Dear reader: Is it just me, or are we getting a little too addicted to the present tense?
We fear that the Internet and social media have cut down our attention spans, making us unable to, say, enjoy a long novel or even pay attention through a two-hour movie without checking our phones. But what I think is actually happening is that we’re more addicted to culture than ever. We want more life than ever. We want to consume everything, all at once, and every minute spent focusing on a book or a film rather than refreshing our news feeds takes us out of the present and thus that much more likely to miss out on something. Miss out on anything.
