To borrow a little something from Ronald Reagan, the Internet isn't the solution to our problems, the Internet is the problem!
I've believed this for quite awhile, and it is the principle reason I dropped my Facebook account awhile back, and more recently my smartphone. It's not that I'm [completely] against technology, but I do think [next to religion] it's the biggest cause of the problems we are experiencing in the country today, i.e. divisiveness, intolerance, mistrust etc.
Because of the Internet, we no longer interact personally with each other, preferring such faceless applications as Facebook, Twitter and even blogs to express our thoughts. Even talking on the phone has declined as we switch more to texting and email.
Because of the Internet, we have become detached from our fellow human beings, no longer interacting with people in the ways that brought us closer together in the past. Instead we're driven apart by the increased use of email and caller I'D, which have made it way too easy for us to ignore each other, and that which we don't want to be bothered with. We have relegated ourselves to our own little world(s) ignoring the problems and concerns of others, and rationalizing those problems away.
One of the biggest complaints about President Obama is that he doesn't try to engage his political opponents (as well as supporters) the same way Thomas Jefferson did while he was president. Some attribute that to aloofness. I attribute it to President Obama being a student [victim] of the technology age. An age where we don't know how to engage others, or are just afraid to, but instead prefer to engage others using the anonymity of the internet.
While the state of affairs in the US may not be exactly what it was in the days of Thomas Jefferson, we might all do well by taking a lesson from history. In the words of George Santayana, in his Reason in Common Sense, The Life of Reason, Vol.1,
We sure don't need things getting any worse about now!
I've believed this for quite awhile, and it is the principle reason I dropped my Facebook account awhile back, and more recently my smartphone. It's not that I'm [completely] against technology, but I do think [next to religion] it's the biggest cause of the problems we are experiencing in the country today, i.e. divisiveness, intolerance, mistrust etc.
Because of the Internet, we no longer interact personally with each other, preferring such faceless applications as Facebook, Twitter and even blogs to express our thoughts. Even talking on the phone has declined as we switch more to texting and email.
Because of the Internet, we have become detached from our fellow human beings, no longer interacting with people in the ways that brought us closer together in the past. Instead we're driven apart by the increased use of email and caller I'D, which have made it way too easy for us to ignore each other, and that which we don't want to be bothered with. We have relegated ourselves to our own little world(s) ignoring the problems and concerns of others, and rationalizing those problems away.
One of the biggest complaints about President Obama is that he doesn't try to engage his political opponents (as well as supporters) the same way Thomas Jefferson did while he was president. Some attribute that to aloofness. I attribute it to President Obama being a student [victim] of the technology age. An age where we don't know how to engage others, or are just afraid to, but instead prefer to engage others using the anonymity of the internet.
While the state of affairs in the US may not be exactly what it was in the days of Thomas Jefferson, we might all do well by taking a lesson from history. In the words of George Santayana, in his Reason in Common Sense, The Life of Reason, Vol.1,
"Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.
We sure don't need things getting any worse about now!
Comments
I have dropped social media connections when I found their shared content to be offensive or just plain inane. But I find so many other connections (like yours) to be very informative, entertaining, or just amusing. Like our personal friendships, the internet offers benefits and content of which we need to be judicious about consumption.
No, the Web is not intended to replace personal interaction, but I am thankful for its availability, particularly when I face the six months of isolation following a stem cell transplant in 2007.
I agree, there is a lot of value with the internet, in addition to its original intent of insuring open lines of communication for the military. It has certainly made depositing checks, and keeping track of finances a lot simpler, and there is no doubt it has kept us more informed, although whether that is a benefit or not is up for debate.
And while it shouldn't be a replacement for anything, especially interpersonal relationships, I fear that it is becoming so. Even in the case of 6 months of isolation, there was still the telephone.
Thanks for feedback!