Anti-War

 Anti-War

Anti-war has been an idea ever since wars were. Throughout history we see hundreds of men and women fight against the fight. From Eleanor de Montforts mid 13th century English barons in opposition to King Henry IIIs goal of war against Manfred of Hohenstaufen, to Creedence Clearwater Revival anti-Vietnam war music like Fortunate Son. To today where we see anti war activists all over the globe, if you know where to look.

Unlike many other conflicts in America's history, antiwar is buried within the depths of the internet. The website Antiwar.com is filled with reporters and journalists attempting to sway the world's opinions on conflict. This website generally looks like it is going to give my laptop a virus. I never would have found this site on my own, it isn’t shown on Fox or NBC. This makes sense to me. The censorship of this information is unconstitutional however it can be understood the government would want this information to not be as prevalent as it is to try to not allow Americans or other countries' citizens to be swayed against events like the War on Terror or Russia Ukraine.

One author that stood out to me was Dave DeCamp, the current editor of Antiwar.com. This man is reporting daily on conflicts around the world from a non interventionist perspective. What stood out was I had never heard of him. Compared to major news anchors we all know with close to zero talent it surprised me someone like Decamp had flown under my radar. However it made a fair bit of sense when I considered what he was saying is not what the countries want their people to hear. America for example would much rather you have blanket fear or sympathy for the conflict rather than an educated perspective allowing you to form your own opinion.  

ECTO reflection #2

Confirmation Bias

Confirmation bias stands as one of the most important topics discussed through our ECTO presentations in my opinion. Not only is it fairly unknown by many but it affects people in ways that can be detrimental to society in extreme situations. Every one of us does this. For example I know a lot about football, if someone tells me something about a player I follow that I didn’t know I will often dismiss what they say as false thinking I know more. I remember this happening when Odell Beckham jr. was one the New York Giants. This is called having a fixed mindset. 

This fixed mindset also known as a closed mindset can be dangerous as often change is good. When people hold on to fixed mindsets we can see a decrease in progress. Honestly no one cares about my opinion on a washed up NFL player however when it comes to other issues confirmation bias can forge long standing issues. Politics for example is one of the most dangerous cases for confirmation bias. Voters are more likely to believe news that confirms their own biases. This means voters pick and choose what news to believe and what to dismiss. This is what Fox News and CNN thrive off of. Preying on the biases of the individual to push their parties agenda.

This bias leads to less educated voters who don’t fully grasp the intentions of their candidate. This reminds me of the famous saying “don’t judge a book by its cover”. If voters are only absorbing what they need to confirm their support for their chosen candidate they miss out on the bad he or she is doing or the good their opponent might accomplish. 

News can reinforce our beliefs but we should also challenge them. If we take everything at face value we leave ourselves open to being taken advantage of. As stated in the presentation this will most affect the youth through their parents and the information they absorb through social media, which often turns into an echo chamber based on what the viewer wants to see. 

Final Post

Our Relationship With Technology and Social Media

Technology is not a bad thing, it is raw knowledge and power. It is up to those who use this power to change our world for the better or for the worse. Technology has been a pivotal aspect of our society however often seems to do more damage than good. According to a study conducted by Ching-Ting Hsin, Ming-Chaun Li, and Chin-Chung Tsai, Department of Early Childhood Education , National Taitung University, Taiwan. With proper education students' education can exponentially grow, however when young users are left to their own devices we can see a drastic fall in mental health and education.

Issues like cyber bullying and poor self image have grown rampaped in the last few years. Social media contributes to not only negative mental health but the countries youth suicide rates. According to a study covered mentioned in this article from 2007-2017 there has been a 56% increase in suicides in ten years. This rise in deaths blame can not be put alone on social media as many other issues are present in the lives of the American youth.

Compared to 35 years ago the world is a completely different place. With the internet only beginning to enter the world, no one could have predicted the growth technology would have. With all the great innovation there is a lot left that us as a people are yet to fully grasp. For starters the attention taken by social media and our smartphones remove us from the socialization of our world. “The paradox of modern life is this: we have never been more connected and we have never been more alone.” Matt Haig. 

On the other hand gen z is the first generation growing up in a world that has fully integrated and accepted technology. In my own life I have been using social media for the last 8 years I got my first smart phone at 11. Social media was never a huge draw for me but even from the perspective of someone who doesn’t care that much I find myself doomscrolling and often comparing myself to the people I see on my feed. In addition the use of technology in planning events and socializing with my friends has grown to become a necessity if you don’t use it you are left out.   

35 years ago there was no such thing as Snapchat. Your mom never sat at home having a bad day scrolling through her feed seeing all of her friends having better lives than her. This brings up one of the most common misconceptions of social media. People believe it is fact while in truth most is fiction. People will only post what they want you to see, good days not bad ones and only the best pictures. This matched with the rise and convenience of photo editing lowering many individuals self-esteem, self-worth, and health as they strive to reach unattainable goals.

If we think of our relation to technology as a relationship, it is one with an imbalance of power. It’s rather toxic, as a joke I took this a little more seriously. What if we were actually in a relationship with technology, just how toxic would it be…

You feel guilty and it's always your fault. - most people who face mental health issues stemmed from social media don’t consider social media to blame but rather turn their own low self esteem back on them blaming themselves

Your partner is obsessively jealous. - at time of writing this I have 23 notifications from instagram it's only noon. Apps will use notifications to reel in its users attempting to pull them away from other tasks.

Your never good enough - Comparing yourself to what you see through unrealistic expectations set on social media can lead to drops in self esteem and mental health 

Doesn’t respect flaws - social media a a community expects us to cover up our flaws with filters as only the prettiest, funniest, most popular seem to get all the support from the community.

Our lives are hard enough as it is. There is already so much toxicity in the world and in the relationships we already have we don’t need it online as well.