We are drowning in information but starved for knowledge. ~ John Naisbitt
One of my dearest friends and I were catching up the other day, and we were lamenting about all of the things that bombard us constantly. Sadly, most of it we determined were not things we really needed to know about.
So much of what comes at us is negative, unpleasant, frightful, troublesome, and alarming. These are feelings my friend, and I certainly don’t want to carry around with us. In this day and age of 24-hour news channels, AI-generated news feeds on social media, non-stop emails, and mounds of junk mail, many people think we need to know what they are sharing and desperately want us to believe them. But do we really need to know these things? And are we sure we can trust what they are telling us?
We do need compassion for all the tragic human event stories that we can’t seem to escape, but do we need the gory details? We do need to know if and how we can help – but we must be diligent as many bad folks will take advantage of our compassion and our generosity, which unfortunately brings on more distrust in what is being presented to us.
I suppose I have become more suspect of much of what is coming at me as I have gotten older and hopefully wiser. I have come to realize that not everything can be black or white – there is a lot more grey and many sides and viewpoints. There are too many viewpoints to cover adequately in the short news blurbs and soundbites that those in charge think are best for us.
And then there is the ever-present bias that has to be difficult for any writer, reporter, or social media poster to suppress whenever they have the opportunity to say something to us. While listening or reading any news, put on your objective hat and see if you can pick out the bias – it’s almost always there no matter who or what the source is.
Our current U.S. political season is in full gear, and I struggle with what ‘news’ comes from it. We all have opinions and beliefs, and we naturally band together when others align with us. But do we constantly have to make the ‘other side’ wrong and evil? What good does it do to spread malicious attacks and falsehoods? I will never understand how this becomes ‘the thing to do’ and question why these folks (the politicians, reporters, opinionated commentators, and average social media posters) go to these lengths. Do they say these things to ‘win,’ even though they have to know in their heart that something isn’t right? I keep shaking my head because they all do it, so it must be working on someone – but it certainly does not on me.
Don’t get me wrong, I do believe our democracy is the best in the world, and I do my part by consistently voting and having good conversations discussing all sides with friends and family, where we can respectively agree and disagree. I have been a town council member and did my part to help govern a small town. I stay largely abreast of all political goings-on, but I try to minimize the adverse effects on myself by limiting my exposure and the eventual anger that starts to creep in, lol!
So, back to ‘what do we really need to know’? What I need to know is simple, positive stuff nowadays. I do not want to wake up every morning, turn on ‘the news’ via TV, various news streaming or feeds, and hear ugly and negative things. It’s not a particularly good way for me to start the day. I don’t want to begin my day with negativity and the resulting anger that can come with it.
I’d like to know the weather so I can be prepared if it’s not going to be a beautiful sunny day – which makes it an excellent book-reading day! I like to listen to piano music as I browse through some of my favorite Substack writers – those who are more positive and soul-enriching (Substack, by the way, lets me choose who I want to follow, unlike the AI-generated feeds that show me the content that they want me to see which is everywhere else). I like to know my Zen horoscope for the day. I like to read the inspirational newsletters I get daily in my inbox to know more ways to enrich my personal growth.
I want to know more about what my family and friends are up to (but not particularly their political viewpoints in my Facebook feed). I like to know about new restaurants opening up in my area and any new fun things or events. I would like to know of new songs my favorite, Keith Urban, is releasing. I really want to know about any of the good Samaritan stories we know are out there. I want to know about exciting weather or natural phenomena that I can witness, like eclipses, meteor showers, and whale migrations. I want to know how the teams I grew up with are doing. You know, the good, positive, and fun stuff, like a when cool rainbow over the ocean is appearing!
What do you really need to know?
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