What would you say is absolute poison to life/society?
Also my immediate answer. My addiction to it in my early 20s ruined my self image.
Mine helped ruin my marriage.
One of my good friends is nuking his with a TikTok addiction rn, shit bums me out to see.
Specifically social media that's exclusively made up of short videos.
Reddit has a lot of problems, but at least you need to be literate to use it.
Redditors gotta stop with this social media elitism. Reddit is just as bad as tiktok and every other social media platform, which is to say it's as bad as you make it. Spending hours on reddit is no better than spending hours on tiktok. Reddit still perpetuates the same stupid mental health issues, the same stupid body image issues, and infects brains with shit just as bad as any other social media.
You can't go two threads without somebody spewing nonsense about how horrible women are for letting dating get so hard, or how if you're not a 10 you can't get laid, or how it's okay to be a complete piece of shit as long as you own the thing you're being shitty about.
Reddit, just like every social media, is filled with chronically online fools that shout into the void about how terrible their life and the world is/has become, infecting more and more brains with bullshit because it's easier to complain online than to go out and potentially be rejected by the world.
Yeah, just because something is portrayed in a more constructive or intellectual way doesn't mean the merit of the thing is any better.
Words gotta mean something to mean something...
I'm going to disagree with you there.
You are absolutely right about the same predictable tropes cropping up again and again on Reddit - the whiny misogyny, sub-armchair psychiatry, terrible relationship advice.
But the big differences with Reddit vs other social media are:
- How frequently those same tropes get rightly called out for the nonsense they are (as you have just eloquently done here).
- The profile anonymity, which makes it the wrong place to be if you're looking for the kind of cheap social 'clout' you get on a visual platform like TikTok or Insta.
- The fact that it's all written word. Or at least the comments are. So someone like me has the opportunity to rebut and reply to whatever someone else has said. Sure you can leave a salty comment on someone's TikTok if you want, but it's not the place for a discussion.
So yeah, there is certainly some elitism in corners of Reddit. But it is a very different experience vs other social platforms. 'Better' or 'worse' is ultimately in the eye of the beholder. But from a personal perspective I would argue Reddit offers a lot more.
Over the years I've learned a lot of things from niche communities (and some of the bigger general subreddits) that I otherwise would never have come across. I'm not sure I could honestly say the same for other social media platforms.
Exactly. Some concentration site of reality-detached Eva AI virtual gf bot userbase has labeled itself social media elite. Come on.
That’s true.
Or as the average TikTok user would say: On god yo fr. Yo broski but fr tho no yea and that’s no cap. On god bro. You speaking mad facts. It’s giving truth. 💅
I lost brain cells trying to understand this.
Dat shit legit lit fam 🔥
They would just say “not reading all that” to anything over 2-3 sentences.
I don't understand what you just wrote, but I'm mad as hell about it.
Thank god this is the top comment
Beat me to it
Outrage bait and the algorithms that encourage it
sows division. fight each other instead of those who damage and take rights away
The algorithms encourage it because its how we behave online. For a lot of people its simply too hard to ignore an opinion they don't like online.
Governments being filled with great grandparents.
Most importantly the specific individuals making laws that'll only apply to them for less than a decade (old bastards making laws)
Materialism. People waste decades chasing shit that don't matter.
It just fuels greed, envy, and pride. Nothing wrong with having some nice things but people could learn the live with less and/or be happy with what they have.
Social media is going to be remembered like a worse version of trash TV from the 80s and 90s.
Remembered...? As if it will someday go away?
If we can only be so lucky
My thoughts exactly. Society will collapse before social media goes away at this point.
You can make it go away for yourself at least :)
People doubted Facebook will go away. Now it’s seen as uncool. Same thing will happen to TikTok and IG eventually.
Just a question of what replaces it
Yes, because unlike 1980s-90s trash TV, everyone participates in social media and there's no escape from it.
