But not reading books doesn't mean you don't have an intellectual life and spending your entire day futzing around on the internet does not mean your brain is clearly and unarguably going to rot.
That's all I'm trying to say.
When I was a child, I read a lot of comics. I also was one of the top students at school.
The mother of a same-age friend didn't want him reading comics because it was drivel. She wanted him to be one of the smart kids and wanted him reading important stuff.
My mother told her one day "What do you care if he reads comics? He's at least reading if he's reading comics."
I don't know if that helped my friend. I don't know if his mother changed her policy. But it sure as hell stuck with me all these years and it's been probably 47 years ago or something like that.
If I'm one of the smart kids, you can credit my mother's policy of letting me read drivel because it was at least reading.
Well, if Sturgeon's Law is true -- and I think it is -- that doesn't say much about reading or books ;)
They are a great source of ideas, and also lets one connect to the vast and long history of human progress.
While I don't say that reading books is superior to any other activity, I do think it is usually a rather beneficial thing to do, and ofcourse many people find it a pleasure in itself, irrespective of any benefits.
I agree with you there's all sorts of useful and interesting internet content that's not reading crap on facebook. There's even literary discourse on the internet!
But what about books? Reading actual books is different.