What is it about smartphones, YouTube, and social media in general that turns normal people into a useless crowd of video “auteurs” who’re more concerned with getting a video up instead of preventing others from needlessly hurting each other?

Granted, Internet videos of people fighting are as old as the invention of online video, but after seeing these pop up over and over again after any sporting event of note, it’s becoming clear that the downfall of society will not be a nuclear war or a zombie apocalypse.

It will be because people were too concerned with getting good video of the world crumbling around them instead of trying to do something about it.

Perhaps I’m overreacting, but after watching the upcoming video of Giants fans fighting at the Super Bowl parade — female fans, no less — the fact people are more concerned with letting the fight happen, all so they can film it is disheartening.

Or maybe I’m just getting old. Here’s the video in question:

Cat fight! Cat fight!

Let me guess. The first girl slept with the other girl’s boyfriend while Eli Manning was doing his MVP thing at the Super Bowl and got caught. Now, they’re playing the feud while a bunch of useless bystanders sit, watch, and video. Naturally, additional fights break out — again with females — as they, I don’t know, try to defend their “girl’s” honor?

Or maybe they just wanted to be on YouTube with they hair flying hither, dither and yon.

While the fighting itself is pretty standard for an Internet video, I’m still drawn to the crowd, one that’s more concerned with getting good video instead of putting a stop to the needless fracas. Is this what we’ve become? A society of attention whores who care more about being popular on the Internet than acting in a somewhat civilized manner?

Like I said, maybe I’m just getting old.