Another Loving Resistance Fighter

I am humbled by the words of Neil Postman. “Knowledge is not a fixed thing but a stage in human development with a past and a future”(Postman P.190). When I started this class my expectations were that it was going to present a current view on cyberspace and online communication. I will be honest at the time I thought it looked like an interesting class that would fill credit requirements. Because my goal has been to get the work done, do a good job and graduate as soon as I can. But then what? I’m educated because this piece of paper says that I am. I had lost sight of the journey and was extremely focused on the outcome. Postman’s quote reminded me what I believe we all know but lose sight of and again that is “Knowledge is not a fixed thing”. What I did not expect in this class was a philosophical approach that would make me question some of my motives as well as the motives of others when it comes to the use or misuse of technology. This questioning is not coming from a place of judgment, but more from a place of wonder. This class has made me more conscious about technology and how it is used in our society and how integrated it is within our culture. Woods and Smith gave great insight into some of the technical aspects of online communication that I will admit I still do not fully understand (Introduction to Hypertext markup Language P 213) More than anything I am more aware of how technology rather than freeing us by having access to so much, so often can actually put is in a box in such a way it often makes us lose sight of the big picture. Throughout this class, I have especially enjoyed Neil Postman’s book Technopoly and am looking forward to reading more of his work. I feel at the end of this book I so appreciate what he was trying to impart on the reader. I reiterate what I stated in a previous post that while it has taken me completing the book to understand what Postman wanted the reader to glean, I do not believe he was opposed to technology. He was terrified (rightfully so) that we as a society are going to stop thinking for ourselves. He was afraid that we would stop using our instincts to base our decisions and will rely solely upon what we have been told. All of this based upon that fact that we are building our society and values on a potentially slanted one sided perception, lacking in substance, foundation and independent thought. I would imagine that a few years ago I would not have appreciated Postman’s views as I do today. Perhaps it is because as I look around me I see what he feared, and it scares me too. Technology is truly wonderful tool that can connect us with the world, but it is not and should not be our only connection. We have to remember to pick up the phone and call our friends, we need to write letters and remind people how much they mean to us. We need to turn off our cell phones, stop using Wikipedia as our only research tool and get back to the library. We need to learn from our history not only so that we do not repeat some of the mistakes we have made in the past, but also embrace it today to unlock mysteries of who we are as a human race.

Life is all about lessons. I believe that we really make no mistakes as our experiences whether good, bad or indifferent are what make our life what it is. Sometimes however, those lessons are difficult to bare and about 4 years ago I had an online communication or (lack of communication) experience that was one of those lessons you hope to only learn once. I had just completed a grueling series of courses from a man that I have tremendous respect for. So much of what he taught me was some of the most valuable, functional information I have received. His wife “Barbara” handled the day to day, money/ promotional business side of things that allowed him to do what he loved to do….. She was in essence, the (wo) man behind the curtain. After graduation I had stayed in touch with my instructor. Throughout our many discussions we talked about a particular software program that he and I were using as allowed our work to be very focused and organized. It was a very useful tool but difficult to learn. I had mentioned to him that I was friends with the engineer who developed it and he taught me how to use it. I told him that I would be happy to show him, as well as other students interested some tips and tricks. Well, the word got out that I was going to do this and before long there were several people interested.

A few days later I received an email from Barbara stating that she wanted to orchestrate this meeting of students and felt that it needed to be organized in such a way that any of the students wanting to purchase the software could have it available to them at the “clinic”. Because I was friends with Jeff (the software developer) she requested that I make these arrangements and get back to her as soon as possible. So…this went from a gesture of good will to a “clinic”. Still not knowing exactly what was really going on, I contacted Jeff where he arranged an amazing discounted package price. Many students had already talked to him about the software and were purchasing it directly from him, so they were thrilled to find out they were going to get it at a discounted rate. I emailed Barbara and told her the good news feeling very good about what I had just accomplished, thinking she would be very happy as it was a win/win situation right…………oh no, not even close.

The next morning I received an email from Barbara and she was livid. She had received word that the software developer was selling the products directly to the students and was severely undercutting their price as they were going to sell the software at the clinic at full price and that the discount was for them not the students and this was “bad for business” . She went on to call me several things the most painful was…selfish and immature working with my own interests in mind, OUCH and proceeded to call Jeff (the software developer) many terrible things too. She questioned my motives and could not believe that I was doing this for any reason that did not involve making money. Had she had the opportunity to work with me face to face in this situation, I am certain she would have known otherwise.

I realized right at that moment I could not be in this position any longer. So…….I grabbed a glass of wine, and planned to forward her email to Jeff (I bet you know where this is going) I began typing an email (to Jeff) in a thoughtful, but one sided (my side) way about the situation and how I no longer wanted to be involved, but did not know how to get out of it without potentially damaging my credibility with my professor. It was not exactly nice, it was very blunt and I thought he should know what her intentions were and how she completely misunderstood the situation. In essence I was being the immature person she pegged me for and I guess at that moment I did not care. Jeff was my friend and he would have known I was just blowing off steam. I am quite certain that he would have had some perfect, clean solution to the problem and somehow all of this would have worked out. Perhaps this could have worked……. but rather than forwarding the message to Jeff, I hit reply and sent this “thoughtful” email to Barbara.
I realize in retrospect if we would have had face to face communication none of this may have happened. She did not have the non-verbal cues p (79) that we have when taking in person. In essence she was right….I did have motives, but they were not what she perceived and unfortunately because of our CMC there was NO going back.

