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Washington Post
01-08-2025
- General
- Washington Post
Avoiding screens makes me truly creative
Ryan Zickgraf wrote about life 40 years after Neil Postman's 'Amusing Ourselves to Death' in his July 18 op-ed, 'The scroll never stops. Will we?' Post Opinions asked readers: How do you feel about your relationship to screens? These are some of their responses. I have abstained from most forms of screens. I have no social media accounts. For information about the state of the world, I rely on trusted old-fashioned newspapers and state-funded television. I use email where necessary and Google to find answers for things I need to find. I still write longhand letters. I am a realist painter, which is a job I came to after being an illustrator in the analog age. I sensed with the onset of digital technology in just about all aspects of daily life that under the glitz of all those new possibilities something fundamental was taken away: deep, personal involvement in what one was doing. When everyone uses similar software, the results run the danger of becoming interchangeable. Personalities die for the sake of quick, easy results. I saw that coming in the 1990s, and, instinctively, I wanted none of it. I live a mainly analog life because I realized that to make something truly creative, you have to do the hard yards and try things out in the real world. You need to take risks of failure without recourse to a reset button. Only then can one truly assess the value of decisions and research the given options in the light of the real risks and promises available. It keeps my skills honed and my assessment capabilities as good as they can be. Sticking to my old-fashioned ways of looking at the world helps me avoid, as much as I can, information overload. I get the information I need by using the available technology wisely. If I search the internet for some information, it is always on the basis of factual, matter-at-hand, topical interest. I don't see myself as king of my own bubble, but in service to the project I am engaged in — a painting, a renovation project, etc. I believe in the value of handicraft skills. I believe that nothing surpasses the joy of having completed something by your own skills and wits — occasional help from technology is permissible, but not as a first choice. Oliver Rennert, Cologne, Germany Story continues below advertisement Advertisement As a late adopter of first a cellphone (it flipped) and then a smartphone (that is smarter than me), I've always questioned what this technology is doing to us. I admit I've scrolled a trending feed on my cell only a few times; after all, with so much doom in the world, why scroll it? I'm also skeptical of the supposed benefits of social media; from my friends' experiences, I came to call it antisocial media. I've read tweets and posts cited in media stories, and it seems like all this tech just offers us a means to view the narcissistic, arrogant, ignorance of the loudest voices. There's no nuance, just a righteous, ill-informed, politicized certainty that's poisoned our national discourse. If this is progress, I can hardly wait for artificial intelligence, whose starry-eyed tech bro developers are promising us limitless benefits. Besides, if I spent any significant time on screens, I wouldn't be reading The Post — in print, thank you very much. Take it from my cold, dead, ink-stained hands. Jessica Xavier, Silver Spring I hate having to use my cellphone for everything: Having to scan QR codes to access a menu or open my phone to get grocery store discounts unnecessarily complicates daily tasks. Luckily, my father gave our TV away when I was in third grade because he did not want us to be influenced by advertising. Instead, we read books and played outdoors. It makes me crazy when people I am with keep checking their cellphones. They seem disengaged, distracted and not interested in being with others. Now with artificial intelligence, even searching the internet has become mundane. Mary Kent, Papaaloa, Hawaii I have been avoiding screens increasingly for about 15 months. I use no social media on my phone. I have not watched television since March 2024. My news consumption has been limited since February due to a difficult move to a new environment followed by eye surgery. I have also been focusing on personal human contact through phone calls, texts, occasional emails and face-to-face visits. I miss some news but was reading too much of it anyway. I am delighted to be without television. I am reading more books, going to the gym, going on walks and greeting other pedestrians in my neighborhood. It's a great neighborhood, and there are a lot of us. Peggy Naumann, Lake Oswego, Oregon Story continues below advertisement Advertisement I'm 70 years old. I'm fine with my old laptop, but when it finally dies, I'll be looking forward to a lot of long walks. When my carrier told me my flip phone wasn't going to handle 5G, I bought an Android because I have an adult child. It never leaves the house. We have painted ourselves into a corner with technology. Leo Muzzy, Eugene, Oregon I have been working to change my technology habits as I am overwhelmed with organizational emails, most of them asking for money. I have recently moved from a very rural setting to a retirement community filled with exercise classes, music of all kinds, theater, discussion and craft groups. It's a real community with little time for media. It's interesting how people here are giving up TV, computers and cellphones. Elizabeth