What I've Lost and (Mostly) Gained By Quitting Twitter

For the last couple of years I have given up alcohol for Lent. This year I wanted to do something new, since giving up booze had proven to be pretty easy and I had other bad habits to tackle. This Lent I decided to give up Twitter, except to post my blog writing.

Since about 2015 I had been chained pretty hard to the bird site. I spent more time there than I did watching TV or movies. During idle moments of any kind I would open up the app on my phone and start scrolling. Once Musk bought the site I opened up the obligatory Mastodon account and locked my tweets, but didn't have the guts to leave the site. Lent gave me the perfect opportunity, and I took it.

And here's the deal: I don't miss Twitter one bit.

Quitting has felt liberating. My mental state is far calmer because I am not constantly being agitated by a barrage of stupid and hostile opinions. I am not getting asinine replies to my tweets or letting myself get pulled into the prettiest fights. I am also sparing myself from the loads of bad news I used to read on Twitter throughout the day. Now I just get a short sharp blast when I look at the news in the morning. 

I am also realizing how much Twitter boosts certain brands of stupidity that actually aren't all that pronounced in American society. For example, the kind of "Leftist" who makes apologies for Putin just does not cross my path since quitting Twitter. Good riddance. For those who are still hanging onto the birdsite I can tell you that quitting will really improve your quality of life. 

In terms of what I've lost, I miss interacting with lots of folks, but many of them had already cut down their presence post Musk. It's harder for me to get incisive commentary on the news and to follow local politics stories back in my home state of Nebraska. My reaction has been to dip back into the blogosphere, which is showing signs of recovery after having been obliterated by Twitter. With various blogs and Substacks I can read smart words on current events without wading through a thousand "hot takes" designed to get clout via outrageousness. 

After Lent I am sure I will go back to Twitter, but with limitations. For example, I am keeping the app off of my phone. We have been conditioned via FOMO to think that we MUST immerse ourselves in the Twitter discourse if we are to be "with it." My experience has confirmed my suspicions that Twitter failed as a way to exchange ideas. The blogosphere was dead, long live the blogosphere.