Retooled

It's amazing how much clearer you think when you aren't constantly distracted by background noise or unintentionally zoning out on the internet. My mind feels entirely more active all the time and I seem to be more observant of the world around me. While it may not be true of everyone, I certainly find too much TV and the like to have a numbing effect that leaves me craving more and more. Not only do you stop paying attention to life but you also stop doing anything else. And the longer you do it, the less you feel like doing anything else.

I think we are fast approaching a saturation point with technology. The more indispensable it seems, the more of a backlash occurs with the next generation in line. I see it clearest in the form of my younger brother. At 12 years younger than me, he is a digital native. He has literally never known a world without the internet, in which piracy is the norm and virtually anything is available at his digital fingertips. And he has suffered a backlash because of it. He craves authentic experiences that happen to him personally, and greatly prefers physical media. He collects records and VHS tapes, not just because they're retro but because he feels like he actually owns it if he has them in this form. The younger generation is increasingly looking back to the past and to a time before the digital onslaught of the internet.

Make no mistake: the internet is here to stay, and I welcome it. It has become an invaluable tool for communication, commerce, and artistic expression. But like any tool, when we become overly reliant on it, it starts to cause problems in our lives and society. Just like a hammer, you should use it sparingly and only when necessary. No one wants to carry a hammer around all day.