Lifestyle  

The Realities of

Dating in the Digital Age

Emma Peterson, staff writer

 

Is a true connection out of the picture now that we live in an era where we have access to the entire world? I asked Kodi Myers, a 21-year-old college student, this same question. Here’s what she had to say: “Phones ruined it. Literally. It has made it so accessible to form meaningless connections rather than true ones. The minute something goes wrong it’s so easy to drop it for the ‘next best thing.’”

      A Pew Research Center study found that about half of Americans say that their partner is distracted by their phone, 40% say they are bothered by this level of distraction and 34% admitted to looking through their partners phone without their knowledge.

      There are many factors as to why we are so distracted by our devices but according to research done by Christina Koessmeier, a doctorate student at the University of Duisburg-Essen, “For social distraction, affiliation motive and fear of missing out (FoMO) are significant predictors, while for task-related distraction, self-regulatory capabilities (self-control, problematic social media use) and FoMO are significant predictors.” Layman's terms: social distraction stems from FoMO and task distractions stems from lack of self control.

      It is no secret that constant distraction from the now can lead to a deteriorating mental health. But why does something as trivial as social media hold the weight to ruin a real life relationship? As Jenna Danneberger, of One Love puts it: “Annoyance at a lapse in communication is absolutely valid, especially if something important was asked and the person seems to be actively ignoring the message. But in many cases, social media can turn a mild annoyance into a full-on panic, bringing out the worst in us.” The worst in us can mean many things: self-deprecating comparison, the opening of closed doors, addiction, and in the 34%-- partner checking.

      We can all agree that snooping on your partners phone is never okay. Then what is the 34% about? Trust issues and lack of communication are a driving factor. Shannon Chavez, a sex therapist told the Huffington Post, “The problem is that checking a partner’s phone has become easier than being vulnerable and sharing how you are feeling and why you feel compelled to check the phone.”

      Ask yourself: Why do I feel the need to look? The answer to that question is likely the root of the problem. Never let someone’s fabricated highlight reel distract you from the now. Talk to your partner openly and unplug.

How Do You Find Meaning in Life?

Victor Bordin, staff writer

If you struggle to identify what brings meaning to your life, consider the following study.
      The Pew Research Center has surveyed about 2,600 U.S. adults about what aspects of their current life they find meaningful. For a bit of interest, those adults were categorized as Republicans and Democrats.
      Both groups listed friends, family, quality of life, and careers as the primary contributors to quality of life. The similarities between the groups seemed reasonable.
      Republicans claimed religion, freedom and independence as things that give meaning to their life. Democrats said that physical and mental health, hobbies and recreation, nature and the outdoors, and pets give meaning to their lives.
      A Republican man was quoted, “Life without Jesus is meaningless, sad and hopeless. It is only through a daily relationship with Christ that joy, love, peace and goodness can be found.”
      Butte College student Andrew agrees. He emphasizes God, family and friends.
      For Andrew, God is the reason that, “we were put here to procreate and work...I’d love to have a stable financial situation. That would be great.” He mentions quality of life as well.
       After receiving insight from the Pew Research Center and a fellow Butte College student, you might have more of an understanding about the sources of meaning in your life. You can now consider and evaluate this insight as you find meaning in your own life.

Opinion: Rise in “OnlyFans” Usage by Women

Antonio L. Garcia, staff writer

 

One of the more concerning things in society today is the rise of the usage in the service known as “OnlyFans,” an online website service that allows users to post extremely illicit photos and videos of an adult/XXX nature for a recurring subscription fee, and, depending on the person who is posting the content, an opportunity to make millions of dollars in a short amount of time.

       The issue is of great concern because of the contribution to sexual inequality and the current gender war between men and women. More and more women are using this service to try to “get rich quick.” The problem with this service is that women are the ones who make the majority of the money, whereas men are lucky if they can make any money at all. Feminists claim that they want “equality” between men and women, but this doesn’t seem to be applicable when women have the upper-hand in endeavors of financial gain, or anywhere that sex or sexuality is monetized.

      Another unintended consequence of “OnlyFans” is that not all women are going to be able to make large amounts of money, regardless of what they are willing to do (or not do) on this site, in terms of content produced, and once this content is on the internet, there is really no way to have it removed. Content, while in most cases is copyright protected, can be circumvented by technology, reproduced and re-loaded onto other sites or put on doxxing websites to elude as to who the real person behind the content is.

      In a society where practically everything is hypersexualized and bombards us in advertising, television programs, movies, the news, as well as in the media and current pop-culture, this kind of website that allows people, primarily women, to cash in on their sexuality does more harm than it does good, with consequences that are even yet to be seen.

Rising Costs at Post-COVID-19  Entertainment Events

Antonio L. Garcia, staff writer

 

Aftershock, one of the biggest music festivals in the U.S., draws people from all over the world. In this post-COVID-19 environment in which we now live, people come to Aftershock to relax, have a good time and rock out with their fellow hard-rock enthusiasts.

      Unfortunately for most, the costs of attending the festival is rising. Originally, the Aftershock Festival was only a one-day event, which eventually progressed to a two-day and then a three-day event. With the pandemic, Aftershock was not allowed to happen due to Public Health concerns. Festival goers were given the option by Danny Wimmer Presents (or known to most as, “DWP,” the promoter and manager of Aftershock) to either get a refund, or to roll their money over towards the next year’s tickets.

      In gracious fashion, if the fans decided to “let it ride,” a fourth day would be added for keeping their money with the festival. The reality was, of course, that it wasn’t a fourth day, but rather six hours of additional acts.

      Since the first year in which there was a fourth day, the fourth day has now become permanent, as well as the increase in everything from band merchandise to food, beer and alcoholic libations. This is more of the usual cost that is passed on to the consumer when they economy is in a state of general decline.

      But is Aftershock still worth it, even in spite of rising costs?

      Two festival goers I spoke to were glad to give me their two cents. The first, a guy named Tim, told me that “Honestly, it just depends on the line-up, if the line-up isn’t any good, I’ll just buy day passes to the days that I want to go see the good acts and save money on the days that really aren’t worth sitting in the hot sun (to which he started laughing)."

      Mike, a second festival goer, is more concerned about the cost. “Once a festival increases the prices of admission, and all of the related costs go up, they see that they can get the money that they want for all of it. You’re not going to get them to bring the costs back down if people are still willing to pay that kind of money.”

He told me that he isn’t sure if he is going to be able to come to Aftershock next year unless the economy improves or the costs improve, but he seems to think that Pandora’s Box has already been opened. “It pretty much becomes the same thing we always deal with in everyday life; it becomes an event that only the upper-class or people who are more well-off in terms of money can attend, so that most people can’t afford to go, and then the music becomes all about money and not the music, and that’s not what Aftershock is supposed to stand for.”

      With the rising costs of Aftershock and the related costs, in future years many people won’t be able to afford to attend and, once again, it will become an event that only the privileged rich will be able to enjoy. Sadly, most of the bands will jump right on that bandwagon.

      In the world of Rock and Roll, this is known as being a sell-out.