UK Government to Ban Addicted Teenagers from Socials
But Adults Left to Fend for Themselves
Today on Instagram I saw an acquaintance had posted the news that the UK Government will be banning those under sixteen from using social media. I was absolutely appalled by this overuse of power by the government so I immediately drafted a DM to send to my acquaintance saying to take the story down.
Just before I hit send, I decided to have a quick look on X (formerly known as a website that people actually used), to see if the general sentiment was in agreement with my position. Unfortunately, I saw numerous posts suggesting the ban is a great idea, and will save many thousands of children from harm.
The argument of these people is that the internet is full of misinformation and ill-formed opinions. Realising this, I wrote a strongly worded Facebook status, praising the government and saying that Keir Starmer is a national treasure.
To my dismay, an argument broke out in the comments where people from both sides of the political divide got involved. Those hating Starmer said he’s the worst Prime Minister of all time, and those who are more politically aligned with Sir Keir said “no comment” and refused further questioning.
Researching this topic gave me a small headache so I decided to put down my phone and instead learn about it the old way, by reading about the topic, in print, in today’s newspaper. On my way to buy a newspaper I forgot my reason for leaving the house and began to scroll through my TikTok feed. I saw a very convincing argument suggesting that the government ban is just a ploy to keep the population poor, dumb and broke. Convinced by this influencer’s knowledge, I enrolled in his online masterclass and bought a collection of his ebooks via TikTok shop.
Regardless of your opinions on banning young people from social media, one thing we can agree on is that it’s absolutely absurd that they’re including YouTube in the legislation. YouTube is a place for sharing videos, and is not social media --- that’s exactly what I wrote in the comment section of a video. A bunch of people wrote back, disagreeing, at which point I angrily messaged them back, explaining why they’re wrong. One of the commenters was in such disagreement with my point of view that he suggested we meet up to discuss it in person, which is why I’m driving to his house as we speak.