I think I hate the internet

Original Article ↗ Hacker News Discussion ↗

Nostalgia for the early, pre‑social media web runs through this exchange, as people contrast a once open, hobbyist‑driven internet with today’s algorithmic, app‑locked, commercial ecosystem. Commenters debate where the real problem lies — capitalism and ad incentives, centralized platforms, personalization algorithms, loss of anonymity, or state and corporate control — and whether regulation, federated alternatives, or simply opting out can realistically improve things. Many still see enormous value in the underlying internet for learning, tools, and niche communities, but feel that mainstream platforms increasingly undermine mental health, civic life, and user autonomy.

Internet vs. Social Media / Web

  • Many argue the “internet” itself (protocols, connectivity) is fine; the real problem is the commercial web and especially social media.
  • Road analogies recur: some say blaming the internet for bad actors is like blaming roads for bad drivers; others note roads are designed, regulated, and non‑neutral, unlike ad-optimized platforms.
  • Some see the medium itself (per McLuhan) as shaping behavior, not just reflecting it.

Commercialization, Capitalism & Incentives

  • Strong sentiment that people “hate what capitalism has done to the internet,” not the technology.
  • Centralization, SaaS, subscriptions, forced app use, and optimised supply chains are seen as eroding autonomy and resilience.
  • Others counter that things like banking, shopping, and information access are dramatically easier and cheaper than pre‑internet days.

Anonymity, Identity & Governance

  • Debate over deanonymizing public platforms to curb harassment, hate, and manipulation.
  • Concerns: chilling effects, abuse of ID systems, government overreach, and harm to vulnerable people who need anonymity.
  • Some propose a private/public distinction (invitation-only vs discoverable platforms), but where to draw the line remains unclear.

Algorithms, Addiction & Mental Health

  • Many blame engagement algorithms for outrage, polarization, doomscrolling, and “brain rot” content.
  • Comparisons are made to obesity: “simple” to quit, but psychologically hard against engineered incentives.
  • Some support regulation such as mandatory “algorithm opt‑out”; others fear new laws will entrench incumbents.

Nostalgia & Community Loss

  • Frequent nostalgia for 1990s/early‑2000s internet, BBSes, phpBB/vBulletin forums, and indie blogs where niche communities thrived.
  • View that the signal (small communities, long‑form discussion) is now buried under “mass bullshit.”
  • A minority argues that ugly behavior always existed; scale and visibility, not nature, have changed.

Practical Dependence on Phones & Apps

  • Frustration with needing apps/accounts for basic tasks (parking, leisure centers, recycling, banking).
  • Some say non‑digital options still exist (branches, paper, phone calls) but are increasingly inconvenient or degraded.

Ads, Monetization & User Agency

  • Split views on adblocking: some call blocking “entitled” or akin to theft; others see web ads as intrusive, cognitively harmful, and fundamentally trespassing on user devices.
  • General distrust of ubiquitous monetization and surveillance, and of LLMs trained on scraped content without consent.

Alternatives & Coping Strategies

  • Suggestions: Fediverse (Mastodon, Lemmy/Piefed, Pixelfed), Signal/Matrix, Gemini, I2P, RSS, personal blogs, small Discords, Neocities.
  • Many emphasize curating feeds, avoiding algorithmic timelines, self‑hosting where possible, and simply using the internet less.