Social Media has been both a blessing and a curse. There are many reasons that Dayna and I feel much better without Twitter or Facebook. Chip Roy and his family recently made the same decision and he shares his reasons for leaving social media……

I’m suspending indefinitely my use of Twitter, Facebook and other social media. I’m doing so not to make a political statement, but in the hope that America can return to kitchen tables, churches, taverns, coffee shops, dance halls (it’s a Texas thing)—whatever it takes to look others in the eye and rebuild our communities and humanity.

As a husband and father, I also want to stop spending so much time looking at a screen and reacting in ways that are inconsistent with who I am and—most important—who I strive to be as a Christian.

While social media has proved a useful vehicle for sharing information quickly, I have concluded that it does more harm than good to individuals and society alike.

It tempts us to be reactive and feeds the worst of our human tendency to respond in anger rather than to stop and think before communicating. The result is more verbal combat and less deliberative thought—all with language we often wouldn’t use while looking someone in the eye. I have been guilty of this recently, and I haven’t always been proud of my language.

It reduces the value of communication to statements graded by “likes” or being “ratioed,” and other mechanisms that don’t reflect real human response or quality of thought.

It makes it difficult to ascertain the truth about the many difficult topics with which we all wrestle. We have replaced earnest truth-seeking with trial by retweet. Meanwhile, those who make consequential decisions such as issues involving impeachment, Covid and election fraud, often do so based on assertions that are difficult to confirm or deny.

It has politicized communication to an unhealthy level, widened divisions rather than bridge them, and fed the temptation to call for censorship of views we find disagreeable.

Eighteen months ago, my wife and I joined with friends to establish a weekly Sunday Night Supper, and to do our best to reduce or eliminate the use of screens on Sundays by setting rules that any screen use had to involve the whole family such as watching the Masters Tournament or a family movie. We were inspired by seeing our Jewish brethren in Israel celebrate Shabbat, which reminded us of the Sundays we grew up with in the 1970s and ’80s. Ever since, one-seventh of our time has been immeasurably better, and Sunday dinner is a highlight of our week.

I will suspend both my personal and official accounts, delete the apps from my devices, and encourage those around me to do the same. I haven’t decided whether this will be a permanent change or a long pause, but I believe it will make me a better man, better father, better citizen and better congressman.

Of all God’s earthly creations, man is the only one with rational speech, but we used to have a better way to communicate with each other. Let us dine together. Let us look each other in the eye. Let us sit down and talk again.

Then, let us unite again as Americans.

By Chip Roy

Wall Street Journal