HypocrITe
While riding to work the other morning I read an article in the Wall Street Journal about bluetooth technology and the new craze for a tiny earpiece that transmits to your cell phone so you can wander around talking on the phone without carrying anything in your hands. Basically just a wireless earpiece and mic that is very small. That afternoon as I was walking about I saw someone using one. As I was cursing this person in my mind, I realized I'm a hypocrite, pure and simple. Those of you who know me are probably saying "no kidding" but you likely haven't thought of this. Here I am, Mr. IT Man, probably going to business school to get more into tech management, and I don't believe in technology. I guess that's not it. I believe in technology, I just don't think it's good for society.
Sure, making devices that save lives are beneficial and I may benefit from them some day, actually I already have. What is a shame is that technology and money have become so entwined. Many new technologies are brought out to increase the bottom line, and therefore just do that. Everyone jumps on the craze and millions are made. In fact, we've created a societal need to get this new technology without even considering how it will affect us.
When new gadgets come out, I have a friend who runs out to buy them before the ink is dry on the press release, but I am very slow to embrace them. When new technologies are announced, I often sigh in disappointment at what our society is doing with such devices. I still don't really think cell phones are that great. Am I just a dinosaur refusing to evolve?
My jumps as quickly as he can onto the bandwagon of new devices. I'm talking so fast the ink isn't dry on the press release. He was the first one I knew who would drop off in mid sentence and leave the room, dinner, baseball game, etc to answer a phone call from someone he could easily talk to later. It always baffled me and still does. Now such behavior is commonplace. But when did the emphasis shift away from what you are actually doing to some random possibility on the other end of the phone? Are we that bad company to each other that we need this as a way to escape what we are doing with ourselves? Are these possibilities on the other end more important that what you are doing at the moment? What happened to living for the moment? Your life is going on right in front of you, not on a phone somewhere... (btw, anyone else things cell phones should be for their convenience only, not other people's? by that I mean, I answer my cell phone about a quarter of the time it rings. people can wait, i'm not that exciting, and I'll call them when I am ready - if they aren't ready when I call back, then do the same...)
Sadly, this is where our society is headed. I think the truth is that most new communications inventions I see, hurt our society by silo-ing us and our interactions into our own little world instead of what is happening in the moment. We become more pulled into our own worlds every minute. Closing out the here and now to live a simulation of it while interacting somewhere else. Sure, I simplify and exagerate a bit... but not as much as I wish were the case.
I'm from the East Coast and stay connected with people there, but I'm not sure it's good that I do. This actually ties in nicely to my theory that the amount of travel in modern society actually keeps people from fully engaging in the places they live, but that's for another day.
And so we get back to my hipocracy. I support technology, and by support I mean am for it's development. I just don't believe in it. Does it make us happier as a society? If not, what is it there for? Does it just make a company do a particular task or set of tasks better, faster, cheaper? And if so, great, more business gets done, does that mean that people are happier society is benefited? I say not always, in fact I say mostly not. What if there were no email, would that really be such a bad thing?
The crux of my hypocracy is that I work with technology, support it, like to see it developed, but don't believe that it's making a positive contribution to society. Yes sir, I'm a hypocrit, though I won't always be a technology worker, and maybe I won't support technology some day soon.
Sure, making devices that save lives are beneficial and I may benefit from them some day, actually I already have. What is a shame is that technology and money have become so entwined. Many new technologies are brought out to increase the bottom line, and therefore just do that. Everyone jumps on the craze and millions are made. In fact, we've created a societal need to get this new technology without even considering how it will affect us.
When new gadgets come out, I have a friend who runs out to buy them before the ink is dry on the press release, but I am very slow to embrace them. When new technologies are announced, I often sigh in disappointment at what our society is doing with such devices. I still don't really think cell phones are that great. Am I just a dinosaur refusing to evolve?
My jumps as quickly as he can onto the bandwagon of new devices. I'm talking so fast the ink isn't dry on the press release. He was the first one I knew who would drop off in mid sentence and leave the room, dinner, baseball game, etc to answer a phone call from someone he could easily talk to later. It always baffled me and still does. Now such behavior is commonplace. But when did the emphasis shift away from what you are actually doing to some random possibility on the other end of the phone? Are we that bad company to each other that we need this as a way to escape what we are doing with ourselves? Are these possibilities on the other end more important that what you are doing at the moment? What happened to living for the moment? Your life is going on right in front of you, not on a phone somewhere... (btw, anyone else things cell phones should be for their convenience only, not other people's? by that I mean, I answer my cell phone about a quarter of the time it rings. people can wait, i'm not that exciting, and I'll call them when I am ready - if they aren't ready when I call back, then do the same...)
Sadly, this is where our society is headed. I think the truth is that most new communications inventions I see, hurt our society by silo-ing us and our interactions into our own little world instead of what is happening in the moment. We become more pulled into our own worlds every minute. Closing out the here and now to live a simulation of it while interacting somewhere else. Sure, I simplify and exagerate a bit... but not as much as I wish were the case.
I'm from the East Coast and stay connected with people there, but I'm not sure it's good that I do. This actually ties in nicely to my theory that the amount of travel in modern society actually keeps people from fully engaging in the places they live, but that's for another day.
And so we get back to my hipocracy. I support technology, and by support I mean am for it's development. I just don't believe in it. Does it make us happier as a society? If not, what is it there for? Does it just make a company do a particular task or set of tasks better, faster, cheaper? And if so, great, more business gets done, does that mean that people are happier society is benefited? I say not always, in fact I say mostly not. What if there were no email, would that really be such a bad thing?
The crux of my hypocracy is that I work with technology, support it, like to see it developed, but don't believe that it's making a positive contribution to society. Yes sir, I'm a hypocrit, though I won't always be a technology worker, and maybe I won't support technology some day soon.
posted by Andy at 12:40 PM
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