The Case for Simplicity

Few would argue that the trend in today's world seems to be one of bigger, better, faster and having the most "likes". To be fair, though, this trend has always persisted. Even in ancient times it is well known that older generations complained about younger generations saying they didn't have the same values, the same stick-to-it-ness, the same strengths. So, while my observations may not necessarily be new, they certainly are no less valid.

What strikes me about today's world is not so much the same, ancient trends of reflection persisting but how things really have changed; and fundamentally so. I am speaking here not so much of the typical social and psychological tensions between the old and the young but, very specifically, about our technology and namely that of digital media. The speed and convenience of this technology have proven unbelievably helpful in leveraging the capacity and quality of life for nearly every person on earth. Services such as banking, education, transportation, access to information and even healthcare have all been put literally into the palm of our hands. But, at the same time, there is a new level of anonymity and lack of accountability. There is a facelessness to it and a lack of intimacy; things to which human beings have no collective history in doing without. And this is combined with a new level of access and dissemination which absorbs and distracts to an unprecedented degree.

Yes, there is a a kind of "digital distance" that serves to both bring us together and drive us apart. Ironically, the more convenient and personalized our services become, the stronger the trend toward loneliness and isolation grows. Social media may be the biggest example of this as it comes to be seen more and more as a driver of neurosis and withdrawal. And then there is the prying hand of the market which was once more or less tethered to the marketplace itself. Then came the radio advertising it in our ears within our own houses. Then the television fixating its viewers in their own living rooms. Then the home computer. And now the smartphone and the tablet. And now the hand of the market or the media is right there with us all the time never more than a swipe or a click away.

And this has been combined with the better part of a century of the perfection of mass marketing psychology which is really nothing more than a calculated attack on our vanity and suffering in order to get us to seek instant reward. While we all want to be happy and fulfilled, to be loved and to have a place we seem to consistently and willingly ignore the real causes of these things. Sacrificing the investment of time and sincerity, of caring and continuing to try for the flash and ego trip of buying something or chasing something we think will prove, although we would be loathe to admit it, a shortcut to all we desire. I can say with all honesty that, when I look at how advertising campaigns are designed and the feeling I am encouraged to feel by them arise, this is exactly what I see.

But what does this really say? Is the problem really us or is it our technology? While it may be argued that we are somehow victims of this new technology that excels at overwhelming our psychological defenses. Or that we are simply too dumb or unevolved to contend with it. I think differently. I think there is, as always, a lag between our societal trends and the sudden introduction and proliferation of this new level of communication and that we simply have yet to fully incorporate it into our collective modus operandi.

Let me make it clear, however, that I do fully understand the inherent social and psychological dangers of digital media and the near fusion of one's identity with external devices designed to maximize the immersion of the mind and emotions to the near total exclusion of one's own body and physical surroundings. BUT I do not see this new technology as an inherently bad thing. No more so than were previous revolutionary technologies the various examples of which have completely changed our lives forever.

No, what I see lacking in the digital technology problem is simply a coherent and healthy incorporation of it into our daily lives. We are, to put it simply, as of yet too occupied with our new toys and their wondrous effects to put them into proper perspective and behave accordingly. Like a bunch of children without parents who know any better we are forced to figure things out for ourselves.

So, what is to be done? I think the answer, just like the problem, is far simpler than we would expect: we must educate ourselves. And, where necessary, we must re-educate ourselves.