Quote: (11-29-2012 02:32 AM)americanInEurope Wrote:
Here in Germany there seems to be a silent movement against the perceived over use of technology, from cell phones to computers to whatever. Typically I find this refreshing, having lunch or a coffee in a shop and NOT seeing/hearing everybody on their phones. Or I find it a little quaint, visiting one of my girls' relatives in a cabin in the woods somewhere, and nobody being hindered at all by the lack on internet or phone.
But lately, it seems like this movement is starting to touch MY life a little too much. Many of my girls complain that I'm too dependent on my phone or computer, that I'm on it too much or that I couldn't live without my smartphone. Even if that were true, most of the time when I'm using a tech device, it's got something to do with either making money or getting pussy. I don't game all night. So in my eyes, tech is invaluable. But more and more Europeans I meet, not just Germans, are up in arms with tech over use lately. I wonder if it's just an American thing. We embrace our smartphones and computers, and look forward to the progression of technology. I find the people here have a very pessimistic attitude towards technology progression, thinking that all roads lead to the Matrix. I wonder who is right and who is wrong.
I do think that the American overreliance on technology makes the USA extremely vulnerable to cyber attack in the event of war. One day Americans may wake up to find all their smartphones nuked, their bank accounts locked, and all their computer flash drives corrupted, and the stock market unable to function due to a massive denial of service attack.
Why would anyone choose to fight US army head on when you can just nuke the economy that runs it?
I think that vulnerability opens itself to any country or culture that becomes over-reliant on internet technologies.