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The Coming Anti-Tech Counterculture

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Re: The Coming Anti-Tech Counterculture

#11

Post by clavalle »

betterunix wrote: post #5
clavalle wrote: post #3

The anti-technology counter-culture is pretty widespread already. I don't have a facebook page because of their policies and attitude toward privacy. And that is 'anti-technology lite'. I know a guy who bought a goat and honey farm and literally lived in a hole in the ground for a few years until he could get his mud hut built. But, ultimately, technology is useful and those that don't utilize it will be at a disadva…

I am not sure it is accurate to call Facebook a "technology," any more than it is accurate to call driving from your house to work a "technology." Facebook is built on technology, but you are using that same technology when you post a comment on HN. Not using Facebook is kind of like only driving to pick up groceries, and riding a bicycle to work.

Facebook is a technology. Someone designed and built it.

Re: The Coming Anti-Tech Counterculture

#12

Post by gyardley »

I suppose this is one possible counterculture, but I'm not sure why it's more likely than any of a myriad of other possible countercultures.

Why this counterculture, apart from what the author would like to see develop? I mean, I'd personally like to see an anti-urban, anti-density counterculture enabled by technology, but I'm not under the illusion that that's going to happen just because it appeals to me.

Re: The Coming Anti-Tech Counterculture

#14

Post by sailfast »

Strangely, I do not see this article as anti-tech at all. In order to be a part of the proposed counter-culture you suggest you must first have an understanding of technology that one could only achieve after working with it for awhile. Reading this, I could not help but thinking "so this is what the next phase of geek will look like." Rather than being counter-tech, it is just more discerning. Now that geek is mainstream, we must segment further. A more natural progression rather than a counter-cultural movement.

Re: The Coming Anti-Tech Counterculture

#15

Post by ChristianMarks »

gyardley wrote: post #12

I suppose this is one possible counterculture, but I'm not sure why it's more likely than any of a myriad of other possible countercultures. Why this counterculture, apart from what the author would like to see develop? I mean, I'd personally like to see an anti-urban, anti-density counterculture enabled by technology, but I'm not under the illusion that that's going to happen just because it appeals to me.

On the contrary, it has happened, with unexpected consequences:

...in little more than a single generation, this long relationship with nature has withered in a culture that finds Americans giving themselves up to the indoor ease of the technological way of life. Today’s average American spends most of the day indoors or inside an automobile traveling some hellish commuter road between workplace and home. Experience of his own natural habitat comes largely from watching beautifully photographed films on television. In Sterba’s word, he has become “denatured.”

http://www.nybooks.com/articles/archives/2013/feb/21/visitor...

Re: The Coming Anti-Tech Counterculture

#16

Post by [deleted] »

ChristianMarks wrote: post #15
gyardley wrote: post #12

I suppose this is one possible counterculture, but I'm not sure why it's more likely than any of a myriad of other possible countercultures. Why this counterculture, apart from what the author would like to see develop? I mean, I'd personally like to see an anti-urban, anti-density counterculture enabled by technology, but I'm not under the illusion that that's going to happen just because it appeals to me.

On the contrary, it has happened, with unexpected consequences: ...in little more than a single generation, this long relationship with nature has withered in a culture that finds Americans giving themselves up to the indoor ease of the technological way of life. Today’s average American spends most of the day indoors or inside an automobile traveling some hellish commuter road between workplace and home. Experience…

[deleted]

Re: The Coming Anti-Tech Counterculture

#17

Post by militiaman21 »

gyardley wrote: post #12

I suppose this is one possible counterculture, but I'm not sure why it's more likely than any of a myriad of other possible countercultures. Why this counterculture, apart from what the author would like to see develop? I mean, I'd personally like to see an anti-urban, anti-density counterculture enabled by technology, but I'm not under the illusion that that's going to happen just because it appeals to me.

I'd love to see a cultural movement towards anti-urban, anti-density enabled by technology. You're not alone :)

In my view we would use technology to empower people to form stronger community bonds. The author mentions food industry tech, and that's a major part of my vision also. I think we need to move towards a locally grown seasonal food source instead of shipping food to all corners of the globe just because we can. That's just one piece to the puzzle though, there's obviously a lot more planning that would need to go into it.

Re: The Coming Anti-Tech Counterculture

#19

Post by firefoxman1 »

I think it's much more likely that we'll see tech become more ingrained, yet less apparent, in our culture. There seems to be some truth to this post that we're (somewhat) fed up with tech controlling our lives and our devices/services being so needy/attention-hungry at the same time. It gets old.

But things like Pebble, Google Glass, and Nest are fixing this. Tech will be less in-our-face, more useful, and less annoying than ever.

Re: The Coming Anti-Tech Counterculture

#20

Post by Aloha »

"For example, Facebook has considerably altered how we interact with our friends. In some ways, it has benefited us — for example, I wouldn’t have been able to have the conversation with Max that prompted this discussion if he hadn’t seen my Facebook status and chatted with me after noticing I was online."

I'm a LiveJournaler, and have been since like 2003, and while the community is less busy than it was, I've been having a much higher quality of interactions on there, long before facebook was around doing anything. For me, facebook is just the latest chapter in helping people around the world connect, with more cute pictures of cats however that what came before.

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