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Louis Ryan's avatar

Closure, as Ted points out, is vital here. It is a structural part of all genuine ritual. A scroller never has closure on anything, which means he is de-structured, which soon enough produces de-struction - of attention, focus, meaning, significance. I'm reminded here of Hegel's concept of "bad infinity", which isn't infinity so much as endlessness - something quite different. What is more endless than a social media scroll? That is why articles like this are so helpful, because they encapsulate, limit and define, and thus enable us to get to grips with this toxic phenomenon in something like a constructive way.

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Michele Miles Gardiner's avatar

I dropped out of the online world from the summer of 2020 until December of 2022. Starting a vegetable garden was a beautiful and sane way to spend my days--no TV, no scrolling. Quiet gardening in the sun became my ritual.

My brain needed the break for so many reasons you listed here.

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