked, unless they were crazy, looking to make trouble, or both.

No one used to whip out a newspaper in the middle of the checkout line or for those thirty seconds in the elevator.

This is such an "old man yells at cloud" attitude.

The alternative is, what? Striking up conversation with fellow passengers who definitely don't want to talk to me? Staring mindlessly out the window? Consuming useless content via newspaper instead?

I just don't understand this position.

The alternative is staring into space, being aware of your surroundings, focusing your thoughts on the things going around in your immediate life, rather than using every available 20 second period of time to stare at a screen. Sure, people read crap on print while on the train before, but people weren't whipping out the paper for those 30 seconds in the elevator or while walking across the street.

I think that's the biggest issue: these devices intend to remove every moment of contemplation and critical thought we might otherwise employ to pull ourselves out of the desperately worsening situation we face. At least the television stayed in your living room and you were compelled to leave that room and interact with people in order to remain a living person. Now we just carry the TV around with us and it's more addictive than ever.

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