In the past two weeks I have been doing a lot of sitting in front of my computer, in between diaper changing, sleeping, feeding, and tending to both children. It's led me to more Face-booking, blog-reading, headline surfing.
I've accumulated and shared a lot of information, but what's been lost in this frenetic information exchange? I'm a physical presence, but I'm barely here.
The fundamental religious challenge for me right now is, I think, to try to maintain a sense of presence in the lives of those around me - to really listen - amidst the increasingly frantic pace. But also to maintain a kind of presence and groundedness in whatever it is that I'm doing. I know that the medium is only the medium, a tool is only a tool and all that, but there's something about computers that takes us away.
On that note, goodnight...
Hi,
ReplyDeleteAs a computer technologist with a 48 year love affair with computers, I submit that they are lousy tools for building relationships and community, or engaging with other people. Computes build walls between people, not bring them closer together. For all of the Twitter fans out there, I suggest that you look up the dictionary definition of a twit.
Cheers, Roger.....
Haha love the comment Roger.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you wholeheartedly. As a 22-year-old with a full-time online job for the past 3 years, my friends include the reporters at NYT.com whose articles I read everyday, the outdoor industry professionals who 'friend' me on Facebook, and myriad fans of my site. None of whom I've ever met in real life.
Not only do computers create false interactions, friendships, & realities, but they degrade your ability to function in the real world. And that's where the biggest tragedy emerges: when we replace our 'real world' with an electronic one. Soon I fear, we'll never see each other fully anymore. It'll just be a haze of technology we surround and separate ourselves with.
Leah
There may be some down sides, cyber interactions are body oder free.
ReplyDelete