I compare it to cigarettes or cocaine. When they first came out it was socially acceptable but we didn’t realize the damage it does until later down the line…the damage it’s done to society is irreparable
Social Media has done far more to damage the fabric of society.
anti-intellectualism, magical thinking.
All hail the Flying Spaghetti Monster!
ironically meant to mock religion/anti-intellectualism(not that they necessarily have to be the same thing, but I do think religion promotes it more than athiesm)
Politicians
No more social shame
Gone are the days of tar and feathering public officials in the town square
Social media. It's been proven to be addictive and cause mental health problems. 68% of preteens are on it.
Oligarchy, billionaires, the investment class
An inability to have a rational conversation when logic and emotions are in the debate.
these are violent words that just hurt me
I am literally shaking,
If you are shaking, my argument is automatically wrong. If you cry, I'm definitely a Fascist.
The loud minority
Mob mentality and the need to villainize people with different opinions.
People these days seem to blindly join a cause without really knowing anything about it other than their chosen group has decided something is now bad. and just about all of them lack the self control and critical thinking skills to have a civil discussion about it.
At least, that's how things look through the screens we stare at all day.
The trivial US vs THEM bullshit is killing humanity.
And I spend way too much time thinking about what the cause of this is...politics, the elite, social media? I can't tell
But I do feel the world is rapidly descending into US vs THEM madness with a new WW on the horizon
This. I have lost count of the number of people I've seen who absolutely hate certain things, only to have zero answers if you ask them why. That, or you get a response that show they haven't actually looked into the matter, and are only going off of what others have said.
Tribalism and viewing those you disagree with as the enemy
Buying things you don’t need that forces you to work longer so you buy more stuff to make yourself feel better which makes you have to work longer so you buy something to make yourself feel better which makes you have to work longer…
News outlets that pander to the lowest emotions to generate as much outrage and anger as possible.
How the Internet and SM has changed our perspective of time and what “true” is.
Online content algorithms and echo chambers. They're amplifying the loudest and wrong voices. Notice the way that news headlines are written have changed, as well as the way politicians talk has also changed.
I think perhaps one of the worst things about society now is the 24/7 availability. Particularly with our work lives.
Even just 20 years ago it was the norm that once you went home from work that was it until the next day. No phone calls. No texts etc. If you really needed to be available you might have a primitive cell phone for calls or texts or maybe a pager, or you’d let your employer know where you’d be at and give them a number to call. But that was an outlier.
I think that we are always beholden to our employer at all outs of the day every day has completely eroded our sense of life, balance, happiness, and social presence. I think it’s incredible detriment to our society and an underlying factor in widespread mental health issues.
This same concept can be applied to social lives as well, with access to friends and family being 24/7 as well. But I think it’s most detrimental in regard to work/life.
High Fructose Corn Syrup
Narcissism. I genuinely think it's the biggest problem.
It's basically the "greed" argument, but it extends past material exploitation, and also includes psychological (emotional, social, interpersonal, etc.) exploitation.
A general lack of empathy.
Ignorant hatred. Hating someone takes so much energy.
Hustle culture
It was always there when it came to people wanting to work longer hours in the office but now people are doing it to stay in the upper middle class and not rely on government support.
hyper-individualism and selfishness,
Influencers, Sugar babying, OF.
Porn ography
Social media.
porn
Insecure people. Borderlines. You'll get it when you realise the kinda if people who make laws, are police officers, lawyers, politicians are majority these people. Why can't people surrender to life and heal the traumas?
The Kardashians et al... They showed the world you can be rich and famous without any actual talent or morals. I'm British But 'The American Dream' was 'work hard and with a bit of luck you can make it'. Now even in America the dream is to go viral (no matter how low you have to go) and make it without the work. Imo both those dreams can't coexist...
alcohol
Hedge fund managers
The accumulation of wealth being good, optimal, and both the means and goal of your life’s purpose and fulfillment.
Anger and hate
Greed
Corporate lobbying
Hook up culture.
