The Culprit in Making America Lazy: Technology! (Its Effects on Manners, Education, and Common Sense)
“Back in the day”, I remember our American society being very open and much more carefree than it is today as we used to look out for one another in a very caring and respectful way. People seemingly got along and appeared to be much more extroverted, although, the 60’s were filled with their challenges with its assassinations, racial strife, political tensions, and Viet Nam, we still were able to amicably be social and experience civil discourse. Certainly, from this Baby Boomer’s perspective, today’s society is very different and seems closed, introverted, not very friendly almost angry, and it certainly feels unsafe. Growing up I felt folks were immersed in one another whereas today they’re only focused on themselves. Of course, the culprit for this is “technology” which not only has so drastically negatively effected our American society, but has also been the main reason for making America lazy!
MANNERS
Instead of looking out for one another today, we’re only into our technology–it’s so apparent and actually just so disappointing and disgusting as our social skills are virtually non-existent. My prime example is going into a restaurant and seeing almost everyone completely engaged and focused on either their phone or laptop even when they’re not dining alone. It should be all about moderation, but when it comes to technology, we’re consumed. Personal interaction with others has just completely disappeared.
My parents taught me the importance of proper public interaction where I was courteous and polite always looking those I was interacting with directly in the eye and not only learning how to talk civilly, but to listen intently as that was the polite and proper thing to do. Society reinforced this behavior as our schools placed significant emphasis on civility as did children’s television “back in the day” with the likes of “Captain Kangaroo” and the importance in using the words “please” and “thank you”.
Today, due to the compulsion and addiction to technology, civil interaction and manners have all but gone by the wayside. Most companies have been forced to include in their orientation process for new associates classes on social graces and etiquette. Texting is now the preferred method in how people tend to communicate which is alarming to this Baby Boomer. I predict in fifty years, through mutation, every human being will have some type of device already attached to their body at birth!
EDUCATION
When I was growing up in the 1950’s-60’s, we were educated to gain knowledge by learning the “three R’s” of “R”eading, w”R”iting, and a”R”ithmetic. We read extensively exploring all types of writings with an emphasis on the “classics”. We learned to write in order to state what we had taken from our readings, not only being taught how to print, but how to actually handwrite in cursive. We, through methods like flash cards and multiplication tables, learned our arithmetic always doing the long form of math being certain to show your work. We had no calculators, no computers, no smart phones–there’re were no short cuts. Not only did we learn, but we retained as we had to perform our due diligence. That included lots of reading and research, note taking, creating an outline, going to the library and knowing how to utilize the tools within the library, using an encyclopedia (World Book, Encyclopedia Britannica, or Collier’s), creating a “rough draft”, mastering your weekly spelling words, counting with an abacus, using a slide rule, a triangular architectural scale, rulers, or protractor–whew!!
Going to school and getting an education “back in the day” was hard work–there were no short cuts. You were taught, you learned, and you retained–there was no lazy back then!
COMMOM SENSE
Additionally, technology has eliminated what little common sense exists in our society today. Seemingly, our younger generations rely so much on technology that they have no concept of the importance of common sense in the decision-making process. Being “book smart”, which was bad enough, has now been replaced by being “techno smart”, which is so much worse, and neither can stand in as a replacement for good old common sense.
We Baby Boomers developed our common sense from living life the way it was lived in the 1950’s and 60’s. We were given a lot of freedom and independence as long as we conformed to the parameters and expectations laid out in the family structure knowing there were consequences and accountability for our behavior–we became disciplined by practicing self-discipline. It gave us the opportunity to learn from our experiences and just figure stuff out on our own. As we grew up and matured, we developed common sense as we became “street smart” learning more from our mistakes and poor decisions than when everything worked out as planned which was an anomaly. Getting knocked down was a really good thing as long as we rebounded and got right back up again and again–and we did!
Our generation had the ingenuity to be able to figure it out–we succeeded only because we had failed! We were curious and we learned to be impatiently patient not only being able to focus, but to finish no matter the effort put forth. Technology has all but erased all of this from society. Today, unless technology can figure it out, it doesn’t get figured out and now with AI, it’s all the more scary.
WE’RE LAZY!
So, it’s my declaration that technology is the culprit which has made our society lazy! We’ve allowed it to perpetuate us to become so compulsively dependent on it that we’re now brain dead unable to grapple with life without it. In fact, if we don’t have it within constant reach, we become extremely jittery and literally unable to function due to the heebie jeebies. We just can’t get enough of it as it has taken over our very being!
CONCLUSION
There’s so much information available, this Baby Boomer has no clue as to what is good information vs what is bad information and what information is to be believed vs what information is to be avoided as it could be a scam or a way to steal your identification and personal information. This era of technology and the threat of cybercrime and the focus now on cybersecurity is daunting–you can’t trust anyone or anything and you must be so careful. Bottom line is our society has placed “all of its eggs” in the “basket of technology”! Not only is this very, very dangerous, it’s extremely frightening and I’m so scared of what the outcome may be and the longer lasting effect on our society. Common sense tells you one thing’s for sure, it ain’t gonna turn out good!!