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I feel sad about this. Amish communities seemed like a stronghold of never-changing, perfectly off-grid and durably viable (also fairly humane) way of life with
by qwerty456127 3y ago
I feel sad about this. Amish communities seemed like a stronghold of never-changing, perfectly off-grid and durably viable (also fairly humane) way of life with clear values which wouldn't fluctuate chaotically as they do in modern cities, making a remarkably sustainable society.
The first bell rang when they started using modern kitchen appliances although powered with compressed air instead of electricity.
Now they embrace electricity and electronics.
Even from the points of so few, it still seems reasonable to extrapolate and predict Amish communities will turn very different in a century or so. Perhaps they will start using smartphones the day everyone else will forget about these in favour of AR/VR goggles.
- Loughla 3y agoThe Amish are just like the rest of us. There are some more conservative communities that don't use these things, and some that do. For example, the population of Amish near me all have smart phones and solar panels. An hour away they don't even use compressed air power for their tools. Different sects.
- qwerty456127 3y agoVery nice to know. I didn't. Thank you.
- medstrom 3y agoI can also understand adopting the e-bike. It doesn't look at all like a slippery slope that will lead to an automobile lifestyle--at least for the rest of the world, it has the effect of making car sales less likely, not more. The e-bike is a symbol of degrowth, the way forward for future cities. Why shouldn't the Amish help wave that flag?
- qwerty456127 3y agoBy the way (your mention of the "automobile lifestyle" guided me to this question), are they always small villages or dwelling within towns built by "normal" people? I wonder if they occasionally build their own towns and if they design them differently because of lack of automobiles.
- infecto 3y agoAs others have stated their use of technology has always been governed on a per community basis. I also would not exactly feel that bad, I suspect they receive a lot more romanticizing than they deserve. A lot of these communities are pretty sad as the kids that grow up in them so not have enough education to escape them if they want.
- tzs 3y agoAmish communities have always tended to changed. They just wait to adopt new technology until after it has been in widespread use among the rest of us long enough for them to see the benefits and the drawbacks. Then they decide if the benefits outweigh the drawbacks sufficiently to adopt it without harming their community.