Life before or after the internet ????
General Topic
Same here, beside bowsite and YouTube, I could do without the rest of it. I remember navigating with maps and actually being left alone in the woods. I guess I could still do that if I turned my phone off. But yes, technology has started something that will only get worse with time, sociologically speaking.
the pissing matches are unhealthy only for those that place an unhealthy level of energy into them. If you just read them for the entertainment value and shake your head about how strangers who matter not in someone's life, who are nothing more than a handle, can invoke true venom and vigor in the hearts and minds of others who are equally irrelevant to each other.................. it is really more a source of relaxation and comedy than anything.
truly blessed are those who's lives are going so well that they can invest time and energy and emotion with intensity on internet chat room debates and actually believe it matters in any way or that they are winning converts to their side of things.
Delusional self view.
You said it right!! And could have said more.
I won't flame away. Maybe the sooner we get back to mid 1970's tech on some things the better...
i guess a lot depends on what and how you feel about debate...
"Are debates good for the brain?
Competitive debate sharpens your ability to research and analyze problems, think and listen critically, express your thoughts clearly and fluently, and better understand public affairs. It increases your confidence and poise and provides constant intellectual stimulation."
there used to be a large circular table at the local coffee shop in my home town that seated about 10 or 12 men every morning. pretty much everything you see discussed here was discussed there. that coffee shop has since closed...but the conversations are carried on in forums just like this all over the world.
besides bowsite, i participate in one other site that is unrelated to hunting. the moderators there have zero tolerance for anything political. in terms of meaningful and helpful discussion about the intended interest and topic, it is much better than bowsite for that reason.
i know many here say that if you don't like the political threads, just don't read them. while i agree with that, the presence of them still have an overall impact on the site and why we joined and participate. bowsite would be much better if it had the old community forum for non-bowhunting related topics.
to answer what i think is the OP's question, if i had to choose i would rather life before the internet.
I remember filling in the cabela's order form and sending it along with a check in the mail. 3-4 weeks later your package arrived.
I've never felt as free and liberated as when I dropped my cell phone down the hole while ice fishing last season. (not the first season I've lost my phone) It was great to go old school and bring a camera and where a watch for a few weeks. I did not run to the ATT store and get a new phone. I got a reconditioned phone, a few models old, off of ebay. Youtube is great. Facebook is great. For instance, I'm researching for a fishing kayak. There are many groups on fb specific to kayaking and kayak fishing. It's been a great help, better than just going to kayak X brand page and looking at their marketing hype. On topic, I believe us guys who grew up with rotary phones and party lines, filling out the order form in the back of a catalog and sending a check and waiting weeks for whatever we ordered, shooting film cameras, etc., I believe we will be fine when the phones, internet, and power grid goes down for good. Or even if it doesn't. I feel for the young people who grew up in the age of wi-fi and amazon prime. Can you imagine a 20 year old having to use an original windows computer and go online with a modem, and zero social media?
It is a two edged sword. There is a lot of good to it and a lot of bad. The trick is to stay in charge. I have a new fangled smart phone. I look at it about twice a day. It amuses me and my physical therapist. I get reminders about appointments. I look at the voice mail when I get around to it. I rely on a computer to do my work. I communicate to customers daily by e-mail ,Zoom and Microsoft teams. All good stuff if you don't abuse it.
The internet is just a megaphone of the same things in life that have always surrounded us.As long as one’s mine and heart are healthy you will be find.Debates are good to bring out your surroundings,while criticizing- well that judgement does not belong to me.I enjoy the internet for the archery/hunting that I share with others.If I disagree with someone’s post I absorb the opinion and move on if it does not fit my beliefs.As I get older I try not to get caught up in technology and spend more time working on myself to better understand the things that are important in this life.Every day older I realize I made ALOT of bad decisions towards others - the internet just makes it easier not having to be face to face and realize the damage we do to each other.None of us are perfect and no one’s opinions should be taken as gospel- that belongs to someone higher.The internet is good and bad depending on your heart and mind.God Bless
One negative takeaway from the ascension of the digital age: Internet and social media has given away too many places that were rarely visited by others. Then, came along travel bloggers, etc., posting reviews and photos of places only the stoutest of hearts would venture. Now, we have too many people crowding into those secret spots and "glampers" disrupting the serenity of the outdoors.
