Quoth the raven...

In an email, I wrote to Mitch:

"I was listening to a program about the “pornification of America” and how the increased use of porn in our media and its easy accessibility are corrupting our youth and destroying marriages and relationships. Not the best thing to hear..."

...to which Mitch posed this question:

"Many things in our society are potential pitfalls to people and marriages. I read a report how the youth of today are lonelier and more disconnected because of IM'ing and e-mail. Logic dictates think it would be just the opposite, but they have less face to face time with other people which apparently is more important. Just another example of how technology changes the social fabric. Will mankind rise to the challenge?"

Here was my response:

"Will mankind rise to the challenge? If divorce rates are any indicator, no.

Technology makes things more efficient and convenient – it’s true. From email, to microwaves, to iPods, to automobiles, to internet personals. But I think it destroys a large part of the quality of life we can experience. Email robs our ability to engage in on-the-spot conversation – it’s no wonder we grow less refined as a society with each passing decade. Microwaves rob our ability to fill the house with smells of the kitchen and taking pride in taking the time to craft a meal – it’s no wonder we’re getting cancer from the radiation and chemicals from microwaved plastics. iPods rob us of the inclination to seek out venues for music or even live music at all – it’s no wonder a good recording studio can make someone like Britney Spears the Queen of anything.. Automobiles rob us of the inclination to take a walk to get somewhere – it’s no wonder we suffer an obesity epidemic. Internet personals rob us of the opportunity to get to know someone on the grounds of more than just a superficial glance of a personals profile – it’s no wonder more people are single these days and less people can find happiness in a relationship.

Efficient and convenient, true. But have you ever given thought to the idea that, in today’s society, we can live solely in a self-engineered box? Look around you right now. The only thing you need to do your job is what you’re staring at right now. In fact, what you’re looking at right now can feed you, clothe you, educate you, entertain you, and satisfy your urge to socialize with others.

Now think – everyone in your building is doing the exact same thing that you are now. Working quietly, commandeering their life through a keyboard and screen. No art, no culture, no love – only images and ideas to engineer those feelings and thoughts in you. It’s just another form of the Matrix. Are you really living right now? Do you control your technology or does technology control you, putting limits on what you can and can’t do.

Unfortunately, our society rests on this very fabric. It’s not something we can escape. We have to learn to integrate technology into our lives, but we must also learn to cope with the bane of it all. So far, I believe we’re failing, culturally and spiritually. When was the last time you felt the electricity in the air when watching live music? When was the last time your toes curled and you were in Nirvana from making love? When was the last time you felt the ocean water against your skin while you swam through the ocean?

For you, it could be yesterday, but for the greater part of society, they are swooning to jams on their iPods, they are masturbating furiously to porn, they are watching surfing legends on YouTube instead of attempting the same things themselves. Currently, and sadly, mankind is not rising to the challenge…"