Cedar Valley News — May 22, 2025

The View from Desk 12B: What the Noise Is Costing Us
By: Chloe Papadakis (fictional character from Quiet Echo)
From the fictional town of Cedar Valley, where characters from Quiet Echo continue to respond to real-world events.

My daughter spilled applesauce on my laptop again this morning, and I didn’t even flinch. That’s how this season of life is — sticky, constant, alive.

While she babbled in the next room, I caught the headlines: more shouting, more protests, more divisions drawn like chalk outlines across a country tired of being mad but unsure how to stop. And I sat there thinking — what is all this noise doing to us?

I don’t mean political disagreement. That’s part of being free. I mean the kind of noise drowning out decency — the endless scroll of insults. The headlines crafted to inflame. The videos clipped just enough to keep us addicted to anger.

Last week, the Surgeon General proposed warning labels for social media platforms. Like the ones on cigarettes. That’s where we are now. Our digital habits — how much we consume, how fast we judge, how long we rage — are being treated like a public health issue.

And honestly? I get it.

I watch high schoolers at the park not talking to each other, just watching each other’s lives unfold on tiny screens. I see friends losing sleep, losing peace, losing themselves in debates they didn’t ask for. I hear the noise when I close…