On a larger scale technology unites us. But on a smaller, local scale it separates us. We can now easily meet people all over the world, yet there can be a group of friends in the same room, all on their phones, not interacting with each other at all. They are in physical proximity but not present with each other.
I’m all for technology in many ways. However, there are some changes that make me miss “the good old days” before smart phones and apps-mania. My main grievance is that because now we can find so much information on the Internet and our cell phones, people are sometimes annoyed when you ask them for help. When I was young and I got lost driving, I would either ask a stranger for directions or go to a gas station. Now if you stop someone walking on the street for directions, they might actually be suspicious of you. Why would you ask an actual person (and possibly interrupt their time on their phone) when you can just look at an app for directions? Are you trying to swindle them somehow? Instead of coming from a place of wanting to help, many people now—particularly younger people who never knew anything except Cell Phone Self-Sufficiency—are initially puzzled, suspicious, or even irritated if you reach out directly to them for help. I’m not saying they don’t help or never want to, but things are simply different now.
I enjoy interacting with strangers, even if it’s just for a few seconds to ask the time (if I can’t find my cell phone, of course). But most of that is gone now. This loss of direct interaction with strangers is the flip side, and the product of, advances in technological communications (which in and of itself is quite ironic). Every upside has a downside, I guess. I just wonder how this will affect the younger generations. Will it create more me-first attitudes or will they develop empathy in other ways? Whatever the answer, I just know that I personally miss the let’s-all-help-each-other attitude and the kindness of strangers.
The Way I See It 