Love this artice written by Tom Green.......Did Steve Jobs Ruin the World???

[Maverick29]

Steve Jobs is considered an amazing genius and made billions of dollars. Sure we overlook that he didn't pay his share of taxes and didn't believe in charity. But other than these occasional rumblings of dissent he is pretty much held in high esteem. We celebrate him because he invented incredible computers and phones to interact with the Internet and supposedly fix our mundane lives. And now we are addicted to these machines with most people under the age of twenty hardly remembering what the world was like without them.

The dirty little secret that nobody likes to talk about is that things just might have been better before the Internet. We had more time to ourselves before cell phones, and text messaging, and Facebook consumed our lives. But you don't hear many people making the argument that Steve Jobs could have ruined the world. That just isn't sexy on the technology blogs.

Instead we hear the purveyors of modern thought preach about how the Internet and social media have brought people closer together and changed the world for the better. About how it has freed oppressed people in Egypt and in other places. But are we in the Western world even as free today as we were twenty-five years ago? How can we be free when we are prisoners to social media, in a world without privacy? How can we be free when our every movement is tracked and every conversation is recorded and can easily be held against us? How exactly are we free if we are tethered to our cell phones?

And even worse, the human condition is beginning to devolve. We have become addicted to the vanity of social media unable to stop exposing our lives to the world. We post photos of ourselves pretending to be happy on Facebook and speak in 140-character tweets to people we don't know and will never meet in person. We have an emotional dependence on constant text messages from people that we have not seen in years, but still claim to be our friends? Is it pure freedom when these things consume our minds?

Before the cell phone and the Internet you felt a more pure sense of liberty than we do today. Whenever you left the house, and the phone, in your kitchen attached to the wall, nobody was able to get a hold of you. When you walked home from school you were alone with your thoughts, free to explore in the woods or skip rocks along the water of some lonely riverbank. Nobody could find you. You were actually alone. People were able to leave the pressures of life behind. Work would end at five o'clock. We were not pursued by a non-stop stream of electronic information scolding us about things still left to do.

Steve Jobs, Mark Zuckerberg, and Bill Gates have become the rock stars of our generation, The Beatles of our time. So nobody in the right mind would want to forcefully suggest that technology could have ruined the world. That just wouldn't be hip. Technology is the new rock and roll. Railing against it may make you look like some old fogey from the 1950s, aghast at Elvis for shaking his hips on The Ed Sullivan Show.

And yes, we love Steve Jobs because he is an artistic and at times poetic technical genius. But could the true genius of Steve Jobs be that he invented a product that costs $600 and needs to be replaced every six months? Could the true genius be how he surreptitiously ripped us all off? It's as if the John Lennon of our times held us up at gunpoint and robbed us all blind.

Unfortunately our generation is so impressed by rags to riches stories and self-made billionaires that we are unwilling to address the fact that these *******s are screwing us. Instead we find these people inspiring. In this self-centered modern society we no longer thumb our nose at the oligarchs. Instead the corporate-controlled media has programmed us to believe that with enough hard work and dedication, we too could someday become rich *******s and screw everyone around us. So we don't say anything and hold on to the impossible hope that someday we will make it into their echelon.

Life as a human being on this planet changing. Our minds need instant gratification. There is so much information available at our fingertips that television networks and movie studios will soon become a thing of the past. Why go to the trouble of seeing a work of art in the cinema when you can instantly look at a cross-eyed cat stick its tongue out on your iPhone? Why do we need to watch actors read other peoples words on that antique piece of furniture called the television? We can look at an actual drugged up out-of-work actress stumble out of a nightclub on the Internet and tell us what she really feels. And watching these people publicly unravel makes us feel better about ourselves anyway. So we celebrate the train wrecks by gobbling up their failures and spreading our erroneous opinions about them online. We don't have to wait to get home to do it either. We can be vindictive ****heads anywhere simply by loathing into our iPhones. Technology is making regular people mean.

