Are our ideas of growth and progress fundamentally flawed?
It is evolving…just backwards (?)
Desire has always been a fundamental facet of human nature. The technological revolution, historically, was a result of man’s ability to think, innovate, and come up with ingenious solutions to satisfy these desires. The post-Industrial Revolution period has seen changes in virtually all dimensions of society, and we are now witnessing unprecedented technological progress in the 21st century. But is the current form of technological progress sustainable? Has this progress served to make the general populace more happy and satisfied? What happens when cravings grab the human mind in a vice-like grip and blur the line between ‘need’ and ‘luxury’? These questions are more relevant today than ever before.
Every day, millions of humans are working tirelessly to make machines more human, failing to realize that they are becoming more machine-like as a consequence.
So, in this article, let’s look at various components of the technological revolution that have impacted humanity the most, and try to analyze the kind of influence each of them has had on the society at large.
War and conflict:
Happiness and contentment stem from a lack of conflict, both internally and externally. Human conflict has taken various forms over the years, and it has come to be accepted as a fundamental aspect of life. As long as there is unrest in one’s mind, ‘World Peace’ will remain a utopian concept. But as the wheel of time rolls on, the conflict has manifested in various forms. Weapons have evolved from bows and arrows to guns and cannons, and now a competent nuclear arsenal is mandatory for a country to secure its future. This development of weapons has only served to increase the ‘radius of influence’ of wars exponentially. According to a research on war deaths between 3000 BC and 1500 AD by William Eckhart of Lenz Peace Research Laboratory in Missouri, USA, the pre-1500 AD wars accounted for just 4% of the total deaths while almost 96% of the deaths were estimated to have occurred in the modern period — 1500–2000AD. While the pre-modern data is open to debate, the fact that the 19th and 20th centuries account for about 86% of the war deaths in the last five centuries sends chills down the spine. The post-UN period hasn’t been a significant departure from the pre-1945 trends.
The UN has only served to exacerbate the situation in multiple war-ridden zones. The Cold War that immediately followed WW2 stands as a significant blot in UN’s short history. The Rwandan genocide saw over 1 million Rwandans killed in the battle between the Hutu mobs and the Tutsi minorities. The UN’s inability to stall such massacres shows that the organisation isn’t infallible, and might struggle to handle worldwide disputes that involve multiple countries and continents. If, God forbid, a WW3 situation is on the blocks, the destruction will be unprecedented and might toss the globe into irreversible chaos. With natural resources depleting faster than ever and the global population increasing rapidly, it wouldn’t be surprising if the major global powers try to pillage and plunder the developing countries. After all, in such situations, the primal instincts kick in, and it can quickly become a ‘survival of the fittest’ scenario. The biggest pitfalls of the seepage of technological development into armed conflicts will be more conspicuous than ever.
The telecommunication revolution:
There has been at least a semblance of ‘progress’ in all spheres of life. But the most prominent innovations have undeniably been seen in the fields of communication and transportation.
Graham Bell initiated the communication revolution with the invention of the telephone. Telephones graduated to mobile phones which have now graduated to smartphones. Various avenues for communication have been opened, spearheaded by the advent of the internet. Emails, social media, etc. are all popular and efficient ways to stay connected and share information. There are obvious and striking deficiencies to this rapid growth, which have been addressed by many contemporary researchers. The effect of cell phone towers on the ecosystem is well known around the world. Mental health specialists have written enough articles about how teens are falling prey to anxiety and depression as a result of social media addiction. One might claim: The upsides outweigh the downsides. Well, the reality does not concur with the case. The disparaging effects of continuous exposure to blue light have been known to cause macular degeneration and might lead to blindness in the long term. Add to this radiation from cell phones and mental health issues caused by social media, and we have potent antidotes to the positive of ‘bringing the world together’. But even with such adverse effects on health, the average Joe can’t fit into the society without the gadget.
How did smartphones become such a primary necessity?
Several factors might have led to its now ubiquitous nature, and one of them is a vicious demand-supply cycle. The transportation and technological boom saw many MNCs spring up, with branches all over the world. This has led to a significant number of people living outside their homelands to satisfy their on-site commitments. While this has helped them reach their monetary goals, their peace of mind and happiness have left a lot to be desired. They live thousands of miles from their loved ones, and now the same technology that separated them has offered routes like social media to connect with their family and friends, albeit digitally. A study conducted in the US with an expatriate sample size of 455 and a US-based sample size of 1460 showed that:
Three times as many expatriates as US-based workers expressed feelings of being trapped or depressed.
Twice as many expatriates as US-based workers expressed feelings of being anxious or nervous.
The study also found that more than 50% of expatriates were at a high risk of internalising problems such as anxiety and depression, which was 2.5 times their US-based counterparts.
Family members in close proximity can help people deal with mental health problems better.
Globalisation and digitalisation in today’s world have led to a society principally afflicted with loneliness and desolation. If one looks behind the facade built by the smart marketing of companies, they will most likely find that the steep growth in the communication sector has only led to greater discontentment among people.
Transportation:
Do you look in awe as automobiles effortlessly navigate roads, dwarfing distances and connecting people seamlessly? You must be marvelling at the genius of the Wright brothers who developed the airplanes that have made sprawling oceans look like lakes by the countryside. But just like sugar, whose sweetness gives intense and temporary dopamine spikes, these innovations have been nothing but knee jerk reactions to desires that cropped up. 9 out of 10 teenagers, today, must be aware of the damage that factories and automobiles cause to the environment, thanks to the ‘energy and environment’ courses taught in school and college.
