Blind Worship of Technology is a Misguided Fool's Errand
Andy Farnell of the Cybershow used the metaphor of "golden calf" last week
ONE positive aspect of persistent development around us is the robust infrastructure that spreads with it. A Tesla showroom across the road and a large stadium at eye's distance generally mean reliable power supply, stable Internet (we're not had any major Internet incidents in years!), and access to everything - it's within walking distance, be it a bike repair shop, pharmacy, groceries and so on. There are even more expansions over the horizon. The concert venue finished this past spring will soon be accompanied by a large hotel.
There is a not-so-hidden cost however. Aside from deforestation, there's noise, unruly behaviour (even criminals hanging around the corner, sometimes drunkards who left a concert) and our lovely canal became exposed to a massive construction site with half a dozen cranes. I can see half of them from my chair right now.
Industrialisation brought us all sorts of "advancement" and to some people the pinnacle of the "human experience" is some skinnerbox with social control media "apps" on it. Fool's errand? How many more people need to die? A Digital Vegan knows better than to carry a skinnerbox and apparently close to 2 million Brits still don't carry one.
Having said that, massive "5G" towers were recently erected not far from us. There were some protests, but protesters always get crushed by capital.
In reality, technology does not beget happiness. It can. Sometimes it does. Sometimes it does the exact opposite. Sometimes technology intentionally explodes in people's fists (or pockets) and some technology helps seed destruction more "efficiently", albeit not more precisely/accurately.
We must get rid of this idea (maybe fantasy/weak notion) that the advent of technology will make life better and that the more technology a person adopts, the happier this person will become. There are people who are frightened and feel anxiety about technology because the "phone" in their pocket symbolises their boss, who can contact them at any time to give them "bollocking" over something work-related (even outside the workplace).
Nature is - in relative terms - far more advanced than human-made technology. It can self-replicate and has sentience. Worse yet, since the development of (and funding for) technology is driven by the rich and powerful few* rather than a meritocracy we can expect technology to develop along the trajectory that suits them rather than the collective interest of the "masses".
The term technology does not deserve the "veneer" is once had. Things changed. A lot of technology helps humans destroy the planet faster, i.e. destroy themselves faster, and not just by means of pollution that results in climate change (and further exacerbated by all the "hey hi" hype - provably just a bubble at this point). █
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* They always crave more power and seek to maintain existing power. Hoarders just think this way, even if they don't publicly signal or admit this.