Sure this isn't entirely new. We've always enjoyed a good fall from grace. Human beings have always reveled in driving our geniuses into early graves. The Internet has just made this so much easier. Look what happened to Elvis and Whitney Houston and Michael Jackson and Kurt Cobain. We loved to watch people lose it all. Hell a good high-profile death has always been great for ratings, even before the Internet came along. But now we don't have to wait till the evening news to enjoy watching other people fail. Thanks to Steve Jobs for giving us our smartphones. Now we now can enjoy reveling in other people's misery 24 hours a day from any corner of the earth.

Thank you Steve Jobs, and Bill Gates, and Mark Zuckerberg for making Schadenfreude convenient. It's as if we are enjoying the spectacle so much that we haven't noticed the cameras are now pointed at us. Who is laughing now?

We have no privacy anymore and there is no room for error. Now every time we leave the house we have a cell phone or security camera recording our image. We live in a world where our mistakes are documented online and can never be taken back. Our friends and neighbors can now happily laugh at every one of our misfortunes. There are no secrets anymore. A negative comment about every living soul on this planet is now just a Google search away. Everyone is a celebrity now and will have to get used to being treated like one, with a healthy does of disdain.

Today if you make one mistake and it winds up on the Internet there are no second chances. Perhaps F. Scott Fitzgerald predicted our future when he said "there are no second acts in American lives." We have to be careful. Being so easily documented and published for the world to see is very new, and we can't possibly understand the full implications. Every citizen with a camera phone is like a member of some new Orwellian Gestapo. Make one mistake and it will haunt you forever. Life was more forgiving before all this electronic crap. Call me crazy. But I preferred the old days when only our close friends and family knew that we were *******s.

It would be nice to think that somebody out there had a solution and that things are not as dire as they seem. But maybe there is no solution. Perhaps we are too far-gone in our addiction to technology and social media. It's doubtful anyone wants to return to the days of the horse and buggy. It's a pretty good bet that there is no turning back and the old world is ruined.

Thanks Steve Jobs, for ruining everything.

[Wild&Free]

What one generation creates to benefit their lives changes the lives of the next generation. The real victims are those who have not yet been born and do not know of a world in which people were islands, not roots on a mangrove tree.

[Badgerbadger]

"They" said the same stuff about people learning to read, the printing press, the telegraph, the phone, TV. Forgive me if I remain unconvinced by this article.

[wolf308]

its insane how much the younger people are on their phones.it completlely consumes them. sure have it for when there is nothing to do (like special moments working in the patch),but yeah i basically hate how bad it has gotten. i do love my phone though for the simple reason,most places i am , i can pick it up and talk to the wife and kid,at the touch of 1 or 2 buttons. thats whats nice about them, but i can leave it behind too. not these kids these days.

[rugatika]

Most of my friends can't even go into a restaurant without their phones. I generally leave mine in the truck, and I like to go hunting and fishing in the few places I know that have no cell service (or at least a really weak signal).

I've heard cell phones called electronic leashes somewhere before, and I tend to agree with that.

Lots of people will never know what it's like to be away from communication for a whole weekend.

Lots of advantages to these contraptions but they do take away as well. Just like modern flight, industrial age etc.

[Cal]

Originally Posted by Wild&Free

What one generation creates to benefit their lives changes the lives of the next generation. The real victims are those who have not yet been born and do not know of a world in which people were islands, not roots on a mangrove tree.

Its amazing, now you sit in the lunch room and watch thirty guys text, nobody says a word. Some of them are even texting eachother accross the room. You watch familys eating a meal out at a resteraunt not saying a word to eachother, all engrossed in ther phones. What scares me is that these are people who 15 years ago didnt even own cellphones, and concidered those who lived their lives on the internet "Nerdy". If in the span of a decade people can completely forget how to engage in a good coffee time BS, what hope is there for those who grow up knowing nothing besides this effed up electronic age.

