Techno-bubble

levanty

Electoral Member
Oct 17, 2011
277
0
16
Montreal, Quebec
I’m sensing an increasing number of people out there who are just living in their technological bubble. I, for one, am doing so as I write this statement. Sure, even Einstein immersed himself in his own little world as he contemplated his theories and wrote them down…but then there was quality time spent with his colleagues, his family, his friends and his God.

Today, although the family may sit together in the living room at night (if you’re lucky), they’re all doing their own thing anyway. One has a laptop, the other a set of headphones, another watching a show. Tell me, who actually interacts on the physical level anymore?

What’s more is this modern (virtual) way of co-existing has caused our young people to become quite shy. My son complains that he doesn’t see his friends anymore. Why bother when they can sit and chat or Facebook ? I must admit that Ijoined FB just so that I could keep tabs on my adult children. Obesity is another result of this technological movement.

Is this technology like a snowball - gaining knowledge through the years -compiling all that we know with more and more knowledge until it weighs so heavy on our hearts and minds that we are no longer able to slow it down? Sometimes less is more, simple is better. Or is it more like a black hole sucking in its victims souls from daycare to senior’s homes?

What happened to good old fashioned fun? People claim that they don’t have the time to stop and smell the coffee. Has life sped up? How? Are we spinning faster than intended? Thanks to the computer (that was supposed to facilitate our lives), we no longer have real lives to live.
It’s all virtual now.

Prophets spoke of transcendental travel not knowing that this is how it would happen. I don’t have to go to Jamaica, I can visit virtually. I recently visited 2 places that prompted me to write this statement; our local airport (everyone was on their phone – or playing with it) and believe it or not – a Tim Horton’s coffee shop where no one talked to the person next to them because every single one had a phone, laptop, or some gadget that they were using. Frankly, I could have walked around naked and nobody would have noticed at either place.

How to fight this? Vow to write snail mail whenever possible. Use stamps. Go for a walk and buy them. Talk to the merchant who sells them and ask how they are doing (and mean it). When waiting at the doctor's office, talk to the people there. Leave you i-phone at home for a day. Get back to your roots, find yourself in a society of the past where none of these things were possible. Find something else to do. Step out of the bubble and re-discover yourself and those around you.

Any thoughts are welcome.
 

mentalfloss

Prickly Curmudgeon Smiter
Jun 28, 2010
39,817
471
83
I rather enjoy not having to talk to people or pretending they even exist.... thank you technology.

I don't mind seeing friends and family every once an a while. Having some nice tech helps me realize that I can fruitfully enjoy my life without being forced to "socialize" about the same fluff all the time.

That's a very sad situation my friend :sad:

Sad for whom?
 

DurkaDurka

Internet Lawyer
Mar 15, 2006
10,385
129
63
Toronto
That's a very sad situation my friend :(

Not really, it's a filter of sorts.

I don't mind seeing friends and family every once an a while. Having some nice tech helps me realize that I can fruitfully enjoy my life without being forced to "socialize" about the same fluff all the time.

Exactly. I'm not anti-social by any means, but some things (job related) I would rather do electronically, I can say more with less.
 

levanty

Electoral Member
Oct 17, 2011
277
0
16
Montreal, Quebec
I have hobbies. Cycling, photography, walking etc.
Be honest with me now. Do you not come home (most nights) and spend most of your evening in front of a box of some sort?
Sure, I'll walk my dog, cook supper and maybe do some painting or music but I'm asking "most evenings"? Be honest with yourself in anything. I'll bet most people have lost the ability to "live" outside the bubble.
 

DurkaDurka

Internet Lawyer
Mar 15, 2006
10,385
129
63
Toronto
Be honest with me now. Do you not come home (most nights) and spend most of your evening in front of a box of some sort?
Sure, I'll walk my dog, cook supper and maybe do some painting or music but I'm asking "most evenings"? Be honest with yourself in anything. I'll bet most people have lost the ability to "live" outside the bubble.

Depends on the night, but I try to have a balance of sorts.
 

VanIsle

Always thinking
Nov 12, 2008
7,046
43
48
Be honest with me now. Do you not come home (most nights) and spend most of your evening in front of a box of some sort?
Sure, I'll walk my dog, cook supper and maybe do some painting or music but I'm asking "most evenings"? Be honest with yourself in anything. I'll bet most people have lost the ability to "live" outside the bubble.
I agree with you. I'm not happy about the situation within my own family. I watch my own adult kids and their kids and everyone, just like you say, is doing something electronically. The best situation I watched recently was my own son talking to his wife. He spends all day using electronics at work so he's sick of them when he comes home. Ready for family time and real people. His wife on the other hand works with the public all day long and zero electronics (other than maybe checking a patient roster or some similar thing) so she's probably feeling talked out. She cannot seem to help herself anymore. None of us can have a conversation with her because she's constantly on her I Pad, or her I Phone. She has some other gadget as well - can't remember the name of it. All of them either in her hands or within easy reach.
My husband has become so accustomed to streaming old movies on his computer (and he has sent all of us the site so we can watch too if we want) that he can sit at the dining room table and watch a whole movie! I cannot sit like that. Yes - I use my computer. I pop on and off here all day long. I'm thinking of setting things up in a different room so that it's not so convenient. I won't sit and watch a movie on my computer. I don't want an I Pad. I'm stuck in a phone contract for about 2 more years so I can't get an I Phone. I'd like the phone simply because they are easier to use than the piece of crap I have.
We even watch TV in different rooms because we like different shows. I think things were better when we had one television with only 2 channels.
My grandson lives for the computer and anything resembling one. He is so pumped up going to bed at night he can't sleep. In the morning I have seen where he somehow quietly sneaks out and gets the I Phone and chats with his friends and plays games and on and on. Weight isn't a problem for him. It is for lots of kids but he's so busy texting and playing games he doesn't take time out to eat.
Not enough limits set. If I was in control of him, his gadgets would be at my side an hour before bed and out of sight during the night. He would do better in school and just be a better kid all around. A person could go on forever about this stuff and I'm sorry that I have. It just really bothers me.