social media
Social Media for modern lovers in the digital age.
Friendship Fossilised. Content Warning.
Introduction This has been inspired by the fact that I often include old stories of mine, to expand or enhance new stories, and also to make sure that I am not repeating myself too much. It is OK for some repetition to give emphasis to some points, but I don't want a virtual repeat of any old stories.
By Mike Singleton đź’ś Mikeydred 8 months ago in Humans
Darkness Descends
Flying over the rift valley formed between the left and right, a kettle of rapacious vultures are patiently circling. Although the scent of death has only just begun to seep through the air, these necrophages salaciously wait in anticipation. Ogling a well intentioned yet largely uniformed society tear itself apart, they covetously await the feast with complete disregard for the collective.
By S. J. Leahy8 months ago in Humans
Visiobibliophobia.
Gerad sits with his phone face‑down, though the screen keeps lighting up beneath it - a pulse he refuses to acknowledge. The apps are arranged in neat rows- bright squares, soft gradients, tiny promises of connection - but to him they feel like doors that open only onto rooms full of people already speaking fluently in a language he never learned.
By Antoni De'Leon8 months ago in Humans
Why is Europe banning social media for young people?
In Portugal, young people can legally engage in sexual relations from the age of 14, but following the approval of a new law, they will only be allowed to create social media accounts from the age of 16. Portugal is the latest European country to impose restrictions on social media for children. The law approved by parliament will limit free access to social media and other platforms for children under 16, requiring parental or legal guardian consent. Prohibition of “bullying” Proposed regulations in Europe are both explicit and broad: children under 13 will not be allowed to access any platform, service, game, or application covered by the law. In addition, teenagers aged 13 to 16 will need formal parental consent to use these services. In Portugal, the restriction is not limited to social networks; it also includes image and video-sharing services, betting platforms, online games, resources containing violent or sexual content, as well as “any online intermediary service whose nature or content could harm the physical or mental development of children.” However, WhatsApp messenger for personal communication, applications specifically designed for children, “knowledge-based or educational” online games, and certain resources related to education and health are exempt from the rule. Even with parental consent, teenagers will still face restrictions. Platforms will be required to ensure that their accounts remain “private,” do not appear in search results, and that algorithms are set to present only “approved” content in recommendations. In addition, features such as autoplay, AI-powered video and image production services, and the ability to “scroll” (continuous and addictive scrolling or browsing of content) will be disabled for children. The impact of the internet on young people’s mental health In 2022, the “Health Behaviour in School-aged Children” research consortium, in collaboration with the World Health Organization, studied 280,000 adolescents aged 11, 13, and 15 across 44 countries, including European nations, Central Asia, and Canada. The findings showed that more than one in ten young people display symptoms of social media addiction and face serious difficulties controlling the time they spend browsing content. This figure was higher among girls (13 percent) than boys (9 percent). Thirty-six percent of adolescents also said they are in constant contact with friends via social media, a figure that reaches 44 percent among 15-year-old girls. One-third of young people admitted to playing online games daily, and 22 percent of them spend at least four hours a day doing so. In addition to lawmakers, international organizations have also warned about the issue. In its 2024 gender report, UNESCO emphasized that platforms based on visual content and recommendation algorithms (such as Instagram) increase users’ exposure to content that promotes unhealthy behavioral patterns and unrealistic beauty standards. This trend has multiple negative consequences, including low self-esteem, negative body image, harm to mental health, and academic failure. This is particularly true for girls. Research included in the report shows that 32 percent of teenage girls believe social media has increased negative feelings about their bodies. This perspective also faces challenges and counterarguments. In 2019, Oxford University researchers Amy Orben and Andrew Przybylski tested the hypothesis that “digital technologies are harming adolescents’ health and well-being” using large-scale data from 355,000 teenagers. Using advanced statistical models, they concluded that while there is a link between adolescent mental health and digital technologies, the connection is so small (around 0.4 percent) that making major policy changes based on it seems unreasonable. Australia’s “reasonable” measures Portugal has repeatedly cited other countries’ experiences in defending its decision to set a “digital adulthood” age. Australia has been a pioneer in this area, implementing a similar restriction late last year, although regulators there prefer to describe it as “delayed access” until 16. Australian youths under that age are not allowed to have accounts on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, X, Threads, and YouTube, but they are still permitted access to Messenger, YouTube Kids, Pinterest, and Discord. The main difference between the Australian model and the Portuguese plan lies in the method of verification. Unlike Portugal, Australia has not mandated a single mechanism; instead, it requires each platform to take “reasonable steps” to prevent registration by those under 16. For example, Meta (owner of Facebook and Instagram) offers options such as providing a passport or verifying identity through a video selfie. Despite these measures, organizations such as the Digital Freedom Project in Sydney are seeking to challenge the law in court. The organization’s president and New South Wales state parliamentarian John Ruddick said, “Monitoring online activities is primarily the responsibility of parents, and we do not want to hand over this responsibility to the government and unelected bureaucrats.” YouTube’s owner Google has also deactivated all accounts of users under 16 in Australia, calling the rule “hasty” and the result of a misunderstanding of how young people use digital platforms. Economic consequences and ways to circumvent the law For tech giants like Google and Meta, these measures mean financial losses. Since December, social media companies have suspended approximately five million teenage accounts. This has led to a decline in key metrics such as daily and monthly active users, which directly affects the volume of advertising they attract. Meanwhile, more countries including Denmark, Greece, Norway, and the United Kingdom are considering similar models. In Central Europe, the Prime Minister of the Czech Republic has supported the idea of banning social media for children under 15. The European Parliament also passed a resolution last November urging member states to consider imposing restrictions on children under 16. On the other hand, critics argue that full enforcement of such restrictions is impossible and that children will be pushed toward unmonitored and potentially dangerous online spaces by seeking alternatives. There is also a warning that missing the opportunity to create safe online communities could disproportionately affect vulnerable groups compared to others.
