I don’t I’ve ever been on TikTok, and it seems I’m in limited company. This article describing the addictive nature of the platform was eye-opening, and disturbing, for so many reasons – I can scarcely enunciate them. Aristotle began his Metaphysics with the simple, yet, profound statement that ‘all men desire to know‘. But know what? That legitimate desire, placed in us by God, can be warped. I’m reminded of Saint Thomas’ warning that curiosity is a sin – the desire to know what we should not know. The corresponding virtue is studiosity- desiring to know what we should know.
And there is so much that we should know, and don’t know. So use the internet to know what we should know. Better yet, pour yourself a hot cup of tea – or whatever tickles your fancy, even something a bit stronger – and settle down to some analog good, or great, book. There’s more immersion, less distraction, and almost no tedium. You’ll be surprised what you might learn along the way.