There are a dozen or so forum member here who are addicted to the argumentized debates. No different from any other addiction. It is 100% unhealthy for them. Most of us can view it as entertainment but, for those few it is an illness. The only one who benefits from it is the owner of the forum. Hence, it will never be banned.
I know several people who suffer from a condition that can best be described as social media inclusion. Their only friends are FB, Instagram, X, and other misc sites(Bowsite). They "NEED" constant attention.
At age 20 I hired on with the local phone company in March of 1980 and grew with the technology from rotary dial phones and open wire (telegraph lines with insulators) telephone operators and mechanical central offices to today's fiber optics with high tech central offices and data centers with internet and the Cloud... Back in the day we used to call it POTS and PANs, Plan Old Telephone Sh!t and Pretty Amazing New Sh!t...8^) How many remember telephone operators? My Mom was one...
Yeah, would be nice to go back to the days of landlines and newspapers but those days are gone and I've accepted the change and worked with it... Many people won't accept change, but in my career you had to work with change or find another occupation... As the technology I grew with it too... Heck my parents are now in their mid-80's and as hard as I try, I can't get neither of them to text... My Dad goes to the library all the time to have the librarian look internet things up for him (usually football stuff) and I don't have the heart to tell him I can find that in under 2 minutes on my cell phone...
I could probably live without my PC although I wouldn't want to, but I've misplaced my cell phone a few times and didn't realized how much I depended on it until I didn't have it... Think about it, it's your voice phone, your text machine, your watch/clock/alarm, TV apps, a calendar, a camera for stills and video, a mini flashlight, file storage, tape recorder, GPS, maps and navigator, can be a internet WiFi hotspot, and access to the internet and used for medical applications and I'm probably missing other features I can't think of off hand... All that in a small package you can fit in your pants pocket along with a Swiss Army knife and a BIC lighter...8^) It's actually an amazing technology and I could not live without my cell phone...
Zbone you forgot it is also a spy tool for other to monitor you
True...8^)))
Yeah, they know where I'm at 24x7...8^) I have nothing to hide or do anything illegal so I don't care... It was interesting though receiving emails from google showing where I had traveled while working and elsewhere... I hadn't realized they were tracking, but didn't care... I'm like dang, hadn't realized how places I've been to in NE Ohio, seem to have cover it all...8^) It is kinda neat to see it all mapped out... I'm like ah yeah, I remember that job and that one and so on...
I’m 37 and would agree 100%. Biggest problem is cell phones and social media and I’m not innocent myself. Ability to communicate well is going down the tubes. What is at the heart of all healthy relationships? Communication.
It’s very helpful for (most) adults. For younger kids however, it can be very detrimental. Whole new world.
As someone who makes his living off the internet, you may be surprised how much I despise it. Especially social media. I’m convinced that most of the societal decay we are experiencing is due to the explosion of unbridled big tech. I’m looking forward to the day when an EMP goes off and everyone is sent back to 1985 again. Imagine kids running around outside again?
Sadly, wife and I had exact conversation this morning.
Social media is not media. And in far too many instances, not social. People like to point to political events as milestones in the degradation of this country. I will point to the introduction of FB and Twitter. Mentally, we have devolved immensely in the past 20 years.
Ricky. Yes in history guys talked around a coffee table. But it is not equivalent to the tripe on social or some BS threads. If the old guys were as confrontational as the keyboard warriors, fists would have been flying everyday. In person, most people can/do conduct themselves in a civilized manner. On a keyboard, not as much.
There is a reason I enjoy 2 weeks in the elk mountains every year. 2 weeks in Airplane mode and delightfully naive to political and social woes of our country.
