I think it's important to distinguish between habitual use (addiction) to technology and using technology for more creative and/or beautiful purposes.
I don't own a television, so the only things I watch (on my PC) are well in the realm of quality television (Breaking Bad, Game of Thrones, good films). I consider this to be absolutely acceptable. This is cutting edge, quality television, and a lot of hard work has went into pulling it off. I watch the occasional film/episode of something, and I know it's not unhealthy or habitual.
However, my mother is a television addict. She's nothing abnormal, just your every day mother who's forgotten that a life exists outside of her living room. She likes cop dramas, and she frequently complains about how "there's nothing on the television tonight". Like she's suprised. To me that is like a heroin addict getting all excited, every night, every day, waiting for the big hit, because this is the one, this will be the big one. And all they ever get is this utter garbage which is cut to shit and sucking the soul out of them. People are being fed utter junk. It's complete fodder. There is no creative integrity (generally), and there is no beauty. I can't help but visualise a lot of television (kind of like these shitty saturday night quiz shows, things like that) as somewhat dystopian. It reminds me of the sketchy television sequences in Requiem For a dream. Then you have the news propaganda, and equally shitty programs like Eastenders, or Coronation Street, where all people ever seem to do is argue and show you how to be pointless and empty. Just like their characters.
My mother, she considers me the addict. A smart phone addict, to be precise. And she's completely right. Whatsapp, facebook; mindlessly refreshing any junk that's there. I'd say 99% of my smartphone use is literally meaningless. I learn nothing and it makes me feel like shit. I've been the same with the internet for about fifteen years. God knows how many hours I wasted doing nothing.
My dad, he was always a television addict. But not anymore. He thought he found a more meaningful hit... the internet. Now he just refreshes web pages like I do. Guitar websites, newspaper websites. It's all the same.
It's the mental equivalent of eating the same pre-packaged frozen junk every single night. It's got no nutritional value and you think it will make you feel better. Instead it leaves you feeling weak and empty, and it slowly poisons your body, soul and mind. It doesn't even taste nice. What the fuck are we playing at?
-----
Alternatively I have a fast computer with a gorgeous interface. I have software such as Ableton live installed and I'm pretty competent at producing music, despite my inherent lazyness. I have extensive access to pretty much the entire expanse of human knowledge, and I can pretty much instantly contact a friend anywhere on the planet. The music I love is so complex, tribal and advanced. It's all electronic. I've amassed a huge collection of electronic music, and if I don't have it, I can probably buy it, download it, or listen to it. Some of my friends are artists. They use their computers to create beautiful art. Others use them to write. As I'm sure you can see, these are all healthy, nourishing activities. The stuff I talked about before, well that's fucking poison. And we all know it.
-----
If used properly, technolgy can be used for beauty and wonder. That said, it can also be used as a crux, and just like any other crux, it will slowly destroy you.
There is a beautiful world out there. Every day there is a gorgeous sunrise and a gorgeous sunset. There are forests, mountains and trees. We can make art, we can be creative. Or we can remain sick with the illness which clearly afflicts our society. Ill with our own meaningless and lack of love/appreciation for the incredible opportunity to exist on this planet.
To me the following message is the one to take away from your experience and the concept which underlies it: use technology wisely, or let it use you.
Get rid of the junk and embrace the beautiful/creative elements.
Ever noticed how you're not interested in the good life when you're slowly drowning yourself in poison?
