At the risk of &quot;microcomplaining,&quot; I&#x27;d like to deride this as yet another thoughtless, substance-free article from the NYT.<p>With an amusing lack of self-awareness, a non-issue is identified (as a &quot;seismic shift,&quot; no less) and connected with unrelated social phenomena using misinterpretations of the available evidence, many of which, conveniently, have also been described in other hyperlinked NYT articles.<p>If you believe this is a new phenomenon, I invite you to read just about any novel written during the Victorian era. If you manage to endure the first dinner party dialog between members of the upper class, I think you will take issue with the thrust of this article.<p>As for the implications of social media, that it can amplify certain aspects of human behavior is such a humdrum, &quot;middle-brow&quot; observation that I&#x27;m surprised this wasn&#x27;t written by Thomas Friedman.