Expressions of who we are via....CMC

Unlike television or the computer, language appears to be not an extension of our powers but simply a natural expression of who and what we are. Postman

My father is a classic story teller. He grew up on a ranch when life was simple yet so very hard. He has seen things in his life I can only imagine. It is through his stories that I can share his rare, undocumented moments of his past. When my Dad had the opportunity to move away from the only life he knew and go to school he jumped at the chance of new experiences. As his life changed dramatically he has never forgotten where he came from and his stories are without a doubt a natural expression of who and what he is.

I had a great time talking to my Dad about the Internet. He is tickled at the idea that you can at the touch of a button find out the lineage of his Angus bulls, or track the stats of his favorite sports team. He uses the email…..a lot (which surprised me) and recently bought a blackberry so he can check his email when he is on the road (also surprised me). To my father the Internet is a novelty. He uses it to communicate with his employees when he is out of the office and loves to pass jokes to everyone he knows but he absolutely refuses to EVER purchase anything as he thinks that giving personal information online is “NUTS”. For my father the internet has provided a way that he can maintain a relationship with his sister who he only sees very occasionally in person yet they have maintained a close relationship. He can send pictures of his Grandson’s to all of his friends and family and search for “this and that here and there”. Over all he does not feel like it has changed the way he lives his life. As far as he is concerned he is still the same simple guy he always was and as far as he is concerned while entertaining and convienient it is something he could live without (if he had too, but he “is pretty fond of his blackberry”).

Like most teens my nephew Tyler loves his truck. He is restoring an old ranch truck that once belonged to my Dad, but Ty is NOT your typical teenager in many respects. Ty considers himself a cowboy through and through. He spends any of his free time on his horse chasing steers, gathering cows, fixing fences and working on his old truck. If he had his way he would not use the Internet at all, because for him the internet has been his source of school work. Ty will be graduating high school and his entire education has been through a program on the Internet. He has always been a good student and unfortunately the high school options in our area are not the most desirable. Ty was given the option by his parents in the 9th grade to go to high school or do a home school program online that was fully accredited. This program allows him to graduate with a diploma and be eligible for college scholarships. He chose the home school route because he was uninterested in the traditional high school experience. Like his Grandpa he likes the simple things in life, if he had his way he would move to the ranch my father grew up on and he would work cows. Ty is very grateful for the Internet however, as it has enabled him to finish high school in a fraction of the time it would normally take to complete traditional school and he is anxious to get to college because he wants to go to Vet School. I was impressed to see how responsible he was with the Internet. He is very comfortable using it and considers it a valuable tool. Though he would never consider purchasing anything online he does have an email account where he chats with his friends and he will occasionally “surf the net” for research, most of his Internet use is for school. As I conducted this interview with him I caught him finishing a test online. He was sitting at the desk in his boots and spurs ready to get outside…….did I mention he is a straight A student.

My final interview I conducted was with my Mother-in law Beth. While in the latter part of the age group required for this assignment she was (of everyone I interviewed) by far the most active Internet user of the three. Beth is an incredibly social person; she is very politically and socially active. She has lived all over the U.S. and has friends everywhere. The Internet has given her the opportunity to keep her community of friends together and not have to travel so much. Two years ago she bought a beautiful MAC and a new digital camera and has hired a “computer guy” to come to her house for 1 hour a week to teach her how to use it. Last week he was teaching her how to put her pictures on Facebook as she is now actively using Facebook to keep up with her friends. She has absolutely no problem using the computer to shop and orders products at least twice a month. She downloads books using her Kindle and uses iTunes often to “stay abreast of the grandkids music”. With as much as she uses the net, she was surprisingly the least confident of the three. However, she was the only one I interviewed that truly wanted to understand it and use it to its fullest potential…thus the weekly tutelage. When I asked her if the technology changed the way she lived her life she was stunned when she gave some thought to the question. The answer was a resounding “yes” and she had not really thought about how much….before now. She loves the Internet and the technology because as she has grown older and is not as comfortable traveling like she once did, it allows her the opportunity to still experience life and keep up with her friends all over the globe.

I realized through these interviews and comparing each generation that the Internet for each of them is a convenient tool that either provides entertainment, connectivity to their friends and community or necessary information for them to get their jobs done. Not one of them feel a slave to it, even Ty who must use it for his school work is grateful as it gives him the freedom he would not have otherwise. I have learned that the Internet can open doors for people. My father can stay connected with his sister even though she lives 1000 miles away and keep up with his employees when he is out of the office. My nephew can accomplish his goals and focus his dreams without unwanted distractions and my Mother-in –law, while perhaps considered “old” in numbers can maintain her youthful spirit, her connections with friends and her community involvement nearly all at the same time. Postman is right about language as each of these people I interviewed without a doubt use it as an expression of who they are…..and they are unafraid to use the computer to transmit it.