The New Luddites?

The Luddites, as you probably recall, were a social group in England that protested the consequences of the Industrial Revolution.

The Luddites were a social movement of British textile artisans in the early nineteenth century who protested—often by destroying mechanized looms—against the changes produced by the Industrial Revolution, which they felt were leaving them without work and changing their entire way of life.

This English historical movement should be seen in the context of the era's harsh economic climate due to the Napoleonic Wars, and the degrading working conditions in the new textile factories. Since then, however, the term Luddite has been used derisively to describe anyone opposed to technological progress and technological change.

Source

But to Thoreau, the term would not be derisive.

Sometimes I consider "dropping out" of the computer age. To be sure, digital technology, especially recently, has empowered me as an artist/writer and let me do any number of things, such as make digital films, I never could have afforded to do otherwise. I also like the advantages of writing on a computer over a typewriter.

Nonetheless, I do not like all the changes I see as a result of the computer age. I don't like the loss of reflection that seems to come with added speed and frequency of change. I don't like trading 2 close friends for 543,544 Facebook "friends." The whole feel of daily life has changed by becoming more hectic, more layered, more driven.

This is the part of me that wishes I was living out my retirement anonymously in a small desert town in the southwest. Staying warm. Having breakfast and coffee out at the same place at the same time every day. Writing for myself, reading. And doing one hell of a lot of reflecting, brooding, contemplating my navel.

This said, I click the "Publish Post" button on my computer ha ha!