The release of the new iPad (the 9.7-inch touch screen Web-surfing app-running movie-playing and oh-so-much-more Apple apparatus retailing for $499) has left many of us feeling technologically insufficient especially if you like me are still sporting a first generation video iPod. My poor little scratched but loyal iPod already felt inadequate next to iTouches and iPhones. Now that the iPad is out I am afraid my tiny-screened 30-gig is going to commit iPod suicide out of sheer embarrassment.
This new development compounded by the announcement that Harry Potter 7 and 7.5 will be almost exclusively in 3-D as well as Stanford’s development of miniature helicopters with artificial intelligence has made me a little technology-paranoid. In 30 years I am sure we’ll all be dressing like Lady Gaga and sporting sentient 3-D helmets that allow us to watch “Spiderman 17” in a far more interactive (and seizure-inducing) manner.
Those of us who cannot or refuse to keep up will be forced into the one of the oldest of technological traditions— Luddism. For those of you who slept through AP European history in high school the Luddite movement protested technology in industrialist-era England. Their technophobia manifested itself in the random smashing of large pieces of technology.
While I will restrain myself and endeavor to be slightly less destructive than those righteously indignant textile workers I think they had a good point. Though I admittedly enjoy the benefits of Wi-Fi digital cable and of course running water I also recognize that technology has its disadvantages. The disappearance of the nuclear family the obesity epidemic and acid rain are all directly or indirectly related to technological advancements.
As our society grows more and more sedentary we develop an increasing amount of technology to support our lethargy. As the gap between socioeconomic statuses grows we develop more expensive toys to show off the strata of society to which we belong. Why have a DVD player if you can show off your Blu-ray? Why have a 42-inch TV when you can watch “Gossip Girl” episodes on a 65-inch screen instead? Our society is built on excess— bigger is better whether it’s the size of a cheeseburger or more recently prevalent your personal Apple product. Sometime in the past 100 years small became inferior and moderation became mediocrity.
While the British Luddites of the Industrial Revolution may not have had to deal with these specific issues they saw that technology was threatening their way of life and decided to take action. Granted their actions were a bit extreme. But neo-Luddism does not focus on smashing expensive pieces of industrial machinery— its proponents simply believe that we should all take a closer look at how technology is negatively affecting our society.
Personally I prefer demolishing things but that may or may not be subconscious jealousy of those who do possess flashy but impractical “i-Things.”
As a remedy to our society’s rampant technological obsession more of us may just need to develop a similar Luddite-inspired awareness. Consider just what we are gaining every time we purchase our much-needed upgrade from a Zune to a ZuneHD. Don’t smash your roommate’s iPad just think twice before purchasing one if you don’t need it. Technology can be good but only in moderation.