None of these vehicles lasts forever, and the distance between popular and forgotten has never been shorter than it is today, but if this is a harbinger, there is a second governing factor.
An addiction to constant worthless communication has been established in the herd. If the drug delivery system breaks down, I can't imagine that people on city sidewalks and in supermarkets and behind the wheel will all suddenly become quiet, thoughtful and alert to their surroundings.
Last year, In Miami Beach, I met a group of four very young and handsome gay Latinos who claimed to be entirely offline. Embracing an obscurity that shocked me, they claimed to shun Facebook and similar in favor of an anonymity that I hoped, at the time, would become trendy. In a world in which there is no "Guam" for the retreating, to be unreachable is almost impossible and matches my own convictions regarding the goodness of the "gay monastery" concept.
I wonder what became of those four. I had assumed they were each secretly on Facebook, unbeknownst to their comrades.
Will veiled secrecy become the new drug for the chatter-obsessed? God, I hope so, and if so, let that one trend be permanent.
"Perge modo et qua te ducit via dirige gressum," said Venus to Aeneas.
1 comment:
I drank the Facebook koolaid when my daughter asked, "But don't you want to spy on me?" Sure, why not.
I do have friends who want to link up, and for some it's our only point of communication. I do know every single person on my not-so-big friends list, which apparently is not the case for everyone. I've been courted by friends-collectors.
Facebook tells me what you're up to, but blogging tells me what you're thinking. Blogging wins hands down.
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