If it disgusts a dude that swallowed a live mouse, milked a cow with his mouth, and caried his own crap around in the palm of his hand, then thats saying quite a bit. Ironicly people once said the same sort of things about Tom Green at one point.

[MtnGiant]

The inventors of electricity and wireless communication are the real culprits....the other guys are just an evolution of a long time ago inventions

[pikergolf]

Saddest part is, people text each other but won't phone. A conversation takes to long, it gets side tracked into things we don't want to talk about, just answer the darn question and we can move on with our busy lives. I gave up my cell, but refused to text when I had it. Now I get texts on my land line, no name just a phone no. of where it's from, and a stilted voice reading the text. Still haven't figured out which of the wife's friends is doing it, but I'm not playing, click.

For information the new tech. is the bomb, just think about this site alone. Thousands of years of experience that you can access, just by asking, mind blowing for my gen. The ideas and inspirations that get born here, wow.

For house bound people, I can't even begin to imagine how much better there lives are, almost chokes me up, now they can participate in life on there terms. I used to help a little old lady that was wheelchair bound but insisted on living on her own. Her kids built a Granny suite garage and she lived there, her computer was her link to her family and she surfed through her link like a champ, amazing. I think Skype was built for her.

[79ford]

just go to a resturant and watch how many people will be on their phones. Jobs is pretty smart, he sold everyone on phones made in China. Probably the first dude to sell a Chinese product for a price like it was handcrafted in Belgium. lol, Ipod for 200+$? Basically selling an outdated computer chip made in China.

It is kind of funny that he named it IPhone.... Probably could have called it the mephone too, thats what everyone thinks about these days.

I dont think it is the technology, it is the lack of respect people have while using it. It is apperantly socially acceptable to be glued to your phone. I leave my phone behind quite often these days. Feels awesome!

[MtnGiant]

it's the cell phone drivers that drive me nutz.
they are everywhere like rats in a barn

[fletcher]

i like the internet and cellphones. progress upsets things and when we arent around any more young people wont think our misgivings are worth much just like old farts generation after generation

[Lefty-Canuck]

Does anyone see the irony in people complaining about technology while posting on an Internet forum?

LC

[dumoulin]

Originally Posted by Badgerbadger

"They" said the same stuff about people learning to read, the printing press, the telegraph, the phone, TV. Forgive me if I remain unconvinced by this article.

Who's they and from where are you getting this information? I think the article has a valid point in the sense that (some) technologies have had perverse effects. Rather than liberating people like written print or freeing up time for us like technology is meant to, it has made many dependent on it for work or play.

That said, I think these technologies have their place, and one needs to use the wisely and not rely in them solely. I think most well balanced people already know that.... Like TV, social media, smartphones etc... It's entertainment and not a lifestyle. Those that get wrapped up into it (needlessly) are usually the same technocrats who argue that technology is our saving grace. Those who can see further; however, argue that nurturing relationships and the human spirit is far more important. I'm not sure how technology can meaningfully contribute to that in any other way than facilitation or entertainment.

I don't think they ruined the world...that's a stretch, but they certainly changed it!

[dumoulin]

Originally Posted by Lefty-Canuck

Does anyone see the irony in people complaining about technology while posting on an Internet forum?

LC

Lol...yup!

[DiabeticKripple]

Originally Posted by Lefty-Canuck

Does anyone see the irony in people complaining about technology while posting on an Internet forum?

LC

from my iphone!

i only really use my phone when im bored and to check twitter. i dont have any games on my phone. just FB, twitter, TWN, and banking.

id rather be outside chuckin flies than sitting and watching tv on my phone

[Badgerbadger]

Originally Posted by dumoulin

Who's they and from where are you getting this information? I think the article has a valid point in the sense that (some) technologies have had perverse effects. Rather than liberating people like written print or freeing up time for us like technology is meant to, it has made many dependent on it for work or play.

