The idea is very different than the reality. The freedom of information, communication, and variety are so much better now.
Need a job, get a newspaper for classified ads and take whatever you can get, or start calling friends and networking when you’re lucky to get a voicemail.
Want to unwind and watch something? You can spend all evening flipping through channel after channel of garbage.
Need to learn something, prepare to spend days going to different public libraries to find anything useful. Most people don’t learn anything. Most people’s only adult social connection is though religion. It is a small dumb world where I grew up.
One thing I would not take for granted is the massive amount of information out there for repairing/ fixing things in your home. If you have an issue with your lawn mower, I guarantee that someone recorded a video of how to fix it step by step. It is absolutely mind boggling what we have at our finger tips.
Same for things like learning music. Back in the day if you didn’t know another good musician, you’d have to gradually piece together different techniques, chords, etc. yourself. Stuff that took me years to figure out you can learn in minutes now.___
It was probably somewhat beneficial that we all had to go outside and do something through; but yeah in smaller places your only real option would be a church or bar. I miss being able to hang out at the mall, for example; where you’d bump into your friends etc and different groups where there. Was sometimes like a big party. Then again, I was also a kid, we still had arcades that weren’t just dirty ticket casinos.
I called my grandfather when I wanted to learn something. The library was the backup if he didn’t know. He was a well educated engineer, and my grandmother also had a university education and an excellent knowledge of literature.
I wouldn’t mind killing off social media, but I have offline copies of Wikipedia for a reason. That shit is important.
I used to send emails to libraries for information on a certain topic and got back lots of information
How do you get an email address for a library that is actually monitored by a human that would respond?
Libraries provide it as a free service. It’s called virtual reference. Here is one such service I found by searching.
Yes, the amount of time you spent just isolated and bored was unfathomable to people today.
Ah, the good old remantization of the things you don’t know.
If they’re so eager about it, they can try taking their hands off the phone, for change.
But that doesn’t take away that other people will be on their phone when you’re with them
Doesn’t change expectations of others for you to respond to work emails or other shit at all hours. Doesn’t bring back the days of concert going paying attention instead of 800 phones being held up to record some shitty angle that will never be watched again, or people being rude while checking out, or distracted driving.
Doesn’t change expectations of others for you to respond to work emails or other shit at all hours.
That was still a thing before the internet/cellphones. My dad would receive phone calls at home at all hours back in the 90s and he was just a low level manager. He just pretended to not be home. When work gave him a cell phone, he would just turn it off when he left work and pretend his phone died.
Not sure who they are asking or if the poll is being manipulated, but I really can’t see the majority of Americans wanting this. I lived recently in a retirement community, so boomers and older. And they all use and love the internet and cell phones. And everyone younger I run across uses a cell phone (and a computer both with internet).
Imagine going on a road trip and getting stuck somewhere 3 hours from home with no cell phone
AT THE TONE THE TIME WILL BE 12:49 AND 50 SECONDS. BEEP!
No thanks. I like my internet time sync and GPS navigation.
OMG, I forgot about calling to get the time of day.
Oh that brings back memories.
It doesn’t have to be a memory, NIST still runs two telephone time numbers - (303) 499-7111 (WWV) and (808) 335-4363 (WWVH). They say they get about 1000 calls a day which is surprisingly high.
They’re still on shortwave too.
I think there is some merit of wanting to be less forced into being connected all the time but I think a lot of these people that want to go back to a time before cell phones and the Internet are forgetting all the good parts. Like no internet at all means in order to connect with friends or communities around the world you either have to send snail mail or schedule phone calls to take place on land lines. The Internet has brought so many people together in such good ways and throwing that out would be a huge shame. Meanwhile cell phones being gone mean if you’re stranded in the middle of nowhere you are now stuck and have no way of calling for help and have to find some way to get to a phone. Also no cell phones means of you are in a dangerous situation you can’t notify emergency contacts quickly or again call for help.
I get there are a lot of downsides to the Internet and cell phones but to just ignore all the wonderful and good things this technology has brought is not good. The technology isn’t the issue it’s the people and if we want to be better we need to start training ourselves and others to be better instead of just taking away good and helpful tools
TLDR: Technology has done a lot of good for the world and taking it away would cause a lot of problems I don’t think people like this realize. Better solution is to grow and be better people
I have to wonder if the real discussion here is between ‘pre-internet’ or ‘not the internet where you’re the product being sold and sold to’, because I strongly suspect it’s the latter that’s the issue here.
I’m just barely old enough to recall how things worked before the internet and I don’t think people would ever really want to go back to not being able to watch anything they want, any time they want, or not having turn-by-turn directions or even things like ordering a pizza by having to call someone on the phone.
I was just thinking this earlier today. Life just seemed more simple.
Yeah, it was. But only because it was in the 80s and I was in my early teens back then. I don’t think the world was much simpler though. I was just looking at it through oblivious eyes of youth…
Cold War was in its heyday. Russia was at war, just like today. Ronald Regan came to power. There were bloody and terrible terrorist attacks. Chernobyl blew up etc etc.
It was a shitshow.
The late 80s and 90s weren’t so bad. I think a lot of what they call “internet” is really reflecting the algorithmic, intentionally addictive social media (vs the old forums, that were sort of niche even then), and “cell phones” likely smart phones that are a prime avenue for accessing that social media. I’d probably give up my smart phone convenience for a phone-less Spotify streamer and a standalone GPS.
most definitely. no expectation of being available 24/7.
Yeah that’s on you mate, you’ve made yourself available for 24/7.
Turn your phone off or put it on a restricted mode
so only approved people can contact you and don’t open work emails after hours.
As an elder millenial, I wonder if the only people they asked were elder millenials and boomers? Because I certainly wouldn’t like to go back. Sure, I have a certain romanticism about the past (90s were the best, etc etc), I got to experience growing up both before and during the technological boom which gave a sort of “generational/technological whiplash” in a unique time in history. I remember using a corded button dial phone and the actual rotary phone my parents used to keep around for nostalgia.
But man, the internet, for better or worse, opened my eyes to so many things that I would’ve been oblivious to if not for that. So many social causes, injustices, climate and political issues, so many different communities. If it wasn’t for the internet, I never would have met a great community in college that ended up gaining me a lot of friends and a job, and so many wonderful experiences. If not for cell phones, I’d have no way of calling for help when my car broke down (one of many times) in the middle of the expressway at night, or when making plans with friends or trying to find directions to some place.
No thanks, I would very much like to stay in the present.
No way, maps and GPS are far too useful.
I wonder if ‘majority of Americans’ really means the guy who wrote this article.
Though in all seriousness I just cannot comprehend that there are people out there who really think the negatives of all this tech outweigh the positives.
I, for one, don’t miss waiting 2 hours to try and meet up with people who might have forgotten when or where we decided to meet up at, three weeks ago.
So many sitcom episodes just wouldn’t work if they had a cell phone.
I think they are likely referring to smart phones and I sort of agree with that one specifically. I’ve been tempted to get a standalone GPS but I’m also addicted to streaming music.
