Are we loosing our definition?

Before I start with this thread I would like too mention I am still an ATS virgin and this will be my first thread. Also keep in mind that what I am about to share are my personal observations both objectively and subjectively in my 24 years on this remarkable yet strange planet. All my aforementioned observations/thoughts come directly from my mind and there will be no quoted posts form any sources besides the grey matter inside my skull. I am not afraid to be criticised by anybody on what I am about too write and I would love to get some input and opinions from all you sharp minded folk out there.

Being self aware one sometimes ponders the true nature of our existence whilst trying to understand the dualism of a chaotic world demanding for absolute order. There are so many complex and diverse systems in our current surroundings it seems almost fallible to comprehend just how intricate our natural surroundings are. Our eyes are deceiving when we consider life at a microscopic level and its capability to perfectly function without any physical intervention. The intricacy almost regulates like a fine piece of clockwork so precise in its patterns of balancing life and death. Science and technology has shown us all facets of life can be studied in advanced detail and it has lead humanity to new feats of discoveries on an almost daily basis. It is but mere centuries ago our ancestors gazed up at the cosmos with awe and confusion as to what exactly they were looking at. With no idea future generations would be travelling and sending machines into that mysterious abyss of the gods..
All this development is a clear indication that curiosity is indeed an inherit trait that lurks within our genealogy.

Besides the blatant sophistication of modern day existence there is something that makes me feel uneasy about our current place within the natural world. Our uncontrollable thirst for knowledge has lead us down an unstable road considering our mass exploitations of natural resources and our dehumanizing socio/economic systems of current class indicating status and materialistic addictions. One would be considered foolish too deny that success in the modern era is based not only by achievements but by monetary power. This perpetuated rat race we are forced to take part in has left us greed ridden and incapable of rationalizing compassion for one another for the sole purpose of not slipping down the ladder of success. It feels as if we are loosing touch with the very natural world that helped us progress in the first place.

Many argue it has always been our programming to have "savage" traits due to the relentlessness environments endured by our prehistoric cousins, but I disagree. In fact I think our nature is of an opposite stature if you take into consideration that "teamwork" is the very thing that has carried our existence for so long. Here is a simple indication that we are indeed obligated to look out for one another. Lets consider an accident scene of some sort and the fact that there will always be a crowd surrounding the scene. That collective gesture is enough to indicate our subconscious urge to help one another. What frustrates me to the brink of insanity is the large scale of propaganda and subliminal advertising being circled around social groups to make them think otherwise.

Another concerning aspect of our current nature that is worth mentioning would be the fact that our daily lives have become so technologically dependable that we feel vulnerable without some form of gadget to make things easier, especially the youth. Social networking can be added to the list of human addictions and it seems as if everywhere I go I see a vast majority of people stuck in there own little worlds of hand held conversations when they are surrounded by real people. Information has become easily accessible yet around every Internet protocol lurks a disinformation monster ready to pounce the unwary mind and cause it confusion and dismay. We are overfed with opinions around every corner and it is no wonder that since the progression of modern day psychology so many mental illnesses have found their way into "text book cases" .

This leads me too the conclusion that our humanity or the very thing that makes us, well,us is being compromised by many factors we really have no control over. I do not for see us having to go back to the stone age but I most certainly think our intelligence can be used more constructively to help not only ourselves progress but also out fellow human companions. No matter how hard you try to isolate yourself from human interaction, companionship will always be at the back of your mind because we are indeed social creatures even if we do not see eye to eye.

Thank you for taking the time off to read this thread and I sincerely look forward too reading your input on the subject at hand. It is now 2:04 AM in southern African time and I am honestly burnt out from all this typing. I am off to club duvet as DJ pillow is paying my song. I will boot up first thing tomorrow to reply to any comments and or inputs. Good things.

reply to post by FreeThinkerbychoice


Welcome to ATS, and congratulations on authoring your first thread!

You'll certainly fit in well around here, you can turn over almost any stone on these grounds and find a handful (or more) contributors who have some observation, divine message, or intuition about human nature. Among the plethora that I have chosen to read, your's is one of the better composed. So, nice job on being able to clearly dictate your theory and observations.

A lot of what you've locked on to, like the technological slavery we're slowly becoming ensconced in, are troubles that I myself faced when I was growing up. What I did differently, though, was to willfully resist the urge and desire to entrench myself in those applications. I was twenty-three when I got my first cellphone, and even now I still just use a cheap pre-paid.

When I joined Myspace, and then Facebook, I never glamoured my profile, or added a thousand useless "likes" to them. I sought to stay interconnected with my friends oversees, family who had moved away, and the circles of co-workers and classmates as I advanced through life.

I believe that the road to overcoming technological dependency comes from the individual, and not the species as a whole. It is a cultural short-coming, more than a human short-coming. Americans for sure are entranced by technology and fancy gadgets, as are most First World individuals. However, those in third world countries, or communities which favor hard work over play, are certainly populated with individuals of the opposite caliber.

If we teach our children to see technology for what it is: an escapism, not a career (programmers excluded, obviously) then we can break them of the habit of becoming a "drone." It always has, and always will, rest on how we approach the issue, and with what discipline we guide our children, friends, and family through these technological shifts.

I turned out alright. I can turn my computer off, ignore my cellphone, and don't waste endless hours in front of the TV. But I still enjoy a good Youtube video, watching an intriguing film, listening to some great music, and staying in touch with my friends and family. Will, and how we compose ourselves are what makes the difference between slave and master when it comes to technology and what makes us human.

I don't have much to say with your observations on us being social creatures, and being biologically programmed for preservation of familial unit and species as a whole. Those are, in my mind at least, empirical facts, over supposed anthropological and neurological theories.

~ Wandering Scribe

reply to post by Wandering Scribe


Why thank you very much for your compliments, they are indeed much appreciated considering that you have made similar observations whilst growing up.

Not that I have some sort of superiority complex of any kind, but I find it difficult to relate to people in everyday life solely because discussing topics of this magnitude in friendly conversation normally leaves me with either blank stares or quick subject changes. So you can understand my excitement when I came across ATS and all the richly debated categories of topics it offers.

You mention when you were 23 so I take it as you are a bit older than me and unlike the general attitude toward older people by the current dimwitted youth, I can respect your input so much more as you have gained many more "experience points" than me and my generation.

Call me crazy but I believe people with keen observational skills like ourselves have a duty to "convert" others into the same sort of mindset for the sake of our humanity! Some days my frustrations reaches new heights when exposed to the general mentality, pursuit of mediocrity, and senseless sacrifices made for a falsified status.
This "heard mentality' so many are stuck in is a solid detriment on individuality and self worth. This day and age calls for self imposed leadership, and one great thing about technology is the advances in communications and abundance of free information that comes with it.

So the modern day man/woman with a little bit of effort and rational thinking coupled with realistic reasoning can have the ability to be as mentality enlightened, if not more than the leaders that like too keep the masses in the dark for their own agendas. It might have been easier for them in the past,but we as the people have no excuse to fall victim to the same tactics that have plagued our ancestors sense to thrive by believing all the lies. Being blind truly has a deeper meaning than the deprivation of physical sight.

Many thanks and regards