Remember when social media first came out, and the main point was to turn online connections into real life connections? People would join groups online, find common interests, and eventually meet in bars or to go for hikes or to do other human activities. Then something changed, and it was long before COVID.
I don’t know when the change occurred or what brought it on, but something shifted in how social media was used. It became its own self contained world. I am in several local Facebook groups for business and other interests and there is no push to organize a meet up or meet in person. It isn’t so much strange, as it is normal now, but it feels like people forgot they were people.
AI is making it worse. There is plenty of pro and anti-AI sentiment in these online groups. Most people in any business community I am in, online or in person, are fully onboard with AI and using it in their business. In fact I seem to see far more anti-AI discussion online than I do in person.
Part of the problem is so many of the activities that used to require our physical presence have shifted online. We can do all our shopping online, order groceries, get meals from nearly any restaurant, take out loans, and several other things. There is so much we aren’t doing in person anymore.
Yesterday I took our old computer to the Apple store to be recycled and try and recover my Apple ID. I was told that I had to call Apple support. Apple really wants you to use an Apple device to do anything and I don’t currently have one. I just want to watch shows on Apple TV.
The person in the store didn’t seem interested in helping. Almost distrustful. So, I ended up just leaving but before I left the mall I went to the T-Mobile store to see what an iPhone would cost and I was directed online. iPhones happened to be sitting four feet from where we stood, but I was asked to sign into my T-Mobile app which I have never been able to fully use for some reason. We also have a business plan. There was zero effort to sell me the phone and in fact this person seemed distrustful of me as well. Now I feel like I might have mild schizophrenia thinking every sales person comes across as not trusting me or it is a complex I developed dealing with my father’s estate and mother’s finances.
That is a whole other post. How the courts, banks, and legal system give you a job, don’t help at all, and act like you’re up to no good for 18 months after your loved one passed and you have to delay your grieving process while being scrutinized along the way.
David Huzzard Writes 