Network Working Group E. of Internet-Draft The Internet Intended status: Informational July 16, 2018 Expires: January 17, 2019 Social Media (An Apology) draft-elders-social-media-apology-00 Abstract Oops, we did it again. Status of This Memo This Internet-Draft is submitted in full conformance with the provisions of BCP 78 and BCP 79. Internet-Drafts are working documents of the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF). Note that other groups may also distribute working documents as Internet-Drafts. The list of current Internet- Drafts is at https://datatracker.ietf.org/drafts/current/. Internet-Drafts are draft documents valid for a maximum of six months and may be updated, replaced, or obsoleted by other documents at any time. It is inappropriate to use Internet-Drafts as reference material or to cite them other than as "work in progress." This Internet-Draft will expire on January 17, 2019. Copyright Notice Copyright (c) 2018 IETF Trust and the persons identified as the document authors. All rights reserved. This document is subject to BCP 78 and the IETF Trust's Legal Provisions Relating to IETF Documents (https://trustee.ietf.org/license-info) in effect on the date of publication of this document. Please review these documents carefully, as they describe your rights and restrictions with respect to this document. Code Components extracted from this document must include Simplified BSD License text as described in Section 4.e of the Trust Legal Provisions and are provided without warranty as described in the Simplified BSD License. of Expires January 17, 2019 [Page 1] Internet-Draft Social Media (An Apology) July 2018 1. Introduction Recently, you may have noticed a dramatic increase in the amount of opprobrium, outrage, hate speech and overall bile on your favorite social media channel. The Elders of the Internet apologize unreservedly for this disruption. Recently, our attention has been focused on keeping the United States government, Comcast, your local ISP and some guy at the coffee shop out of your bits [RFC7258]. As a result, we were caught unawares when the Internet became the sink for every poorly-considered argument, paranoid thought when you wake up in the dead of night, and shrieking nutjob you'd usually cross the street to avoid. Combined with the magnification offered by "likes" and "retweets", along with the inevitable back-and-forth squabbling that ensures, the Internet is currently having a crippling effect on your ability to work, communicate productively, and - occasionally - breathe. In retrospect, we should have known; USENET was a pretty clear warning. We will do better. 2. Mitigations To partially mitigate the effects of this phenomenon, a number of techniques can be used. Note that none of these is a "fix", and some undesirable effects (e.g., loss of sleep, appetite or democracy) may persist. 2.1. Meme-Only Diet Memes are a time-proven way to express disdain, mocking and other sentiments while maintaining an air of light humor. They can therefore be helpful in a transition away from full-throated, deeply- felt outrage. In other words, they're the methadone of the Internet. Memes are only to be generated or consumed under advice of a doctor, as prolonged use might result in undesirable side effects (e.g., [fourchan]). of Expires January 17, 2019 [Page 2] Internet-Draft Social Media (An Apology) July 2018 2.2. Blocklists Blocklists are a proven means of avoiding undesirable content, and responsible social networks (looking at you, Facebook) implement them. They may be able to help you enjoy the sparse benefits of a social network without some of the worst side effects. Recommending a specific blocklist is out of scope for this document, but we suggest starting with "Trump" and working outwards from there. 2.3. Abstention The most proven way to win is not to play. By abstaining from social media, you may find you have more time, a more authentic and meaningful engagement with life, and a corresponding lack of the desire to stock up on canned food and ammunition. Other benefits may include more productive and authentic participation in genuine societal issues (as opposed to "using a hashtag" while binge-watching [Netflix]). 2.4. Whisky For those unable to leave social media or otherwise curtail their use. 3. Security Considerations The security of the Internet is the least of your problems. Buckle up, kids. 4. Informative References [fourchan] Anonymous, "4Chan", n.d., . [Netflix] Netflix, "Netflix", n.d., . [RFC7258] Farrell, S. and H. Tschofenig, "Pervasive Monitoring Is an Attack", BCP 188, RFC 7258, DOI 10.17487/RFC7258, May 2014, . Appendix A. Membership Notes The Edlers of the Internet note with sorrow the passing of our former member, Stephen Hawking, aka "The Hawk." You will be missed. of Expires January 17, 2019 [Page 3] Internet-Draft Social Media (An Apology) July 2018 Applications for membership are now being accepted at the usual IPv6 address. Author's Address Elders of the Internet The Internet Email: internet-elders@hotmail.com of Expires January 17, 2019 [Page 4]