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1. “If the internet killed you, I used to joke, then I would be the first to find out,” wrote Andrew Sullivan in his essay on his struggle to overcome the dark side of our hyperstimulated, distracted, constantly connected world (“I Used to Be a Human Being,” Sept. 19–Oct. 2). Readers saw themselves in Sullivan’s story: “As someone who has worked for big tech companies in Silicon Valley,” wrote commenter elinzer619, “I too had the experience of waking up one day to realize my emotional health was deteriorating and the primary relationship I was in was with my job and the never-ending stream of questions, comments, articles, emails, messages, tweets, videos, and evaluations of success based on outputs rather than outcomes. Perhaps it should not take a breakdown to learn how to set boundaries, or disconnecting shouldn’t require complete disconnection in order to find balance and meaning … That’s what it took for me, and I’ve never been happier, more emotionally sound, more physically fit, more connected to nature and as deeply in love with and connected to my significant other.” “Ultimately, Andrew’s essay is a humanist religious testimony,” wrote The American Conservative’s Rod Dreher, “bearing witness against one of the most powerful gods of our place and time. It is an essay about possession and deliverance. One lesson I take from the piece is that we don’t have to wait for genetics laboratories to abolish man, in the sense C. S. Lewis meant. We are doing it ourselves, one click at a time.” Commenter CDL66 argued that the distraction Sullivan describes doesn’t outweigh the benefits of the internet: “Since I got into the Internet 20+ years ago, I’ve gone from feeling socially awkward and nervous in personal situations to being, if still somewhat awkward, far more comfortable and involved with the community and my friends, both in person and on-line. I do not doubt that Sullivan has felt the way he felt and that there are others like him. By the same token there is, at least, me — and I doubt that I am alone — [and others] who thrive on the Internet and find it enhances their personal lives and still find time to read (even real books) and think and have our mindful times. (Side note: When I read this article, I printed it out off the Internet and sat down in my favorite reading chair to read it. And here I am, back on-line, where I found it, commenting on it.)” Even some of those who related to Sullivan’s experience were still unrepentant internet junkies. “I wept reading this article,” wrote commenter pegentwhistle. “Tying together so many powerful threads. We are terrified of confronting our inevitable deaths in an empty moment. Distraction is the tasteless soy filler in the meat patty of life. I’m going to change, make an effort to unplug more from the digital. But first I’m going to leave this comment online and check my Facebook feed. I’ll change my life tomorrow, promise.” “Andrew Sullivan’s essay on distraction is well worth reading,” tweeted the New York Times’ Justin Wolfers. “I checked Twitter twice and email once while reading.”
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2. New York’s latest issue also featured the story of David Wildstein, the star witness in the Bridgegate-scandal trial that continues to haunt New Jersey Governor Chris Christie (“Most Likely to Destroy a Governor,” Sept. 19–Oct. 2). “This is brilliant reporting and stellar storytelling,” wrote commenter carolina_dawn. “A complicated story laid out carefully. I couldn’t stop reading until the end, and now I’m following the trial with bated breath. Bravo, Andrew Rice. This is journalism at its very best.” “No matter how much you have/haven’t been following Bridgegate, this is SUCH a well-told story of how it came to be,” tweeted @jrud. The Daily Beast’s Olivia Nuzzi pointed out that “Christie was NOT ‘appointed’ US attorney on September 10, 2001, a claim he likes to make that was printed here with no correction.” (She’s right; though Christie may have been told privately about the appointment at that time, President George W. Bush didn’t publicly appoint him until December 2001, three months later.) Many thought the piece captured the spirit of New Jersey politics. “This #Bridgegate article by Andrew Rice is a good reminder that no place does politics quite like New Jersey,” tweeted @ChrisMegerian. “Good ol’ bad ol’ New Jersey politics,” tweeted @arack.
3. “After a nightmarish public controversy and some mysterious health ailments,” reads Lizzy Goodman’s story on Conor Oberst, “the singer-songwriter has returned to Omaha and, hopefully, normalcy” (“Conor Oberst Goes Home,” Sept. 19–Oct. 2). Commenter Swellsetup thought Oberst’s run-in with internet infamy, after a false sexual-assault accusation, was an important lesson: “A much-needed reminder of the very real danger posed by the internet lynch mob. There is a very good reason our courts require a presumption of innocence — bloggers, social-justice warriors, and armchair activists would do well to recognize and learn from the personal toll their rush to judgment inflicted on an innocent person.” Most found his story, and Goodman’s telling, compelling — and difficult to read. “This is so wonderful,” tweeted @mariasherm. “The bulk of it is challenging to stomach.”
Corrections: Bruce Springsteen and Jimmy Fallon parodied “Born to Run” on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon, not SNL, as suggested in “Most Likely to Destroy a Governor” (Sept. 19–Oct. 2); also, the solution to the previous issue’s crossword puzzle (“Short Parties”) on page 102 (Sept. 19–Oct. 2) should have been accompanied by an explanation noting that the six squares with slashes should read DEM going across and REP going down.