It's not heroin that's bad, it's what you do with it and how you use it

▲ mattlondon 2 hours ago | parent [-]

I think it's more the technology, not the substance.

Alcohol addiction is bad. But no one is saying we should have "bottle free days" or "try not to use a glass until you've been outside" or whatever - no one is saying "bottles and cups cause addiction! We should not allow children to use liquid containers until they are 16!" just because they could conceivably contain alcohol. That is obviously absurd. You are not addicted to the glass or bottle, you are addicted to the alcohol.

Yet we as a society are basically doing that for screens. Screens/bottles are not in themselves bad, but it's what you as an individual actively chose to put in it that leads to the problem. Don't use tiktok or whatever, but do use the screen.

	▲	quadrifoliate 2 hours ago \| parent \| next [-]
		> Alcohol addiction is bad. But no one is saying we should have "bottle free days" or "try not to use a glass until you've been outside" The original author isn't trying to ban all screens from public life (e.g. screens that show bus information) or religiously avoiding them, it is obvious that by "screens" they specifically mean the "addictive entertainment that is usually delivered via screens". This does not mean they will run screaming from a screen at the doctor's that's displaying their vitals. Actually, there's an analogy right there in your argument! We often say "he's been hitting the bottle" as a metaphor, that doesn't literally mean someone is hitting a bottle, it means that they are addicted to the alcohol in it.
	▲	DonHopkins 34 minutes ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		Cheers! [1] I love your crystal-clear analogy between glass screens containing slime and glass bottles containing alcohol. It's the slime, not the glass. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JPFIkty4Zvk `I am gross and perverted, I'm obsessed and deranged I have existed for years but very little has changed I'm the tool of the government and industry too For I am destined to rule and regulate you I may be vile and pernicious but you can't look away I make you think I'm delicious with the stuff that I say I'm the best you can get, have you guessed me, yet? I'm the slime oozin' out from your TV set` [1] The drinking toast, not the television sitcom.