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This story might be helpful to those tearing their hair out about the news lately:
I grew up believing that following the news makes you a better citizen. Eight years after having quit, that idea now seems ridiculous—that consuming a particularly unimaginative information product on a daily basis somehow makes you thoughtful and informed in a way that benefits society.
But I still encounter people who balk at the possibility of a smart, engaged adult quitting the daily news.
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A few things you might notice, if you take a break:1) You feel better
A common symptom of quitting the news is an improvement in mood. News junkies will say it's because you've stuck your head in the sand.
But that assumes the news is the equivalent of having your head out in the fresh, clear air. They don't realize that what you can glean about the world from the news isn't even close to a representative sample of what is happening in the world.
...
2) You were never actually accomplishing anything by watching the newsIf you ask someone what they accomplish by watching the news, you'll hear vague notions like, "It's our civic duty to stay informed!" or "I need to know what's going on in the world," or "We can't just ignore these issues," none of which answer the question.
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A month after you've quit the news, it's hard to name anything useful that's been lost. It becomes clear that those years of news-watching amounted to virtually nothing in terms of improvement to your quality of life, lasting knowledge, or your ability to help others. And that's to say nothing of the opportunity cost. Imagine if you spent that time learning a language, or reading books and essays about some of the issues they mention on the news.
Read on for the rest of the list.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 14 2016, @04:44AM
Hmmm well this will almost certainly do no good, but i'll give it a shot.
I'm beginning to think you're actually sincere in your beliefs, beliefs which I consider to be mostly horrendous, but thats by the by.
I think sometimes, with questions like "The moderate position is?" you'd actually like to here the opposing point of view, I think you'd like the discussion, I think you're genuinely intrigued. And in truth it would be interesting to have that discussion, I've read moldbug et al (you're neo-rx right?) and whilst I dont agree at all, they do have some interesting points of view, some questions that are worth exploring.
But (you knew that was coming) the problem is that as long as you continue to troll so hard, venemously and obviously, the people who could have that thoughtful, respectful discussion with you (eg me) are just not going to bother.
So how about you ease up a little, let some air in and maybe fruitful discussion can be had?
Or you can continue to stoke the hate and get short shrift in return.
Your move.
(Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Wednesday December 14 2016, @03:22PM
Well said.
Washington DC delenda est.