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Personally, I think we are headed in a weird place with more overall suffering, physical and mental. But trying to not impose moral judgement, I think it is tr

Personally, I think we are headed in a weird place with more overall suffering, physical and mental. But trying to not impose moral judgement, I think it is true that we have integrated technology into our lives more than ever. It is also true that we rely on technology (more than ever) on how to live (food, exercise, entertainment, emotions). It's kinda weird that you wouldn't just listen to your body. The scary part is that all this technology that is integrated kinda just promotes more consumerism. Advertising and marketing are a huge point to this technology. It's scary to think that we just give children ( not just teenagers) access to the internet. The part you don't realize is that we are in a dystopia. You are optimistic thinking that we are "building it". It will exist somewhere down the line, but it's not yet present. Maybe there is some good from this. I mean there is, think of all the ailments that are manageable and people can live with infinitely better quality of life. Imagine someone bed-ridden. 20 years ago they NEEDED a full time caregiver. Today, they can SHOP (something they probably didn't do) for themselves. Chose what they want to eat, etc. There is some good that comes from this tech. But it's mostly consumerist garbage. Ask yourself, "do I NEED this comfort?". If the answer is no don't use that thing. Do I NEED Alexa to turn on the light? I can walk, I can do it myself. Do I need to ask Siri to tell me the time? No, get a clock. That doesn't need the internet. Stop coddling yourself with comfort. It will make you not depressed with your life. EDIT: I forgot to talk you out of despair. Look, you've been thinking too much. Sometimes you just need to be. Get yourself some water and a piece of fruit and go find a park. Just sit there, no phone, no nothing. Stare at the trees. Look at them. Breathe in the air. Feels where you are and try to feel the love in nature. But, exercise and eating better help too.

jmfldn 4y ago
"The scary part is that all this technology that is integrated kinda just promotes more consumerism. Advertising and marketing are a huge point to this technology. It's scary to think that we just give children ( not just teenagers) access to the internet." "The part you don't realize is that we are in a dystopia. You are optimistic thinking that we are "building it". It will exist somewhere down the line, but it's not yet present." Big yes to both of these. I've come to the conclusion that within the current economic and political paradigm, namely capitalism in its current form at least, this exponential tech explosion can only lead to more consumerism, more control and manipulation. My conclusion is that if we want this level of technology we need radically more democracy and a more egalitarian economic system with far far less inequality. Embedded in our current system, I see only a dystopia arising (or continuing to evolve).
trgn 4y ago
We are living not in a capitalist dystopia, we live in a modernist dystopia. That is, technology itself is the value, rather than a means to an end. You can live in, say, in a socialist or fascist society, and you would still be subjected to modernism. It permeates everything. e.g. > It's kinda weird that you wouldn't just listen to your body. That's precisely the modernist sickness of the mind. The idea that we need technological mediation for cooking, eating, exercise,... and that because these activities are mediated by technology (ideally speaking, the high technology of that time), it is inherently better. The amish were famously the first to reject modernism, and they did so in quite an extreme fashion. They don't reject technology, but they reject the idea that technology is an inherent value. When we feel a general malaise, it is because we intuitively feel we are submitting to the machine, rather than having the machine submit to us. The suffering is real, and people have been describing it for a long long time. The problem is, we can't seem to shake it. There was already great clarity on these topics in the 70s. Yet, we keep doubling down. Technology needs to become a tool again, not an end of itself. Only then, when we've rejected modernism, we'll be able to imagine new futures.
- oldsklgdfth 4y ago
  A book on this topic I really enjoy is Technopolis by Neil Postman. He makes the case that technology is a tradeoff and must be viewed as such. It hasn't been till recently that we built a society that is technology for technology sake.
- juve1996 4y ago
  For most purposes the entire world is largely capitalist. Even if there are some non-capitalist policies, the global economy is largely capitalist.
cmonnow 4y ago
> Do I NEED Alexa to turn on the light? I can walk, I can do it myself. Do I NEED NETFLIX to watch TV ? I can watch other channels. Do I NEED a TV for entertainment ? I can enjoy nature walks. Do I NEED nature walks to be happy ? I can meditate in peace like a monk. The words WANT and NEED are arbitrary, subjective and interchange-able.

jmfldn 4y ago

"The scary part is that all this technology that is integrated kinda just promotes more consumerism. Advertising and marketing are a huge point to this technology. It's scary to think that we just give children ( not just teenagers) access to the internet." "The part you don't realize is that we are in a dystopia. You are optimistic thinking that we are "building it". It will exist somewhere down the line, but it's not yet present." Big yes to both of these. I've come to the conclusion that within the current economic and political paradigm, namely capitalism in its current form at least, this exponential tech explosion can only lead to more consumerism, more control and manipulation. My conclusion is that if we want this level of technology we need radically more democracy and a more egalitarian economic system with far far less inequality. Embedded in our current system, I see only a dystopia arising (or continuing to evolve).

trgn 4y ago

We are living not in a capitalist dystopia, we live in a modernist dystopia. That is, technology itself is the value, rather than a means to an end. You can live in, say, in a socialist or fascist society, and you would still be subjected to modernism. It permeates everything. e.g. > It's kinda weird that you wouldn't just listen to your body. That's precisely the modernist sickness of the mind. The idea that we need technological mediation for cooking, eating, exercise,... and that because these activities are mediated by technology (ideally speaking, the high technology of that time), it is inherently better. The amish were famously the first to reject modernism, and they did so in quite an extreme fashion. They don't reject technology, but they reject the idea that technology is an inherent value. When we feel a general malaise, it is because we intuitively feel we are submitting to the machine, rather than having the machine submit to us. The suffering is real, and people have been describing it for a long long time. The problem is, we can't seem to shake it. There was already great clarity on these topics in the 70s. Yet, we keep doubling down. Technology needs to become a tool again, not an end of itself. Only then, when we've rejected modernism, we'll be able to imagine new futures.

oldsklgdfth 4y ago
A book on this topic I really enjoy is Technopolis by Neil Postman. He makes the case that technology is a tradeoff and must be viewed as such. It hasn't been till recently that we built a society that is technology for technology sake.
juve1996 4y ago
For most purposes the entire world is largely capitalist. Even if there are some non-capitalist policies, the global economy is largely capitalist.

cmonnow 4y ago

> Do I NEED Alexa to turn on the light? I can walk, I can do it myself. Do I NEED NETFLIX to watch TV ? I can watch other channels. Do I NEED a TV for entertainment ? I can enjoy nature walks. Do I NEED nature walks to be happy ? I can meditate in peace like a monk. The words WANT and NEED are arbitrary, subjective and interchange-able.