Surrounded by Zombies

As I drove down a Los Angeles freeway recently (at 15mph), I looked around and it dawned on me that how disconnected we are from one another.....we've become a buncha souless Zombies trapped in our steel and glass cages....should you even attempt a smile or a kind word at a fellow commuter, you would be considered a freak or a weirdo.

Its the same thing with iPods and cell phones, everyone is so into themselves that we have pretty much cut ourselves off from the rest of humanity. I see people walking around and it looks like their talking to themselves, until I realize their having a cell phone conversation with another Zombie. We have become a buncha Zombies!....slaves of technology.

Im 43, in the 1970's as a kid I spent alot of time outside playing with other kids. The only TV channels we had were 2,4,5,7,9,11 and 13 so, I never spent much time watching TV.....I was always outside playing with other kids. These days there are hundreds of TV channels, the internet and Xbox to keep kids occupied, so theres no need for them to interact outside with other kids on the block and thats not a good thing.

My Dad said before air conditioning came along, folk used to hang out on front porches and TALK with their neighbors....now theres no reason to. Your lucky to get a fake smile and a 1/2-assed wave these days and thats not a good thing.

I have neighbors filing lawsuits and restraining orders against each other for PETTY CRAP that could have easily been resolved if they would interact with one-another more often, but everyone now hides behind walls (technology) to separate themselves from their fellow humanbeings.

Sorry for the long thread, but I wanted to get this off my chest. Next time your on the freeway...look around and see the Zombies Im talking about.


Maximu§

I agree with you 100%.

We have become slaves to the machine.

As you have mentioned already, the iPODs and the cell phones. People plug into these machines and block out the life around them. After already spending hundreds of dollars on these gadgets the master tells us we must buy the new version. Cell phones from only a few years ago are considered obsolete. Now you must have a phone that takes pictures, plays music, and plays TV shows. The machine tells you to give it more energy, you must plug it in or change its batteries.
People are slaves to the machine we know as the automobile. Many believe they have freedom with their car. Today you can get cash, a burger, or even a beer with out even getting out of your car. In exchange you must obey your car. "I need gas. I need to be cleaned. I need a repair. I need the loudest stereo system." You must obey the machine.
This is not freedom.
Granted all of our devices are created to help us. But are the machines there to help us anymore or are we here to service them?
Like you say we are Zombies, the walking dead. Perhaps now the machines live while we sleep?
What will the future bring? Robotics is advancing rapidly. One day these robots will be brought into our homes to make life "easier" just as cars and cell phones were.
The robots will need us to maintain them just like our other machines. They will need energy. They will need repair. They will need "bling". They will need anti-virus and spyware removal.

Do machines serve us or do we serve the machines?

kinda like forum zombies?



for me? I r PSP zombie. I'm the guy in line behind you playing GTA who tells strangers when he dies on the game.


shouldve put this in rants imo

zombeh rants.


sounds more like consumer whorism than zombism

I'm the guy in line behind you playing GTA who tells strangers when he dies on the game.

At least you are interacting with people.

hahahahahhaahahaha!!!!!!

i was going to change my lil user title to Forum Zombie.

however I only have......

496 combined points hahahahaha

Originally posted by Umbrax
I agree with you 100%.

We have become slaves to the machine.

As you have mentioned already, the iPODs and the cell phones. People plug into these machines and block out the life around them. After already spending hundreds of dollars on these gadgets the master tells us we must buy the new version. Cell phones from only a few years ago are considered obsolete. Now you must have a phone that takes pictures, plays music, and plays TV shows. The machine tells you to give it more energy, you must plug it in or change its batteries.
People are slaves to the machine we know as the automobile. Many believe they have freedom with their car. Today you can get cash, a burger, or even a beer with out even getting out of your car. In exchange you must obey your car. "I need gas. I need to be cleaned. I need a repair. I need the loudest stereo system." You must obey the machine.
This is not freedom.
Granted all of our devices are created to help us. But are the machines there to help us anymore or are we here to service them?
Like you say we are Zombies, the walking dead. Perhaps now the machines live while we sleep?
What will the future bring? Robotics is advancing rapidly. One day these robots will be brought into our homes to make life "easier" just as cars and cell phones were.
The robots will need us to maintain them just like our other machines. They will need energy. They will need repair. They will need "bling". They will need anti-virus and spyware removal.

Do machines serve us or do we serve the machines?

Yeah, you and I are on the same page, but you articulated it much better that I ever could. I think perhaps we have sold our Souls and our Humanity towards one-another for these machines (Cars/iPods/Computers/TV).

Not to mention jobs lost, in another century if you were not "all-too-bright" you could go to the docks and find honest work...now-a-days one guy can do the work of hundreds with his computerized cranes.

Maximu§

Damn you with your psychadelic avatar lysergic.
Anyways, according to mrwupy, "we are the borg, my friends".

^_^

Oh, and lysergic, git yer arse back into podcasting already damnit! WE NEED MORE PODCASTERS!

[edit on 21-1-2006 by nrky]

ah so when man is enslaved by machine and we are zombies, then what is gonna happen to machine when nature destroys it? trees may become extinct, but in my opinion mother nature will have the last say in man and machinekind