Done with the Social Web

With the release of Threads by Meta and the never-ending discussion of it on the fediverse, I feel myself retreating from online 'social' spaces once again.

A few years ago I retreated from centralized mainstream social media. I learned about the fediverse and it felt like a much better space to be. However, with the impending tsunami that is Threads' federation with, I think I'm at a point where I don't want to be in any online space that exceeds a certain threshold of users.

Maybe I'm becoming a curmudgeon and this is just part of getting older. It's just that I have no interest whatsoever in being a part of clout-chasing culture. I don't care about 'gaining followers' or being an 'influencer'. I don't care about celebrities and their lives. I don't care about the newest memes. And I DETEST take culture.

Regarding take culture, what I'm talking about is the need for everyone to have an opinion, or take, on everything they read. Escaping take culture was the impetus for me leaving Twitter to begin with. The purpose of corporate social media is to encourage everybody to have a take, both nuanced and outrageous, on everything. They shove negativity and hate and watch as the pacified masses swarm like piranhas to chum.

Capitalism has removed any sense of agency from people's real lives and substituted it with a poor online facsimile. Revolution has been quelled before it could even take root.

I can't be a part of it much longer. I feel like we're on the path to complete servility and it's disheartening.

I'm part of society, and have fallen victim to these same forces. I know I'm a hypocrite. Maybe I'm overreacting and just in my feels right now. Maybe I won't retreat completely from the fediverse. Maybe all I need is a brief respite.

I need to start reading again anyway. I also want to get back to writing for my gemini capsule. Exercising my creativity with more purpose and determination always helps me centre myself.

I think the web is too toxic for me to spend too long wading through. Regular cleanses are necessary to restore some semblance of balance.

Anyway, I'm going to go read a book and tinker with some old electronics.

Be well.

=> back

=> index