The media. Nothing but sensationalized news and propaganda.
the algorithms
Greed and Entitlement
Blackstone Inc and similar investment banks are the reason for all the suffering in the world from people never being able to live out without being comfortable to people losing their jobs to corporate layoffs to the prices of everything going up.
I will never work for that legal mafia regardless of how much they pay me and have hate for everyone who works there.
Ego, capitalism and the pursuit of profit above all else
Social media. It does more damage than good.
And yes, I understand the irony of posting this on social media.
People are still so fucking tribal
Sensasionalist news
Pimps. You're literally making money off of people sacrificinf their mental health and keeping them reliant on you
Insecurities, lack of empathy/manners/etiquette
xitter
Hatred
Greed.
porn
alcohol/drugs
gambling
socials
Social media and the amount of influence conglomerates have on everyday lives.
Corrupt governments
Greed.
Monopolies
Wages not keeping up with inflation/cost of living.
Onlyfans, I have no idea how someone convinced women to virtually prostitute for $4.99 a month
Obesity,casual sex,social media,drugs,modern entertainment.Â
Meth and greed
Porn
Absolute poison to life and society can take many forms, but some common examples include:
1. Hatred and bigotry: Prejudice and discrimination based on factors such as race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, or socioeconomic status can tear communities apart and perpetuate cycles of violence and injustice.
2. Corruption and greed: When individuals or institutions prioritize personal gain or profit over the well-being of others, it can lead to exploitation, inequality, and erosion of trust in societal institutions.
3. Violence and conflict: Wars, armed conflicts, terrorism, and interpersonal violence cause immense suffering, loss of life, and destruction of communities, undermining peace and stability.
4. Environmental destruction: Pollution, deforestation, habitat destruction, and climate change threaten ecosystems, biodiversity, and the planet's ability to sustain life, jeopardizing the well-being of current and future generations.
5. Ignorance and misinformation: Spread of false information, conspiracy theories, and denial of scientific evidence can undermine public trust in facts, fuel division, and impede progress on critical issues such as public health, climate change, and social justice.
Addressing these challenges requires collective efforts to promote empathy, justice, sustainability, and truth, as well as holding individuals and institutions accountable for their actions.
Two things that go together: vanity and waste.
They can be attributed to causing, or encouraging, the problems current day society faces: toxic social media, insatiable greed, and disregard for the well-being of others, to name some.
Religion
Onlyfans
Far leaning politics in either direction.
DJT is the most poisonous person in my long life.
Fox News
Porn.
It corrupts men’s and women’s views on each other and what actual sex and intimacy is like.
Social isolation
Stress and fear.
Algorithms sewing division because it's profitable.
lack of media literacy tbh half the things in this thread wouldn't even be an issue if people had better media literacy IMO.
“Do you own research”
All you need is to find a few people to agree with you, and you can ignore every expert or dissenting opinion. Truth is now what you want it to be
Social media
Comparison. Especially when you're comparing your life to someone else's highly curated social media posts.
Social media and how it enables a loud minority that should have no voice
Alcohol
Religious and mystical thinking.
Tribalism
Alcohol
Conformity. It just leads to echo chambers that contributes to tribalism. People need to have their ideas challenged if they want to find the best ideas that work for them and their culture.
Electronic Entertainment media, big contribution is through Social media and porn.
Tribalism, anarchy, ignorance, & intolerance.
I constantly talk about how ironic it is that our intelligence will be the cause of our demise.
Meta
"phones" and I put it in quotation marks because that's what people still call them but they are anything but that nowadays
Greed and social media
Money
the belief that our system of democracy is the best.
religion
Sham media, reality TV, and intentionally depleted educational systems.
People themselves. They never admit that they are pieces of shit for the sake of being pieces of shit and blame their actions on social media as if that were a valid excuse.
Having children when you shouldn’t…
Social media, porn, and dating apps.
Social media/shorts i.e. tiktok.