That said, I think these technologies have their place, and one needs to use the wisely and not rely in them solely. I think most well balanced people already know that.... Like TV, social media, smartphones etc... It's entertainment and not a lifestyle. Those that get wrapped up into it (needlessly) are usually the same technocrats who argue that technology is our saving grace. Those who can see further; however, argue that nurturing relationships and the human spirit is far more important. I'm not sure how technology can meaningfully contribute to that in any other way than facilitation or entertainment.

I don't think they ruined the world...that's a stretch, but they certainly changed it!

Can't find links at the moment, but it can be traced back to the time of Plato http://open.salon.com/blog/jlw1/2012...ger_generation

The article refers to technology. It's neither good or bad. It's how people use it. Nobel invented TNT to save lives in mining, and was horrified when its functionality was turned to war.

I was thinking, the other day, about how many people it would have taken to generate the course I taught in China a couple of months ago. Way back in '89 it would have taken a bunch of people a few months, and some of the things I could do in that course via my laptop were impossible back then. Me, I put things together in a week by myself, including computer simulations. I'm not bragging, just noting that I still have to put in 2080 hrs a year, as does everyone else, AND there's more people doing more work (not less). As individuals, we're just more productive, though our wage/salary has not increased commensurate with our output.

With regards to "people on their phones all the time", we are social primates. We are a successful species because of our interdependence, and so crave connection and acceptance. The people we see are not the only ones in the social setting we're observing. There's a bunch of people participating in that social setting that are connected to it wirelessly. It has indeed changed the way we interact. Now, I can share my thoughts with someone half a world away. And I can find out that there's people like me all over the world. To me, that makes the world a smaller, more homey place.

Us vs Them becomes more difficult, because you realize that "them" actually are a lot like "us". And so we have more empathy for people in dire straights, many cultures and miles removed from us.

Yup, it's changed the world. Technology always does.

(and how'd I get up on this soapbox? Sorry about that. I'll get my coat)

[billie]

Did Steve Jobs ruin the world?
100% disagree.

Why blame the medium?
Why would I call and interrupt my wife at work to add something to the grocery list? A casual conversation between whistles while watching the hockey games makes sense. Text.
Need a written copy of the discussion or multiple recipients, especially in business? E-mail.
When a face to face is not possible, it’s too much to type, you DON’T want a written record or you want to read some more intonation of the responses? Phone.

People using technology when they should be paying attention is simply rude behavior and, as humans, we reward it all too often. How many times do we laugh and encourage bullying, snide remarks and other generally disrespectful acts? Television shows and commercials are full of it.

If your kids are texting at the table, why do you allow it? If someone else is texting in a restaurant at another table, why would you care? If someone uses a medium you don’t prefer, simply change it. Don’t answer the text or return a “call me” instead.

If you don’t want your friends and family to know about something, don’t do it (or at least don’t get caught). If 265 million other people know about, who cares? The opinion of some kid with a pasty complexion, perched in his mother’s Oklahoma basement, should be of little concern. If your picture is taken on the street, who cares? Having your friends and family find out about something untoward is no different now than before. They may forgive you, maybe not, and what the twerp in Oklahoma thinks will be fleeting, until he finds something else to harp about, and of no real concern.

I have to borrow a quote from Hawkeye in another thread:

1. Is it my problem/do I have control? If not, put it aside....far too many people worry and wring their hands over stuff that they cannot control.....frankly, that's stupid, and a waste of time and energy. Using this rule, you 'eliminate' 90%+ of things, because you can't solve them

2. If I can make a change or have input, WHEN can I do that? Right now, after lunch, tomorrow, next week, next month, etc.

Tks Hawkeye, words to live by.