"Ricky. Yes in history guys talked around a coffee table. But it is not equivalent to the tripe on social or some BS threads. If the old guys were as confrontational as the keyboard warriors, fists would have been flying everyday. In person, most people can/do conduct themselves in a civilized manner. On a keyboard, not as much."
its interesting that you say that. some of the rudest posts i see are the ones where someone tries to derail a thread they claim they arent interested in...or tell others what they should or shouldnt talk about. can you imagine someone doing that in a coffee shop?
fwiw...i try not to post anything on here that i wouldnt say to someones face...and likely have.
we went out for pizza last night with two other couples. as is often the case...we talked politics and no we didnt all agree...not even close...but we still left smiling and and planning to meet again next thursday night...same time...same place.
Privacy and how kids are glued to their phones are my biggest concerns. Obviously it makes many things in life way easier and efficient.
"As someone who makes his living off the internet, you may be surprised how much I despise it. Especially social media. I’m convinced that most of the societal decay we are experiencing is due to the explosion of unbridled big tech. I’m looking forward to the day when an EMP goes off and everyone is sent back to 1985 again. Imagine kids running around outside again?"
We'd be lucky if 0.5% of the population survives, Pat. I'd estimate maybe just a bit more for the Bowsite throngs, but would wager that most feel they would fair better than they would in reality. I'd love to go for some pre-internet life any time though... no accounts = heaven.
My kids are on the phones more than I like, but it's the norm now. They hunt, fish, do sports and my boy has dirt bikes so I guess I shouldn't complain. Cyber bullying is scarry stuff for young kids and I'm sure it leads to depression.
The internet is a valuable learning tool. It has also degraded society. There has always been good and bad in society, your choice.
"The internet is a valuable learning tool. It has also degraded society. There has always been good and bad in society, your choice."
and pretty much every generation thinks the next generation is going to hell in a handbasket. fortunately...there are a lot of awesome kids around...theyre just not the ones posting ignorant crap on social media.
Pat, a EMP goes off the only people that will be around are the Amish, eating Deer and raising corn off your land without you getting there except a horse or mule.
I do like the internet for researching new products. If the Internet went away it wouldn’t bother me at all. I grew without it. I really didn’t look at it until 1999. IMO life is better without it.
jjs - yep. An EMP will take us back to somewhere in the early 19th century.
What Pat said. Without the internet, I don’t know what I would have done for employment for the past 20 years, but apart from that, my lifestyle was much better before I ever got online, and Elk Hunting was a whole different planet. Some years, in an OTC unit, we would actually see one or two other bowhunters (and I was hunting 20+ days/season then).
No doubt I am a much better archer for having had lengthy exchanges on form, tuning, etc from a few friends I have made online— guys I would never have met otherwise — but apart from that, I was WAY better off without the internet…
It's interesting that most seem to understand the problem. But you just have to scroll through many threads on here to understand that either the solution escapes almost everyone, or they like it the way it is. NO real communication occurs when every time someone posts a differing opinion, many just make up lies about them and/or calls them names, and NO ones calls out the offenders. Instead they just pile on or keep silent. The internet, even social media, can be a great tool for good, or not. It really just depends on the participants and is a reflection of their character.
I do not think one can use such a broad brush. The internet, and even social media is extremely diverse. Tons of good applications, including finance, commerce, groups etc, etc. There is also lots of fake news and other stench. From the beginning of time people had to be street smart, the internet and social media are merely a different street. One has to learn to navigate it and reap the benefits, while avoiding the pitfalls. No different really than at any other point in history. I am responsible for my own actions, and you know what, so is everyone else. The blame game doesn't work for me.
Internet and cell phones have good and bad qualities like many other things. It is sad that the bad normally overrides the good.
I’m on multiple forums like this, mostly hunting related. I spend entirely too much time on the internet. I’m retired, wife died a year ago, so I don’t have a lot to do.
Life before or after fire, the wheel, domesticated animals, farming, bows & arrows, crossbows, gun powder, the automobile, radio, nuclear weapons, television, the internet, whatever's next......................
There will always be old men like us sitting on the porch saying "Back in my day"!