Social media as a whole creates an issue with self image and privacy. In theory it's great, but it ends with glorified stalking and shorts lowering our attention span and getting addicted to the dopamine ride of 'just one more' and getting used to a 30 seconds clip as opposed to a 3 hour movie. Poison to not just entertainment but our future society as a whole
Racism, taxes, social media, etc
Clout chasing
Rage farming. There's so many articles and headlines these days that are presented as "news" but are really just to farm rage clicks for ad revenue.
Dental not being healthy care.
Greed. It affects everything.
Theism
Car dependency.Â
Artificial Intelligence.
The sheer lack of patience, compassion and empathy that everyone seems to be walking around with. I get everyone has places to be and shit to do but I've seen people absolutely lose their shit with random strangers over going slightly slower than them, or getting in the way by accident. The mass majority of us are in the same boat and yet it's like we're all out against each other.
Ignorance.
Disinformation.
Capitalism.
Lobbies
The decline of good journalism, and spread of misinformation (and maybe also to note, how so many people can easily be swayed by this)
News propaganda and the life comforts that keep citizens from holding their elected officials responsible for the bullshit that is being pulled.
Overpopulation
Imaturity of adults. Porn. Lack of empathy as in only having empathy for themself. Religion. Toxic mascuilenity. Toxic femnininity. Hookup culture
Human trafficking
Religion.
Drugs and the gangs/distribution networks. Causes so much addiction and damage to already vulnerable people.
You might have seen the youtube vids of rows and rows of streets in the US with people smacked off their faces looking like absolute crap, it's incredibly sad.
Porn.
TikTok, Instagram, Twitter ( X )...to be fair all of social media is absolute cancer to the society.
All those decrepit old farts in the government. We have term limits for the POTUS, why don't we have them for those fuxkers.
Cars and our dependence on them.
Honestly this is a really good point because it fucks people over in ways they cant see despite all the good things cars do for us
ha
Religion
The news, politics, greed, social media, celebrity worship
Billionaires
Racism
Extreme religious dipshits of any ilk!
The wage gap and corporations.
Social injustice! Distrust in Justice/ Court system! Ignorance/ Hatred towards indivduals based on race, religion, gender, sex orientation, civil status, social status, beliefs, phisionomy, body shamming ageism etc
Conservatives.
Religion & Politicians
billionaires
Racism
From my current understanding, Aggressive late stage capitalism/neoliberalism and hustle culture, isolation, as an example of something that comes from it. Every modern problem comes back to it in some way. Not saying it hasn't done good things to but yeah.
Cancel culture….and woke nonsense…
Misplaced empathy is killing most of the Western world right now. Working class normies in a lot of places can’t even buy a house or have big families but they’re taxed to death to support hostile foreign nationals who were brought in to replace the children the working class normies couldn’t afford to have. It’s pretty funny.
Degeneracy, adultery.
Online dating (was gonna say social media, but that was taken quickly)
Also, capitalism (I wish I could move to Canada).
Social Media and bipartisan politics. The notion that people have to pick between two sides when it's really the same coin.
Also adding ethanol to gasoline. We've all acknowledged by now that it's pointless but we keep doing it.
Social media, greed, religion
Loneliness.
Religion.
Capitalism
Billionaires
"It's not my problem."
The fuck-you-I've-got-mine attitude is literally the antithesis of the fabric of society. Not that everyone needs to care about everything all the time, there are some things worth caring about, some not worth caring about, and some things that are simply other peoples' business. But people who wallow in this attitude are just individuals living in some proximity to other individuals. They take from society and give nothing back.
And while I'm sure a bunch of boys wallowing in the "it's not my problem" attitude are about to downvote me for saying so, a whole lot of them infect this sub.
Fentanyl/drugs, fatherless homes, alcohol, porn, immorality... basically rampant SIN in our world.
Religion.
PC culture
DEI
Social media
Social Media, journalism as it is today, state ran schooling, and the amount of screen time we all take in.
Religion
Anti-vaxxers
Feminism. Social media (ESPECIALLY tiktok)
Cable news, and social media algorithms.
Not being able to associate and be cordial with people you don’t agree on everything with
Poison
Social media
Social media