The same West that heralded the Industrial Revolution is now looking to reverse it. The post-Industrial Revolution period accounts for less than 0.0000001% of the human existence, but now it has the potential to jeopardise our progenies’ futures. The complete overhaul of our habits is not a child’s play either.
Even if we face an existential crisis, people might not be ready to revert to a lifestyle devoid of their luxuries.
A majority of the European countries are considering a ban on new non-electric vehicles by 2030. While the futility of these plans demands an article of its own, the biggest challenge to be confronted during implementation is the reprogramming of the subconscious mind. A question might arise: The subconscious mind? What does that have to do with this problem? Well, research shows that this part of our brain controls 95% of our day. It requires at least 21 days of a strict regime to develop new habits that we can follow instinctively, like an automatic response to changes in our environment. So, 21 days of hopping from one charging point to another, 21 days without smartphones and laptops to shield our eyes from blue light, 21 days of replacing biodegradable products instead of their more ‘convenient’ plastic counterparts, phew! Exhausting, isn’t it? All this effort might go in vain as more research suggests that even the solutions are not sustainable in the long term! So what is the answer to this predicament?
On September 20th, 2019, millions of people from 185 countries participated in ‘rallies against climate change.’ They demanded ‘action’ from world leaders. Will these rallies solve the problem though? If the world leaders do take the required steps to curb this menace, it will lead to worldwide instability and might burn the pockets of a few very influential individuals, and governments around the world. The global economy will be thrown out of balance, and countries will be engulfed in strife and disharmony.
This is what Australian PM Scott Morrison said when he was questioned about his controversial climate policies, which could have directly or indirectly caused the massive fires in the country:
“We don’t want job-destroying, economy-destroying, economy-wrecking targets and goals, which won’t change the fact that there have been bush-fires or anything like that in Australia”, Morrison told Sydney radio, 2GB. (Source: The Guardian)
Economics and politics:
The next point of focus is the influence of the economic and political system enforced in the country. This has the potential to considerably influence the technological development of the country and the world at large. Historically, multiple methods have been tried out with varying levels of success.
Capitalism, socialism, communism, fascism, totalitarianism, authoritarianism, etc. have been at the epicentre of heated debates all over the world. It’s unfortunate to note that none of them has worked when implemented exclusively. Capitalism led to exploitation of workers, neglect of collective social good and environmental sustainability in pursuit of higher profits. Socialism, which was structured to give the government complete control over the production of products, failed too. There was no accountability on the part of the government, and tyrants like Stalin and Kim Jong-il cashed in on the system to further their despotic regimes. Today, governments around the world usually employ a mix of these systems. All these ‘isms’ are tied together with one collective binding force, another ‘ism’- consumerism. Economists, on their part, have tried taking the general satisfaction of the population into account while drafting the framework. But can a tree grow tall when the roots are infected and weak?
The world leaders believe that a country’s economy will flourish when people feel perpetual discontentment.
This can be illustrated with a hypothetical scenario: If a person believes that a smartphone is useless to him and buys a Nokia 3310, his potential smartphone seller will lose a customer. Yes, there will be someone else purchasing the phone instead of him. But what if society as a whole is content with a keypad phone? The smartphone industry will collapse. The stocks of companies like Apple and Samsung will not trundle down the slope but will instead nosedive into the abyss. The marketing departments of these companies are, therefore, entrusted with the job of exploiting the gullibility of the public to ensure the company’s relevance.
Advertisers are paid millions to make us feel inadequate. This feeling of inadequacy leads to a general sense of dissatisfaction and frustration among the public, which helps these companies generate more profit. What the system fails to understand is that the workforce also constitutes a part of the consumer society which means the same employees who work towards promoting materialism are also influenced by the same. These material-driven workers tend to get bogged down by financial insecurities and stress, which dampen their productivity. They might also demand higher salaries as a result. This cycle implies that neither the consumer nor the provider of the service is happy. A financial firm, John Hancock, conducted a survey which showed that over 69% of its workers were stressed over financial problems. The data also reveals that financial stress triggers anxiety and depression symptoms for approximately 60% of the workers.
The solution to all these problems?
The solution can be summarised in 5 words-simple living and high thinking. Unfortunately, the reverse is what is so prevalent today. This has trapped the Millenials in a bubble which they refuse to break out from. The education system must be reformed to inculcate strong core values in the next generation so that the future generations take more calculated and well-informed decisions. Our ancestors have made a lot of mistakes in the past, and we must learn from them and ensure that we don’t repeat those mistakes. Schools and colleges must develop well-rounded individuals who can think independently, and must look beyond augmenting just the cognitive intelligence of a child.
One must stop craving for more and more luxuries and must learn to be satisfied with what he or she has. Lust, greed, and anger are the biggest impediments to spiritual advancement.
While there are material goods like plastic that don’t disintegrate for millions of years, we need to have a foolproof method to sustain mental serenity similarly. After being entangled in pointless affrays for centuries, it is imperative that we realise the vanity of such undeterred pursuit of economic growth and power.
To cite some statistics to validate this, the number of Americans doing Yoga grew by over 50% between 2012–2016 — from 20.4 million to 36 million in these four years. At least one in every three adults has tried Yoga in the country. While such practices were previously derided for their so-called primitive nature, they are fervently lapped up today. But these practices are merely used as getaways from the demands of the material lifestyle. The basic ideas are still not adopted. Therefore, there is still a long way to go before such patchwork solutions are dispensed of, and genuinely sustainable practices are put in place.
I could dig more into this topic, but in the smartphone era where humans have an attention span worse than a goldfish, one deserves a cookie if he or she has made it this far into the article!
