Click now, click later, just click it
Did you know that there is a meteor heading towards us to imminently destroy us?
Did you know that the ice age is almost here?
There is so much of newsfeed that comes across our eyes with such great rapidity that one does not have the time to delve in to the details. With one “click” I can buy anything I want from my mobile device while walking down a street and it is expedited and delivered to my doorstep with the wings of an eagle and arrives in the morning. With one “click” I can message anyone on the planet instantly. With one “click” I can satisfy my curiosity about any topic, find out about anyone, or find anything my heart desires ( followed by another click that can purchase it !) . With one “click” I can find out where I am on the planet. The possibilities of the smart one click system are limitless and are incorportated into my daily life so seaminglessly that I am pretty much caught unaware of my actions till I am done.
Moreover with simply a click I can open up any possible random news feed that is glossed over my eyes. Well that is nothing new. That was one of the advantages of the world wide web, the indispensible mother of all connections, the glorious internet, with its magnificent all powerful guardians, the dreaded Search engines. One cannot pass the haloed gates into the digital universe without succumbing to the auscpicious “search box.” Once my offering of curiosity has been made as I feverishly type away my impulsive question, the gates open to a flood of knowledge that has no checks and balances. No regulatory oversight for accuracy. In return these sneaky search engines grant my wish instantly, only to rape me of my identity, my location and my very hidden deepest secret desires such as my shopping habits, my preferences, pretty much tracking wherever MY eyes go. They unapologetically sell all this information to the highest bidders who then will bombard me with what “they” believe I should be buying, reading, or thinking about. Negative perspectives? NO, simply accurate observations. On a lighter note the advantages however are exponential. Connection, understanding,and knowledge shared with the speed and agility of thought. Yet there is a price.
The faster I read articles online, or links I am told that I will enjoy, I start to skim through them. Click click click….. I read, I click on to the next article, because let me just be very honest, I don’t really have the time to spend learning about everything in my day. To paraphrase ” Ain’t nobody got time for that.” And so the skimming turns to surfing and the articles are blended into a band of flashing white light as I click and read, click and read. However I start believing the articles without the chance for my brain to process the information and henceforth I imprint this knowledge into my DNA as a truth. Ah…. There in lies the rub. I will now believe anything, trust anything I read as I do not have the time for quality control or validiation or verification.
By slowing down my pace I discover that I can infact do just the opposite. Click, read, perhaps reread, process, digest, understand and act accordingly. I can now process deeper, though slower and definitely not ALL that the internet has to offer, yet more meaningful use of my time and efforts. Connection at a deeper level is more than the superficial expediency through that which I live my life. Just as an adjunct, the meteor is coming but not for millions of years. And neither is the ice age ! Yet I have read plenty of articles that snagged me in by my subconscious fears of my own mortality, only to pollute my already quite cluttered screen view now with the locations of websites where I might purchase an expensive coat, other books that I “should” read, or places I am financially unable to visit.
With one click I can turn it all off and live my life. Lesson to be remembered. Hardest thing I have ever done though……Unplug