I’ve checked myself against that Nomad from time to time, and while I do think it’s a good thing to ask yourself, the internet is exponentially different than other advances in recorded history. Although I don’t believe we are the only civilization that has succumb to moral decay, we are not only morally decaying but our entire race as human beings is on the path to destruction. We are in a constant state of anxiety, we are depressed, marriages failing at insanely high rates, work ethic in the toilet etc We have access to all the information in the world, yet such basic things seem to be incomprehensible to us. We’ve started to question gender, the family unit and sex is not only worshipped but completely perverted. I’d venture a guess as to say most men are addicted to pornography, which has a massive impact on healthy sex lives and how men view women. Heck I’ve even heard of many women being addicted to it now. I think all of the things I mentioned have some relation to Internet/social media. And I’m speaking in generalities of course.
The Internet…ya I’m good if we nuke the whole thing tomorrow
No matter what good you have experienced from the explosion of social media you can not ignore the negative impact it has had on our lives, especially that of our children. It's easy to say there are still good folks out there, but society as a whole has not improved. I love scrolling through a few favorite websites like this but could easily revert back to no internet.
For those who would like to "nuke" the internet, what's stopping you from simply cutting the cord and not using it?
"For those who would like to "nuke" the internet, what's stopping you from simply cutting the cord and not using it?"
excellent point.
its the exact same thing that stops a person from ignoring a bowsite thread that they insist doesnt interest them.
complaining about the internet...while on the internet...is no different than complaining about a particular thread...while posting in it.
"...is no different than complaining about a particular thread...while posting in it."
But where does that line get drawn? If a group of anti-hunters registered on Bowsite, and started a thread to advocate banning all hunting, would it be fair to post complaints, or should we just ignore it and not post anything on it?
Yeah, I agree nobody is forcing anybody to logon to the internet...
I have said it from the beginning. The internet will ruin the world.
I really miss the days my buddies and I would modulate for hours on the CB, chatting about hunting, big blocks, best fishing holes... at least I have the memories. scentman
I'm 0ld enough for an analog youth and digital adulthood.
I actually wouldn't mind just cutting the cord from the internet, but it would be extremely difficult to function in society without it. We are now so dependent to access just to do simple banking activities. Long story short... I was trying just last weekend to establish an important account for my nursing home bound elderly mother and I can't do it because she doesn't have a cell phone in her name. I can't prove that she is who she is.
IMHO the internet is only truly good for one thing…I’ll leave it at that.
For those who would like to "nuke" the internet, what's stopping you from simply cutting the cord and not using it?
You’re right. And that’s why you likely don’t see me post on Bowsite much anymore. Just realized that I need to cut back media so I have tried to make changes. Unfortunately with owning a construction business as well as a farm and trying to direct market, “cutting the cord” just isn’t realistic, especially with email etc, but I have tried to makes changes
The internet for me is entertainment and education, but in the great scheme of things it matters little. I like to peruse various forums, this one, Texas Bowhunter, the Ruger Forum, Single Action Pro Boards, and a couple of habitat forums. I learn stuff, contribute a little, but mostly read. I do like to give the Bowsite liberals hell, because they’re liberals, what other reason do you need ? ;-))
Pat, I'm an old curmudgeon who hates tech! 1985 would be okay, 1965 much better. But the truth is we'd be much closer to the Stone Age. If you haven't read "One Second After" by Forstchen or "The Switch" by Sullins do yourself a favor. The latter is a LW'er! I prefer a quick demise over starvation, disease or murder at the hands of your neighbors. It's where we're headed anyway, but at least we're just "Slouching Towards Gomorrah" for the time being. We don't need rockets tied to our azz!
Anyone who thinks you could just cut the cord on internet, while living a remotely "normal" life in 2024 and beyond, is quite ignorant. Sure, one could abandon their family and just go be a hermit in the mountains to get away...
2008 pre all the apps and software I had a spot I found by accident. You had to scour the paper maps those days. I had a printed topo that I made myself on arcgis add a compass. Opening weekend on public land turkey season and only 1 or 2 cars at the trailhead. Deer season basically nobody. Fast forward to 2020 there is no room to park and now there are nice foot bridges across the creeks and easy access for all.
The internet has been worse than ATVs and wolves for hunting.
