comment: >
  
  Good points, but you can't deny that you're actively improving your life in any way unless you're doing something directly educational or therepudic when using social media.  Highest self, is the best version of you. Surly when you envision the best version of you, they're not spending the amount of time the average person does scrolling on their phone.
context: You seem to be conflating causation with correlation. Unless you do a controlled experiment where some people are randomly assigned to use social media and others are assigned not to. So we can't say that social media makes you a shitty person as people who use social media may be inherently different. >
  
  Right, your influences shape your personality and how you see the world. If you are given a lense by an algorithm that has a specific agenda where you act as a pawn, perhaps that is not shaping you into a good person, but maybe, a good consumer. >
  
  
  There have been countless studies proving that the more time you spend on social media, the lower your self-esteem
  
  Causality might go the other way: the worse someone's self esteem is, the more they spend time on social media.
  
  You are also bombarded with ads that try to convince you that your life will suck without \~this\~ product, advertised by the highest standard of beauty in a human specimen.
  
  That's true, but I'm not gullible enough to believe those ads. 
  
  you need to make pointed effort in order to discover and experience anything of real value and knowledge
  
  A funny meme makes me laugh. That brings happiness into my life. Happiness has real value.
  As for knowledge, Facebook has math and science discussion groups. University students also make study groups.
  
  you need to make pointed effort in order to discover and experience anything of real value and knowledge
  
  What do you mean by "highest selves"?