Hello my friends.  I hope whoever is out there is having a wonderful day and is enjoying the moment’s life is bringing you.  I wanted to discuss technology but not just technology as the conduit for innovation, but technology as the conduit for consumerism in our world of instant gratification.   These are my humble opinions and should not reflect anything more than that…I could, and probably am wrong, but I do believe this might be a reality.       I thoroughly believe the revival of a state of “consciousness” correlates with the access to knowledge and information.  However, I also believe that this revival is based not on just access to information but the fact that our consumerist society is reaching the carrying capacity (I love when I spell check a word and find out that an entirely new word exists…consumerist was that!). 

I do believe that technology does make it easier to access information, like the beautiful writings from the teachers of the past…if it was not for technology, I would have taken much longer to discover “Autobiography of a Yogi” (I would never say “never” because I feel that in due time things will present themselves when you need it the most).  Technology is allowing me to face my fears by writing this blog.  I do think (I have no evidence) there is a direct correlation in the way our world is changing and the revival of the “self” as a way to level the playing feel…otherwise the perpetual cycle of needs, wants, and desires will cause a great shift in the natural equilibrium.    

I work in technology, on the intersection of data and innovation.  It is exciting to see what is possible and the monopolies that are going to be disrupted.  However, there is another side to this world and that is the ability for people to consume at a higher rate due to direct access.  One of the “tech” investors who so many people follow and admire (it is sad we idolize money makers) this bubble environment known as Silicon Valley, Marc Andreesen, recently “tweeted” (he wanted to impart his wisdom in 140 characters) “Technology innovation disproportionately helps the poor more than it helps the rich, as the poor spend more of their income on products”.  Although he was talking about how the rich used to have servants, and now people can have “dishwashers”, it still speaks to the fundamental issue about how tech is making it easier for the poor to consume…and the people who provide this reap the benefits.  For every disruptive innovation, there is the 100 “Kim Kardashian” app that is about exploiting people to consume.  There is a saying that the earliest adopters of technology are the Porn industry, and this is due to the fact that they accept themselves for who they are, vultures. A society that is built on capitalism, or consumerism, will be focused on making money due to the arbitrage opportunity provided (based on access to information, capital, and resources).  There is   a reason why the average debt per person has ballooned to 6500 (from 1500) in the past 10 years and why 1/3 of the US population is in collections…it is the fact that technology is (inadvertently or on purpose) creating a culture of the immediate need/desire to consume.  This need for instant gratification is what I care most about.

I think to a time when labor costs eventually may go down to 0.  We see that in manufacturing, self-checkouts at grocery stores, self-ordering machines in restaurants, driverless cars, etc…what happens when the few take it all, while the vast majority, are left with scraps.  The inequality debate is a reality here in the US, but it is not limited to just the US, but is now a global issue.  Although the access to information levels the playing field, it really does only for those who have the access/ability to do so.  Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerburg, Sheryl Sandberg did not come from the bottom 20%, but they were offspring of upper middle class families.  Right now only 1/20 people in the US who are born to the bottom 20% can “climb the ladder” while it is 2/3 for the top 20%. 

These issues, coupled with social media, cause society to delve further into the ego.  Social media, for the average person, is an affirmation bias.  Do you ever see anyone post on facebook about their crappy day?  On the contrary, it is just an accumulation of the best moments of someone’s life which they selectively choose to share. The other issue I have with social media is that it doesn’t teach empathy.  When a child makes fun of another child, they can see them feel bad, which in turn causes that child to feel some sort of remorse (I am talking in generalization).  However, on social media, all it takes is 140 characters and an internet connection.

I love technology and believe in the creative nature of human society.  I feel as though we will find a way.  Whose to say our time is relatively more or less innovative than the time of Galileo or Copernicus…they might have thought the same thing.  However, I do believe that we are living in a time where the need to find yourself is so much more necessary because the world has become so much smaller…technology can be a way to change the world for good, but it has started off in a way of amplifying existing beliefs. We gain energy from physical beings and not from inanimate objects…hopefully we can find a beautiful way to create harmony on all accounts.    I love people, energy and the pursuit of the self…I just hope technology can enable this rather than monetize it.