By Nathan Hritz
I often find myself longing for a society in which I have never lived. Society has changed into quite the beast, equipped with a level of intimidation unmatched by most.
Maybe it’s just me, but the technological advances that we have all come to know and love have caused a huge ripple from the way things were to the way things are. It wasn’t all that long ago when neighbors would venture to the next door over to ask for a cup of milk and when it was an oddity not to know everybody on the block.
Cellphones, smartphones more specifically, have destroyed society in my humble opinion. It seems as if everybody nowadays is too caught up in what they are doing to see the world going on around them. Notifications flood in from CNN, Vice, Fox, The Rebel and countless other news providers to my phone daily.
In all honesty, it takes away the need to be communicative. Fifty years ago, people got much of their news from word of mouth or from a newspaper. I have no doubt that I could go an entire day without speaking to another human, especially if I have access to an uninhibited well of information at my fingertips.
I’ll tell you exactly why I would never do that, or even try. When you look at humans, now and throughout history, you’ll find that we are social beings. We desire human interaction, even people as introverted as me need it, and Lord knows, I’m as introverted as they come.
I truly believe that the incorporation of smartphones to our everyday lives causes nothing more than damage to our society. Maybe I’m just speaking for myself when I say this, but when all I see is what other people are doing I start to get depressed. I start thinking “Why wasn’t I invited?” or “I wish I could do what (insert name) is doing right now,” and it is not healthy in the slightest.
I get so tied up in what other people are doing that I forget to go out and live my own life. We are all humans, we are all capable of accomplishing the same astounding feats if only we put our minds to it.
We, as a society, need to get back to truly taking care of each other regardless of our religion, skin color or who we voted for in the last election. Biblically speaking, we are to be our brother’s keeper. So, put down that phone, open your eyes and see the world we live in. Go out of your way to meet somebody new. Make a connection. Take a risk, talk to that guy/girl you’ve been wanting to talk to. Society is in danger, but it is not too far gone.
