I do like hot black coffee anytime, but I like it especially well on cold winter nights when I’m traveling out on a dark road or here in my shop. It makes everything seem just a little better than it probably actually is. I value my old metal Stanley thermos and coffee mug quite a bit. They are functional, practical, and trusty. I depend on them to get me through the dark hours and they remind me that even if I’m a long way from home, I have a little bit of home with me. My truck, my tools, and my coffee are usually all I need to get things done. I usually bring my coffee from home, but I have on occasion stopped by a gas station or coffee shop to refill my thermos when levels are low and there is still a long way to go. I know I can rely on what I have in the shop or in the truck.
I use my phone to make calls or to receive calls. I listen to the radio to keep up to date with the weather and the news. This is usually just for background noise in the truck or in the shop. Sometimes I’ll see what’s on social media – mostly because I do find what some are doing to be interesting or just entertaining. I could probably live without it, but I would want that to be my own decision. Having a big tech company control what is available for news or opinion seems fair if that medium is owned by the company that wants to control the information. I would think manipulating some classifications of information basically an exercise in propaganda, and I seem to recall that it’s been done before – probably as far back as the earliest means of communication first existed.
I think the problem is that we tend to rely too much on what others think, what is easy, and not so much on what is really important to us and those we care about. If Twitter wants to ban some of it’s members then let them. Maybe you can find the information you are looking for somewhere else. Maybe you don’t need the information, maybe you think you do. The deal with Apple, Google, and now Amazon pushing Parler off their servers is not nice, but it could make Parler an even stronger competitor farther down the road.
I know people are very opinionated and some very upset about a lot of what we are seeing in the news recently, but for the most part I think it’s just a lot of noise that isn’t very productive unless you count fear and stress as productive enterprises. Actually they sort of are for media outlets – most notably the “news” organizations. Bad news gets a lot of airtime, good news – not so much. I admit that the latest round of rumors and reports are fascinating, and probably loosely based on a kernel of questionable facts, but I still don’t believe much of what I see or hear lately.
You can give up your Apple products, stop using Google, and resist the temptation to shop Amazon, but I don’t think many will. You can shut down your Facebook accounts, leave Twitter, and delete your LinkedIn account if you have one. It might feel good, and it would probably be somewhat refreshing, but I doubt it would be a popular choice for anyone so deep that it wouldn’t be practical.
I’ll just reduce my time spent on any of these services or mediums and find better ways to occupy my time. I’ll still listen to the radio and read or re-read some of my old books. There’s a few podcasts out there I’ll continue to listen to – for entertainment. For Real news, I’ll probably have to search a little more and avoid the usual nonsense spinners.
……..And I’ll continue to drink hot black coffee on cold winter nights with the weather radio playing low in the background. The caffeine shall keep me focused and if I can’t find something substantial to read online , – well I’m sure I can find a least one Good Book that is.