A. Trought, Laconia, New Hampshire I find that deleting the Instagram and Facebook apps from my phone really keeps me off social media for the most part. I can still log in via a web browser, but it's much clunkier, so I log out more often. Scrolling endlessly on these platforms wears on my self identity, motivation and confidence and is just such a time suck. I would rather practice my instrument, listen to music or watch a movie than be bombarded with attention-seeking clickbait, self-promotion, product advertising or content generated by artificial intelligence. Part of why it's so hard to quit entirely is that I learn things from those quick social media videos. They make me feel like I'm being a little productive, but it's never just a small dose of content. Social media really sucks away your day, week, month, year, life. It was definitely a wake-up call reading the article about Neil Postman's book 'Amusing Ourselves to Death.' I have peers who never downloaded social media apps to begin with, but they lost touch with pop culture and I don't want to completely check out. It's a great way to let people know about my upcoming music performances, but, rather than constantly bombarding people, I prefer to drop in and out like a social media ninja. Caitlin Schneiderman, Centreville Story continues below advertisement Advertisement As a 78-year-old man, I really appreciated Ryan Zickgraf's op-ed regarding his hope for younger peoples' rejection of the overly entertained lives most of us lead these days. I grew up in a Democratic family, and our next-door neighbors were staunch Republicans. Both families got along very well, perhaps because politics seemed then, at this distance, so much less a matter of personal identification and implied self worth than politics seems now. At any rate, I suppose we will see how resilient reason, critical thinking, and thoughtfulness are in the long run. But for now, three cheers for the 'Luddites,' long may they wave. Jerald Angell, Springfield Like anything, the 'screen' is what one makes of it. I've found social media is a good way to network with like-minded people — and to discuss current events and political dysfunction in the United States. As for TV, I don't get sucked under by what semioticist Umberto Eco dubbed 'hyperreality.' After reading for a few hours, writing, examining and growing, I might relax by watching either a suspenseful foreign miniseries or comfort TV such as 'Star Trek: Voyager.' I think TV becomes dangerous if viewers are prone to believe they're watching reality. Gordon Hilgers, Dallas Story continues below advertisement Advertisement I see my devices as tools to give me the information I'm looking for. I read The Post in a digital subscription on my iPad, and typically use my computer only if necessary. My cellphone is a necessity and burden, just something else to carry around. If there were still public telephones, I would probably rely on those. I grew up in an age that didn't have a lot of devices and I marvel at the mindlessness to which some watch, scroll and stream information and entertainment. I abhor social media platforms that seem to encourage vulgarity and banality. I believe in individual thinking and critical consideration, as well as personal choice; not following the crowd. Marilyn Leggett, Niceville, Florida Mitch Daniels recently wrote about visiting an unearthed time capsule. Post Opinions wants to know: What would you add to a time capsule to represent America today?
Washington Post
20-07-2025
- Business
- Washington Post
How higher education failed America's poor
Julien Berman is a Post Opinions intern. The best investment you can make isn't in stocks or real estate — it's enrolling in college. At least, if your family is rich. But for America's poor, it's not so simple. On average, workers who complete at least one year of college significantly outearn those with only a high school diploma. This 'college-going premium' reflects the relative demand in the labor market for college-educated workers. Most students who enroll in college graduate, and over a lifetime that degree tends to translate into better job opportunities.
Washington Post
18-06-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
A look inside the president's nuclear war briefcase
In today's edition: Fair warning before we begin: Today's newsletter is a crash course in cortisol-inducing columns. Starting us off strong is the third installment of Post Opinions' 'The Next Nuclear Age' series, in which researcher Mackenzie Knight-Boyle lays out how the leader of the free world could initiate nuclear war with a few magic words.
Washington Post
04-06-2025
- Science
- Washington Post
Nuclear war is getting more likely by the week
In today's edition: Post Opinions is embarking on a new series in which experts from the Federation of American Scientists examine the threat of nuclear conflict. I would love to tell you that these experts argue that 'today's global nuclear landscape is far [less] complicated and, in many ways, [less] precarious than during the Cold War' — but, unfortunately, those brackets are about as good a shield against reality as the top of a mid-century classroom desk was against an incoming ballistic missile.
Washington Post
16-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Washington Post
When timelines cross
Follow Michelle Kondrich is a designer at Post Opinions. Previously, she was an art director at Georgetown University School of Continuing Studies and has also been working as a freelance illustrator since 2009.
