Here we are in the year 2012 amidst all this Technology. In the 1950's folks thought that technology was going to lead us to a life of leisure. Machines, robots, and technology was going to increase our free time. What really happened, was it increased our productivity and decreased our free time. Like the old saying "Give them an inch and they'll take a mile".

Here's my slant. In today's world of computer's, the Internet, and smart phones, the concept of being connected has changed. The quote from the 60's, "Tune in, turn on, and drop out" has come to pass in a whole new way. We tune into the World Wide Web, turn on our devices, and drop out of society. Literally. Why is that? I’ve read that in 2011 there was an average of 294 billion emails sent every day, and an average of 2.5 billion text messages are sent per day in the U.S. alone. Apparently we spend a of of time connecting without really “connecting”. Maybe it’s just a new type of society? An electronic one. Why have we as humans embraced this new electronic society of emails, text messages, instant messaging and social networking sites? There are multiple reasons, I would imagine. It’s fast, easy for the most part and readily available. I think above all it gives us a bit of a buffer. Some small sense of safety perhaps, however false in reality the feeling of security and anonymity really is. But, it’s far less personal.

Just like the art of sitting down, putting pen to paper and writing a letter is all but gone, I bet we are on a path that leads us to the loss of being able to actually interact. Person to person, face to face. Maybe it because it’s easier to deal with on the emotional level. Is it a bit less painful to have an invitation turned down via text message? Easier to ignore someone you just don’t want to deal with in that moment? Easier to say something negative or hurtful in and email, text, or electronic message? Sure it is, let’s face it, it’s hard hate face to face. I think people put just a tad more thought into what is about to escape their mind when recipient is staring back at them.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not bashing technology, or the trappings that come with it. I make my living working in a technology based field. I’m writing this and you are reading it thanks to the wonders of modern technology. I have a smart phone that somehow I am compelled to keep within arms reach at all times for absolutely no apparent reason. I have to confess, texting is still a novelty to me. Hard as it is to believe the number of people I have sent a text message to is..... three. If I have an invitation to extend, a message to convey, or want to tell someone to “F” off, I still prefer to do that face to face, or at the very least over the phone so I can hear my recipients reaction. And if you are one of the three people I have sent a text message to; Thank You for indulging me and you probably don’t have to worry about me running up the message count on your plan.

All that being said. The next time you crank up your communications device of choice. ready to send your message unto the world; whether that be a text or post on a social networking site, pause for a moment and think about it before you click send. It only takes a millisecond to to do something that you might never be able to undo.