Sometimes yay, sometimes nay.

I'm leaning slightly more towards nay. I love my computer, the internet, and MP3s. Motorized transportation is a great invention for seeing the world, etc. etc. I don't currently own a car and wouldn't mind having one (especially with all the filming I'm doing this month), but I can't say I really miss it. Many things I could do without. Cellular phones for instance. I've gone weeks without having a phone, and after a while it didn't bother me except that I had to mooch calls off of other people.

Anyway, medical technology is resoundingly good unless someone wants to prove me wrong. In general though, does technology make our lives easier? Today its hard to envision a world without wireless communication, but that was only fifteen years ago. I suppose its bringing people together on a global scale and we understand each other better, but are people really, genuinely happy with technological progress?

Another thing to consider. The most recent generations born into wealthy, industrialized societies will never really know the value of do-it-yourself. This includes me. What I'm trying to say is that I understand almost nothing about the world around me, how the house I'm living in was built, how to fix a car, a computer, or the inner-workings of cellular phone - pretty much everything. So there's a certain level of detachment in a sense because I will never fully be able to serve myself.

Opinions?

Technology has been instumental in increasing lifespans and lowering the death rate of babies. If these are of concern to you then I think you have to be pro technology.

Like most things in life it's about how you use them. Like organized religion, technology can be put to good use or to bad use. It doesn't make organized religion or technology inherently good or bad regardless how much others may try to make you think so.

Yay, with a capital Y.

Nay.

Are you limiting your technology era? Do we get hammers and nails? Or just loin cloths and clubs? If that?

No, is this the counter-argument you guys are throwing here? Aren't clubs a form of technology too?

Yes, that's what I mean. If I were to say "nay" for example, to technology, what am I saying "nay" too, exactly? Am I saying "nay" to all forms of technology from all eras? Meaning that I can only live as a naked human running around in the woods. Or do you mean "nay" as in how the Amish live, with a certain level of simple technology, but not going beyond that.

What I'm saying, is that I have no idea how you are defining "technology". In your header post, it seems like you mean current technology. Computers, electronics, cars. That sort of thing. Do you just mean that stuff? Or is your meaning to be all encompassing.

I'm not sure if you're being serious or not. I didn't even know what that picture was until I quoted it. The unabomber is sufficient to say Nay to technology?

My answer is "Yay".

Not being able to understand everything isn't a bad thing. The more we know about the world, the more you have to specialize in a field to actually advance collective knowledge. Look how much school we have to go through now just to be able to do work in the sciences, and how non-transferable that knowledge is. You can have thousands of hours of study in physics and not know the first thing about contemporary mathematical theories.

The same goes for technology. The amount of expertise required to design and build cutting edge equipment is astronomical. Point is, the fact that we can't possibly understand everything going on around us is a good thing (IMO) for the following reasons:

- It is an indication that we, as a society, have a vast accumulation of knowledge (let's not talk about individual intelligence/decision making )
- Because it is near impossible to know enough about things to be able to fix them yourself, there is assurance that there is always someone specialized who can fix it for you
- Not having to worry about making sure you can operate/fix/understand all the complicated stuff we use in every day life frees up your time for learning things you actually want to know
- We (at least I do) get pleasantly surprised on a regular basis by learning something new that seemed extraordinary or impossible before you knew it

Perhaps you should read teh Unabomber Manifesto. Fascinating read. Basically, his main thing is that he against all modern technologies.

What were those people in England in the early 19th century called, who were opposed to modern industrialization and they started a revolt?


BTW, I was kidding. I'm very pro-tech.

Gotcha.

I refuse to use computers.

I think technology is a burden. And as such can be both yay and nay.
The more I live my life, the more I find that simplifying is more gratifying. To me simplifying usually means "less is more" which also applies to technology.

big fuckin yay

the only nay i can think of is internet predators. and myspace. but i guess basically they go hand in hand.

Is that why you denied my friend request??

Weren't those people in England anti technology because they thought it would steal their jobs? The hand weavers all but disappeared and whatnot. This job-loss argument never really went out of style, either. I am reminded of a certain longshoreman's strike in which they wanted to limit automization to ensure a minimum workforce. And of course you're pro-tech, your people pull all the strings with the use of their Jewy-technology.

They took er jerbbbbbs!!!


I don't understand this one. We're intellectually superior and control the media and the money, but I've never heard of the "tech angle".

It is true, that there is no stereotype of the Jewish engineer, but going off of the whole "Jews control the media and government", it would make sense that the international Zionist conspiracy would be tech savy in order to further their goal of global domination. Sure, its a stretch, but where's the fun if we don't bring religion into it?

I see.

Truth is, we just hire the Chinese to do the engineering, and to cook our food.

I think it would take some doing to find food less kosher than Chinese cuisine. Well, I guess they aren't so big on dairy, but isn't that a lesser infraction than say, eating Pork?