You learned to address “Mr.” MacMillan, as such, when you were a kid, and not “Mad Bob” like your Dad and his buddies did in casual banter. You learned that, most times, it is appropriate to shake hands during an introduction. You learn how to interact by translating the resulting response. Proper use of a medium for interaction is what is acceptable to both parties. You learn by growing up. You realize it with wisdom.

Humans and technology will always move on. Dissing it is part of #1 above, just dinosaur thinking, like the mythical “good old days”. Protect your privacy by controlling what is disclosed, just like we used to do, live by your principles and beliefs, just like we used to do, and take your lumps when you deserve them, they aren’t technology’s fault.

[Rusty P. Bucket]

My scholarly opinion is that hard times tend to make good people - it brings out the best in them. The Greatest Generation faced the Dirty 30's in their teens, WW2 in their 20's - and went on to build the most successful countries for their own kids. They went to the moon, they defeated fascism and communism, and set the stage for the Baby Boomers to take us to the stars.

Only they were more interested in having free stuff from the gubbermint, free health care, free housing, free education, free drugs and supervised injection sites, mass immigration - and to hell with whether any of this was supportable or not. Soft, easy times created soft, arrogant and stupid people - and we are now three generations into that and the wheels are coming off the bus.

Jobs was a ray of hope and a breath of fresh air from a generation of feckless, selfish people (including Tom Green). Jobs has paid more in taxes than a thousand Occutards, and those same Occutards are broke because they are idiots with their money and time, not because Jobs is rich. There is a growing demographic of stupid people that think that if you make money - it's because you stole it from somebody else or did something wrong.

Don't like the phone or computers, Tom? Don't buy them then.

[Red Bullets]

Ten years ago there were three influential people....

Bob Hope
Johnny Cash
Steve Jobs

Now we have no Jobs, no Cash , no Hope.

[Alberta Bigbore]

Originally Posted by Lefty-Canuck

Does anyone see the irony in people complaining about technology while posting on an Internet forum?

LC

HA!!!

[walking buffalo]

The blame needs to be placed on those who invented TIME!

This is when humanity took a left turn.

[dumoulin]

Originally Posted by walking buffalo

The blame needs to be placed on those who invented TIME!

This is when humanity took a left turn.

You, Sir, have hit the nail squarely on the head!

X2

I often imagine my life without needing to refer to it in order to guide me where it requires me to be. That's a shame...

[Bushrat]

Boss wants me to get a cellphone. Don't have the heart to tell him I've had one for three years........

[ryanmitton]

Originally Posted by Badgerbadger

"They" said the same stuff about people learning to read, the printing press, the telegraph, the phone, TV. Forgive me if I remain unconvinced by this article.

could not agree more.

[Gust]

brilliant interview, hillarious;

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BW6IoOzC-hA

on facebook

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zd2sRC3K9Hs

[marxman]

Tom green is a hopeless old fart. I was wondering how old he was when i realized you dont have to be very old to have not grown up immersed in all this techno stuff. My daughter was born in 1982 and never had cell phone as a teenager not her freinds either. If there was an internet when she was growing up it didnt have anything teenagers care about. Im pretty sure tom green is older than my daughter. So tom green doesnt know anything more than the rest of us old farts

[Wild&Free]

Originally Posted by marxman

Tom green is a hopeless old fart. I was wondering how old he was when i realized you dont have to be very old to have not grown up immersed in all this techno stuff. My daughter was born in 1982 and never had cell phone as a teenager not her freinds either. If there was an internet when she was growing up it didnt have anything teenagers care about. Im pretty sure tom green is older than my daughter. So tom green doesnt know anything more than the rest of us old farts

Born the same year as your daughter, started on computers at 6, was on the internet at 12. It was better back then compared to today.

[Gust]

Originally Posted by Red Bullets

Ten years ago there were three influential people....

Bob Hope
Johnny Cash
Steve Jobs

Now we have no Jobs, no Cash , no Hope.

Pray that Kevin Bacon doesn't kick the bucket,,, life would suck.