The distraction industry didn't exist in the days when the average "to do" list had one word: "survive." Since then, however, it has become ubiquitous and its variations are many.
The entertainment biz comes immediately to mind but it may be a pale shadow compared to the Internet, email, and cell phones. Stir in meetings, teams, and open door policies and it is clear that we have gained the ability to do many things quickly but not necessarily the judgment to evaluate whether they are worth doing at all.
There are days when most, if not all, of our activity seems only to restore the status quo and any real progress is a stranger. Our long work days may indirectly acknowledge that inefficiency as we secretly know how many of our high tech, faster-than-lightning, hours are the workplace equivalent of junk food. We need to work longer because we are not working smarter.
The by-products of massive amounts of information also need to be assessed. There are plenty of warnings about the sedentary lifestyle of computer users but I've yet to see anyone attribute the obesity trend in western countries to the incessant repetition of stress-producing news. My guess is there are several politicians who have contributed five to ten pounds to many a waistline.
Beware of the Sunday news shows and never watch a presidential press conference with a box of donuts nearby.
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