Touch Grass
There is a world outside of Twitter, and it is far past time we remembered that.
A feeling of optimism over the internet marked the early 2000s. It seemed like everyday news of innovations, startups, and technologies were coming out, each with the potential to revolutionize convenience and make connecting with people across the nation and globe as easy as a few clicks of the mouse. The potential for anyone to become an expert on a topic, learn a new language, or market for their home business became a reality with the internet.
This revolution was especially exciting regarding politics. No longer would papers, journals, think tanks, and cable media control what stories were reported or who could broadcast their podcasts or show to millions of people. A highly motivated, independent individual with a microphone and computer could find potential listeners or readers for their blog or startup media company. Conversations could be informed and nuanced to the degree that they never could before. The partisan lines that defined the informational side of politics would be broken down; every man would be king of his own opinion. At least, that is what we told ourselves. In reality, a modern-day Puritan dystopia began.
The internet allowed us to see the "enemy.” Nuance became a sign of weakness. Good standing in your respective political community was not improved by independent thought, introspection, and the ability to offer new insights that sharpened the case your side was trying to make but by outward demonstrations of allegiance to your side, irrespective of the objective reality around you. At the forefront of this has been Twitter.
It is not enough to see Twitter as a way of connecting with like-minded individuals or having conversations with perspectives you would not otherwise interact with. No, it is the frontline of a battlefield with clearly defined trenches. Your opinion on the banning of Donald Trump, Twitter’s current management, the policies it sets around Covid information, or what right Twitter as a private business has to decide what policies they wish to enact define what side of the war you’re on.
This extends far beyond just those who are active on Twitter. Our entire political system has become enamored with a romantic view of it as a vital infrastructure for the nation. Political hearings around which speech Twitter has decided to suppress or allow have become a norm. Lawmakers attempt to impose their vision of what Twitter should be because failing to do so risks the ultimate victory of the other side.
There is only one problem: most Americans could care less about the comings and goings of a social media app only used by roughly 23% of the nation and an even smaller number who are actively engaged in politics on the site.
The future of the United States does not rest on the policies of a Silicon Valley startup. The suppression of the Hunter Biden story did not change the election's outcome. The amount of Americans who would have been vaccinated against Covid would not alter in any significant way because Robert Kennedy was banned. Twitter’s change in management will not have dire consequences for the country's future; what will are the performative circus that Twitter has encouraged, the strain on the nation’s cultural fabric caused by the ceaseless war that has taken place on Twitter, and the elevation of politicians more interest in generating clicks and likes instead of legislating.
Twitter can be an excellent tool for all of the reasons stated above. It lets us meet new people, share ideas, promote personal projects, and stay informed on what is happening in the world of politics, but we cannot forget what it is; a site where we see the thoughts of mostly strangers in 240 characters or less, a place where hyper-partisanship and virtue signaling between two loud minorities is rewarded with confirmation bias. It is not a battlefield for the soul of America, a public square, or a substitute for an authentic community. What trends on Twitter is not representative of what the American people care about or believe.
Our nation would benefit greatly if our political class and we put the importance of Twitter into perspective, went outside, and touched grass.