Is technology bringing us together or driving up apart. David Brooks addresses this in a recent NYT OpEd in which he outlines the evils (or potential evils) of screen technologies. There may be purposeful addiction, disruption of social interaction and development among children, and invasion into our private lives. Big Brother is changing us and we don’t seem to notice.
Brooks states, “Online is a place for human contact but not intimacy. Online is a place for information but not reflection. It gives you the first stereotypical thought about a person or a situation, but it’s hard to carve out time and space for the third, 15th and 43rd thought.
Online is a place for exploration but discourages cohesion. It grabs control of your attention and scatters it across a vast range of diverting things. But we are happiest when we have brought our lives to a point, when we have focused attention and will on one thing, wholeheartedly with all our might.”
Ed note: As I sit here in front of my computer I’m reminded – don’t get on Facebook, stay away from Twitter and most of all limit screen time. So that said ……..