Saturday, June 22, 2013

Reaction to Dip's latest blog, "REal Pitfalls of Theoretical Utopia" (June 21, 2013)

My bottom line, in regard to removing live people from the transactions among people is--I hate it. It takes jobs from people, many low on the totem pole anyway and unable to find another job. I hate it--I like talking with people in restaurants, cafes, markets, drugstores, libraries, utility companies,  banks, and passing in the street. 
I feel human and connected to humanity when I have chatted with or received or given information to another human on the planet.
Yes I use email, and I like it. I search the web, and I enjoy it. I buy books online, but only because the bookstores--with clerks who were like me and interested in books et al.--are disappearing. Chicken and egg, no contest. If we/I hadn't bought in, would it have gone this far. Pandora's Box comes to mind. I have only myself to blame, comes to mind. 
I hate it when I see more self serve lines opening in the supermarket.  I hate dealing on the phone with a company whose only respond team is electronic. "For anything, push a number."
I am a hypocrite. Would I give up the electronic conveniences that I use if it could all go back to dial tone phones and snail mail letters. I have given this some thought. Would I sacrifice Skype, the only mouth to ear connection I have with my grown children now.  
Ah, there's the rub. I don't know.
and that's when I, and most people, I suspect, throw up their hands and blame big corporations or big government for the current way of life. I or we say, well I have no control over it and move on.
But I used it. I use it. Sometimes I benefit from it, sometimes not.
I do fear and dread the time when all the live help people are gone. A world without librarians would be much worse than a world without politicians, much worse than a world without armies.
Maybe it all evens out. More likely, we are on our way into extinction. I could go on, but I won't. I'll think about this tomorrow. Tomorrow is another day.
  

1 comment:

alslee said...

PS: I just cancelled my tv/cable connection and sold my TV. Poof!

Once upon a time...