Who Are We Now?
The distinction between MAN and MACHINE is rapidly
blurring. As computers and machines move 'inward', replacing or enhancing
the fallible parts of us, we are forced to face the new technology, even
embrace it.
Contact lenses (very complex machines with a
single part), wrist watches, pacemakers, artificial hips are all in essence
'machine', designed by man, CREATED by machine to replace parts of man
(The seeds of our own destruction? or the means
for our Salvation?)
The Creators:
Men love machines, that cannot be questioned.
Perhaps men enjoy creating and using these 'things' because they are envious
of Women's inherent ability to create. Or perhaps all people are born needing
to create and Women are able to satisfy this need. If we are indeed created
in the image of our creator, then would the desire to create not be integral
to our construction?
Our Digital Altars:
As more people discover the Digital Age they
may feel trapped and slaved to the efficiency enhancers they communicate
with
every day - email, Word Processors, are not only
enhancing our communication but altering the image we create, for example
spelling and grammar checkers cover up our own inadequacies and make us
seem more 'machine-like'. This in turn generates increased competition
- everyone else wants to look as clever as well.
We attempt to change the cold machine into something
more human - Fun screen-savers, trendy colours and designs.
Tele-visions:
Every day millions of people 'Tune in and Zone
out' in front of that popular machine the Television. Imagine what could
be accomplished by one person if they ignored this mesmerizing object and
carried on with their lives. People claim that they "watch the news to
see what's happening in the world". How did watching the news 5 years,
5 months or even 5 days ago benefit us? If you did not watch the news for
1 day 2 weeks ago would you be a different person now?
Brainiac:
As computers increase in sophistication we discover
that our own minds work in the same way. Long term and short term memory,
data compression, fuzzy logic. And why not? After all we are made from
the same substance, which have the same capabilities and possibilities.
Study how a computer works and you will find out how the human mind works.
Virtual Bucks:
If money can be generated (e.g. interest) without
money actually being present, doesn't that mean that there is more 'Virtual'
money than real money? If every member of a bank were to close their accounts
today, would the bank have enough hard cash to pay out, or does the money
actually exist only in cyberspace?
The religious issue:
There are still people who refuse medical care
for their children. Even though they wear polyester-blend clothing, spectacles,
drive cars, use microwaves...they deny their children medical attention
because it is 'unnatural' and 'unGodly'.
However, if all energy is natural, then is plastic
not completely natural as well, since it is made out of energy?
The Living Machine:
At what point will man be able to create another
man? If we do will some Babelic event occur to turn us aside?
Have man and woman not always been able to control
when they create someone else? Why should there be a genetic panic now
when we've been experimenting with life for millenia.
The First Machine:
When man first flexed his opposing thumb, lifted
a rock and killed his cornered food, was he using a machine? Fast-food
joints are really just places where men can go 'hunting' for food, using
machines along the way to get it.
So what is Woman?
You tell me.