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posted Tuesday, May 15, 2012 at 9:12am
I miss the old n' days when communication was manual. If you wanted to say hello, you picked up the phone. If you wanted to catch up, the phone conversation was long and/or you went to lunch and coffee. If you applied for a job, you handed your resume to a real human being---not an e-mail address, and you shook the person's hand. Pay phones were everywhere, cell phones weren't hooked to you like a borg from Star Trek. You didn't check someone's facebook profile before you went on your first date. You didn't need to tweet that you were on the shitter or at second beach---what was twitter? You didn't text the person across from you at the dinner table.... in fact, using a cell phone while talking was fucken rude. What the hell as happened to us? Most of us now have opted to live behind a technological curtain. What would you do should technology fail you? Can you handle looking at someone in the face or listening to their voice anymore? Can you handle being seen?
Comments (11) Add New Comment
May 15, 2012 at 9:23 am
its 2012, I welcome the internet and other technologies.
if you wanna go back to 1950 go to alabama
if you wanna go back to 1950 go to alabama
May 15, 2012 at 9:30 am
Reading books was an active hobby back in the day too. No one seems to have the attention span to sit and read a book these days.... TV sucks.
May 15, 2012 at 9:34 am
I am not saying that the internet is bad. The internet can be wonderful. However, in a lot of ways it has killed our ability to communicate face to face.
May 15, 2012 at 11:00 am
You made my day. Thanks. :)
May 15, 2012 at 11:11 am
The more I talk to people face to face, the more the talk to me face to face.
May 15, 2012 at 11:33 am
Please take a look at : "The Shallows: What the Internet is doing to our Brains"- by Nicholas Carr. He's a Harvard professor; the book was one of 3 short listed for the Pulitzer Prize for Non Fiction last year. he's not a Luddite ( @zzzzz: you'll have to google that term , dude....on your break from the barrista gig) nor does he believe that technology is BAD...he used a computer extensively to research/ write the book; what he does argue against is our over reliance on technology/ under reliance on ourselves, and our brains. Our attention spans are shortening dramatically; our ability to comprehend and judge information/ stimuli is not as sharp as formerly: we are becoming a trivial, 'quick answer' civilization. A perfect breeding ground for what George Orwell predicted in "1984". ZZZZZ's comments : being shouted down as a 1950's loser because you don't uncritically love all technology- is an eerie reminder of everything from 1984 to the McCarthy witch hunts, speaking of the '50's. Stop constantly texting/ googling; start watching/ observing/ thinking.
May 15, 2012 at 4:32 pm
I feel the same way. Social media fails as a substitute for real and constructive interaction. It's tricks people who don't have a life into thinking they do have a life. It's interesting how it's been used in social movements, like in the Iran,anti- bullying campaigns, but in everyday meaningful life it's a crutch. I know, I'm writing this using my smartphone ...but this is because I'm bored and forgot to bring a book for my commute. Truth is: social media isn't social at all. It's removed from genuine social (human to human) contact. It's bullsh*t.
May 15, 2012 at 6:08 pm
I agree. Got rid of my cell.
May 15, 2012 at 8:24 pm
@ Agreed. Thank you. Your comment is right to the heart of the matter: we are living virtually; consequently we are virtually living.
Im my workday life ( sales) I am constantly in touch with people....not all are as I have /you have described, thankfully.The 'high achievers' ( whatever that means) have the most time for their fellow human beings- they are not texting their friend about tomorrow night as they are talking to you as they are cooking up breakfast while watching the TV. They are UNI-TASKING; they are focused on what they are doing now- one thing; well- not 5 things at a C- level. My take? The future belongs to them, not to some antsy twerp who has the attention span of a crack/ methhead.
Im my workday life ( sales) I am constantly in touch with people....not all are as I have /you have described, thankfully.The 'high achievers' ( whatever that means) have the most time for their fellow human beings- they are not texting their friend about tomorrow night as they are talking to you as they are cooking up breakfast while watching the TV. They are UNI-TASKING; they are focused on what they are doing now- one thing; well- not 5 things at a C- level. My take? The future belongs to them, not to some antsy twerp who has the attention span of a crack/ methhead.
May 16, 2012 at 1:18 pm
This is one of the best posts I have read in here. It is nice to read that there are people who feel this way because it is going the other way at a steady pace! As soon as someone texts me "How are you doing?", I am pretty much done in -how about calling me and asking me??? I remember those days fondly - the days of when you lived in a neighbourhood, and wanted to contact a friend? You had to go home to make the call and somehow our social lives remained rich.................Yay Poster!
May 16, 2012 at 4:03 pm
But...what would all the passive aggressive or avoidant people do? What about when you want to break it off with someone and you are too chicken to call or see them? What if you want to end a friendship? The convenience email provides has the added bonus of not having to see them burst into tears! What if you want to cheat on someone? Websites allow you to easily and confidentially meet other cheaters like you! It's also so much easier to flirt with other people by text without your partner knowing. I'm just saying--- Shouldn't we be celebrating the fact that technology has finally given cowards their moment to shine?
*snicker*
:-P
*snicker*
:-P
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