I finally quit Twitter after 13+ years just after this latest election. Like you, at first it was for the social media team I was on. It actually helped me to be more concise. I never paid the $8 to Elmo, who I grew to hate for his destruction of the lively town square I probably spent too much time at near the end.
I loved following people from all over the world. Artists. Shepherds who carve canes. Writers with witty words. And serious journalism mixed with cat memes.
Then came the election of 45 and hypervigilism took hold. It seemed critical to stay informed during the chaos and corruption. To protest. To resist.
This time around will arguably worse. I’ve realized it’s possible to be too informed. Too educated. Too aware of history’s patterns. I tried not to burden people IRL but eventually you become a Cassandra. And we know how that ended, eh?
I’ve disconnected from all but Substack. I’m relying on friends to tell me only good news because I anticipate that so much will be bad.
Did Germans in the 30s say something similar? Did it come down to how informed they or their friends were? Did they trust the right sources? Einstein made it out, after all.
Maybe those of us in the States feel this the most but much of the world feels equally alarmed and at risk. (This is the very focus I’m trying to avoid but it’s insomnia time and here we are.)
Do I have to leave all online interactions? Maybe so…but I still appreciate learning from posts like yours.
Loved this piece. You know, I was reluctant to sign up for Twitter too, and I often forget that by then there were so many other things I felt beholden to log into. I ended up using it the least of probably all the social networks, maybe because I'm drawn to longreads and struggle to be brief myself. 😂
I finally quit Twitter after 13+ years just after this latest election. Like you, at first it was for the social media team I was on. It actually helped me to be more concise. I never paid the $8 to Elmo, who I grew to hate for his destruction of the lively town square I probably spent too much time at near the end.
I loved following people from all over the world. Artists. Shepherds who carve canes. Writers with witty words. And serious journalism mixed with cat memes.
Then came the election of 45 and hypervigilism took hold. It seemed critical to stay informed during the chaos and corruption. To protest. To resist.
This time around will arguably worse. I’ve realized it’s possible to be too informed. Too educated. Too aware of history’s patterns. I tried not to burden people IRL but eventually you become a Cassandra. And we know how that ended, eh?
I’ve disconnected from all but Substack. I’m relying on friends to tell me only good news because I anticipate that so much will be bad.
Did Germans in the 30s say something similar? Did it come down to how informed they or their friends were? Did they trust the right sources? Einstein made it out, after all.
Maybe those of us in the States feel this the most but much of the world feels equally alarmed and at risk. (This is the very focus I’m trying to avoid but it’s insomnia time and here we are.)
Do I have to leave all online interactions? Maybe so…but I still appreciate learning from posts like yours.
Loved this piece. You know, I was reluctant to sign up for Twitter too, and I often forget that by then there were so many other things I felt beholden to log into. I ended up using it the least of probably all the social networks, maybe because I'm drawn to longreads and struggle to be brief myself. 😂