Social Media Can Be a ‘Profound Risk’ to Youth, Surgeon General Warns

Re:Social Media Can Be a ‘Profound Risk’ to Youth, Surgeon G... by galdosdi on Wednesday May 24, 2023 @01:44AM (#36054512)

That's a great argument for policymaking, but that's not what we're talking about -- we're talking about whether the children themselves should be worried sick, literally, about it. They clearly should not. Obesity and car wrecks will kill far more of them, and dealing with those issues is far more preventable. Smash the soda vending machines in their lunchrooms, and you'll save far more lives, plus avoid traumatizing the vast majority needlessly.

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Re:Social Media Can Be a ‘Profound Risk’ to Youth, Surgeon G... by escapedmoose on Wednesday May 24, 2023 @09:53AM (#36058093)

Ah, I see we’ve talked past each other. I was speaking to the policy-making angle. I don’t have any good ideas about how to get the policy issues fixed while avoiding scaring the kids. I doubt that’s even possible, tbh.

But yes, let’s smash the soda vending machines as well!

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Re:Social Media Can Be a ‘Profound Risk’ to Youth, Surgeon G... by anigbrowl on Wednesday May 24, 2023 @09:01PM (#36065946)

Once again, there is a significant qualitative difference between accidental or medically-related deaths, and someone actively attempting to end your life. Failing to acknowledge this is a significantly larger cognitive blind spot than the frequentist posters above are complaining about.

It's not like there is a complete lack of advocacy about auto safety or school diets. You might remember that during the Obama administration there was a campaign for more healthy school lunches, preferring vegetables and fruits over salty/sugary snacks, and extolling the value of exercise.

My original comment mentioned school shootings as an example of an issue that teens are understandably concerned about, because while the probability is low it's also a fundamentally horrific situation. I'm rather surprised by the rhetorical contortions so many people are putting themselves through to argue that having several massacres a year just in schools is nothing to worry about.

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Re:Social Media Can Be a ‘Profound Risk’ to Youth, Surgeon G... by galdosdi on Tuesday May 30, 2023 @12:09PM (#36126562)

It's something that something should be done about, but not something that should be worried about. There is a fine distinction. Take whatever action is in your control to make the situation better, then, having done that, do not keep ruminating on it pointlessly when it's just not very likely to happen to you.

Stop lumping people who don't want to fret about it in with people who actually think the gun status quo is OK. Of course it's not OK, and should change. That doesn't mean we need to obsess over it. It just happens to be an issue that is very effective at driving media engagement.

By all means, vote and write to your lawmakers -- this actually drives change. But don't waste much time doomscrolling and ruminating -- this does not help, and only helps enhance media company shareholder bottom lines.

The point is that kids these days are exposed to constant encouragement to ruminate, ruminate, ruminate. This doesn't translate into actual action, it just translates into anxiety and depression, and increased dividends for media companies.

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