Andrew Martonik
at Mar 1, 2013 11:11:11 PM
Why I'm not unplugging.Today at sunset, we're all supposed to unplug for 24 hours. It's called the National Day of Unplugging.
Screw that. I'm not unplugging jack squat. Here's why.
Organizers say the purpose of the Unplugging is to "start living a different life: connect with the people in your street, neighborhood and city, have an uninterrupted meal or read a book to your child."
I don't want to live "a different life." I was born in the 1960s. I spent most of my life "unplugged." Yet I'm young enough to understand what being "unplugged" means. It means ignorance, wasted time, wasted opportunities and being a prisoner to time and place.
I've travelled all over the world, and have seen how the majority of people on this planet live -- unplugged. If only they could afford Internet connectivity, their lives would be transformed for the better.
I'm supposed to "connect with the people in my street." But why are people in my street better than the people in my circles? They're not. What kind of narcissist believes that people physically near me deserve special attention?
The unplug movement assumes we're all prisoners of connectivity. I don't know about you, but being connected has set me free. It lets me go anywhere, work anywhere, live anywhere, and yet stay in constant contact with my sons and my family and friends.
By all means, unplug if you want to. As for me, I'll unplug when I'm dead.
What I really want is more connectivity. A LOT more. I want faster speeds, and cheaper satellite data and longer battery life. I want to be able to connect from the middle of the Sahara and the top of Kilimanjaro and the middle of the ocean. I want to be "plugged" 24/7 and 365 days a year.
What about you?
http://techland.time.com/2013/03/01/turn-off-tune-out-the-national-day-of-unplugging-is-upon-us/