By Real content8 months ago in Humans
RATS IN SHADOW
There are rats in our house!! A nest of rats have made their home in our house, and we don’t care. Let them hide, let them breed, in fact we are going to hide them and encourage more. They love the darkness, so we will let them, hide in shadow. After all, if we give them light, we might see the true scope of the infestation. Do we want to know? Do we need to know? And why are we protecting the rats, that spread plague?
By Alexandra Grant8 months ago in Humans
Roots and Fruit
Roots and Fruit Photo by Lukáš Kulla on Unsplash Most people evaluate life by what shows. Results, behavior, success, failure, growth, collapse. Fruit is easier to measure than roots, so it becomes the focus almost by default. When something goes wrong, attention rushes to what is visible and immediate. When something goes right, credit is assigned to the most recent action. But this way of seeing consistently misreads causality. Fruit is never the beginning of the story. It is the result of something that has been growing quietly, often unnoticed, for a long time.
By Peter Thwing - Host of the FST Podcast8 months ago in Humans
Anti Christ Leadership
Defund Executive Order, a ruler who does not have compassion must be taught a lesson to start to care. He is chosen to show the world that he is the real antiChrist, whose ruling system is not working. First ruling, defund TSA and replace air controllers with AI. Aviation starts falling from the sky. 2nd Executive order, defund education. Disabled children are completely left behind. No one cannot afford higher education which means no one has the educational means to remove this antichrist leadership from power in a country that has superpower. He defund Healthcare in the States that has the power to take this antichrist leadership down. California and Illinois superpower states are left scratching their heads. They pay the most federal taxes and yet they are defunded. How can this be happening? What will congress do by this Executive order defunding mandated Healthcare? U.S. Forefathers are turning in their graves. This is not what they had in mind when they created the U.S. Constitution and Declaration of Independence. The U.S. government branches are equal but no more when the antichrist president tries to rule with an iron fist. Homeland security was established to protect US citizens. Two U.S. citizens were killed by I.C. E. What's wrong with the system? There is a list of high profile individuals including the antichrist president. This list show that they have abused young children Which started before 2000. No one seemed to see that this was happening in a country that advocated for children's protection. The U.S. system is definitely broken because all the members of the antichrist studied the government system so it can dismantle its moral code to destruction and ruin the country's good standing reputation around the world. The saddest part of it all is a so -called Christian church now being led by the son of the founder of this so Christian Church is supporting and praising this antichrist leadership. Why are commodities and wages going up? That says a lot, the system is not working in this antichrist leadership.They say he is the chosen one for whom, the devil himself? How long does it take to see defunding so much money for what greater good? Money is supposed to make life better, not harder. Why is this antichrist going to do with all the money that was already allocated in the first place to make life better for citizens? Who is going to stand up against this antichrist and stop his corruption. He praises himself and pat his back everyday. His wife fears him that she does everything he says even if it makes her look like a fool. Pity and waste of a gorgeous lady. The Attorney General of the land has the list but yet has not indicted anyone on the list. She was appointed to protect the victims but instead she protected the antichrist. The antichrist said he will stop the Russian war against Ukraine on his 1st day of office. Did it happen, no. God's divine intervention will stop this war at the right time. Prayers for this country and to stop the antichrist dismantling the moral compass of this powerful country. Will the people allow this antichrist to keep ruling and letting a system that's supposed to implement justice and liberty, just keep the system from being broken? Will the church keep being blind as long as the antichrist is funding their causes? Will there be someone strong enough to stand up to the antichrist system of ruling? What makes a great country? I say a country that has compassion for all its people. Do you feel the system is broken or is it just me?
By Mariann Carroll8 months ago in Humans
9 Reasons the Disappearance of Nancy Guthrie is Resonating with People Nationwide
The disappearance of Nancy Guthrie has resonated far beyond the boundaries of her immediate community, capturing attention across the country. In Nancy's case, a combination of emotional, social, and cultural factors has converged to transform a local tragedy into a shared national experience.
By Margaret Minnicks8 months ago in Humans
