I’ve almost given up trying to dial down widespread panic about kids and digital media. Maybe the cortisol induced by nightmares that our children are screen-poisoned is keeping our very hearts beating. Sure, in my view, we put way too much blame for phantom psychological problems, formerly known as sins, on screens. With physical problems, we likewise blame food. Intuitive eating and intuitive screen use— involving so little overthinking that you don’t really think about food or screens at all and instead think about truth and beauty—is my approach.
I'd love to have been able to ban smartphones from my college classroom, but doing that on my own hook would have sent my evaluations crashing through the floor. My sense is that the danger of social media is that they plunge the user into the halls of a gigantic hellish middle school in which they're subject not only to the bullying of their classmates but of kids from other schools across the English-speaking world and, worse, of sadistic and exploitative adults. This isn't a problem inherent in screens; it's a problem inherent in a boundary-less social sphere.
On a side note, Clarabell was played by Bob Keeshan, who later moved up from a silent character part to the lead on Captain Kangaroo.
Has anyone linked this panic to the research finding that mindfulness training makes teens more depressed, mainly by getting them to think more about the world. I'm nearly 70, born with an optimistic temperament, and thinking about the world (Trump, Putin, Gaza, global heating) makes me really depressed.
I'd love to have been able to ban smartphones from my college classroom, but doing that on my own hook would have sent my evaluations crashing through the floor. My sense is that the danger of social media is that they plunge the user into the halls of a gigantic hellish middle school in which they're subject not only to the bullying of their classmates but of kids from other schools across the English-speaking world and, worse, of sadistic and exploitative adults. This isn't a problem inherent in screens; it's a problem inherent in a boundary-less social sphere.
On a side note, Clarabell was played by Bob Keeshan, who later moved up from a silent character part to the lead on Captain Kangaroo.
Has anyone linked this panic to the research finding that mindfulness training makes teens more depressed, mainly by getting them to think more about the world. I'm nearly 70, born with an optimistic temperament, and thinking about the world (Trump, Putin, Gaza, global heating) makes me really depressed.
Howdy Doody still gives me nightmares. I preferred Lunch with Soupy Sales.
Interesting analysis. Thanks. And don’t forget Mr. Green Jeans and Office Joe Bolton
Thank you for this dose of sanity!