Internet, Twitter, Social Media or Artificial Intelligence

I do not know if you have experienced Twitter. It is like a bird colony. Just a whole lot of people shouting and yelling into the breeze. The birds, at least, have a purpose in their calls. Most of the people on Twitter just seem to be very unhappy and want to share their disharmony with all the world or anyone who will listen. Sadly, it is a state of affairs that effects most of the social media apps and pervades the Internet today.

I fear that the world has generally gone that way. People choosing to share with the world whatever comes into their minds as soon as it comes into their minds. Instant gratification, where there is an answer to every question but not necessarily the right one. Just so much noise. I am aware that I am guilty of doing exactly the same thing even with this article.

I wonder if it’s because I am accustomed to conversing with my family and people that share the same perspective on the world as I do that I find the confused rambling on the net so hard to tolerate? Could the problem be that the diversity of thinking that underpins daily life is so broad based that it is impossible to sort out fact from fiction.

As a Christian, I am feeling more and more isolated. Even other Christians do not see the issues in a way that agrees with my perspective. It is like putting a jigsaw together using the pieces from several different sets. Everything looks as though it should fit together but there are slight differences of shape that make it impossible to fit the individual pieces together. So, on the Internet the thoughts are so piecemeal that often you can not make the connections that are necessary to distinguish logical reasoning from insanity.

As a teacher this is evident in the thinking of the students. Children always have difficulty discerning their moral path at the best of times but with social media and smart phones many children spend a lot more time in virtuality than can surely be good for their state of mind.

The result is evident in falling grades, developmental delay, a lack of wisdom, the absence of maturity or, the ability to manage self and exhibit any form of self discipline. Yes it is that bad! If something is not done to remediate this situation I despair for the future of our youth and the country as a whole. I am not joking when I say that their will be revolution and civil war if we cannot fix this.

Commentators are expressing worry about artificial intelligence and I would advise all to take notice of the warnings that they are giving. However, I would also advise all to note the horrific state of our children’s education. Far too many are illiterate and innumerate to the extent that they will be easy to manipulate if AI does become a problem.

Educated people stand a better chance of discerning truth from propaganda, especially once they realise that there is a danger of being manipulated by the system. People who do not know much are more easily deceived. They can be convinced to do what the system wants and deceived about the objectives of those in authority.

So Internet, Twitter, Social Media or Artificial Intelligence. We need to understand that the one who controls the digital devices or digital media controls our children and the future of our society. As a Christian I believe that time is short and Jesus is coming soon. Before he comes a time of disorder and destruction will unfold on the world such has never been known (Matthew 24). I believe that Social Media and smart phones will play a significant part in bringing this time of judgement to pass. My advice is to limit your children’s exposure to digital devices and the Internet as a matter of utmost importance. The sanity of our young people is at stake.