The first casualty in the onslaught of the
virtual world is human emotions. You can see it happening everywhere around
you. And if you happen to be in the realm of the 60s and 70s, then the
transition may be very apparent and not very palatable to many too bad if you
feel that way. Also, ultimately, it doesn’t matter because the seniors are now
guests of this world for a limited number of years.
The second casualty is time too much
preoccupation with the laptops, iPads, cell phones and the like. If you
whattsapp a family member, you might get a quicker reply than if you were to
make a phone call. Also, please remember! No more sentiments like,” I called
because I simply wanted to hear your voice”. You wouldn’t want to waste
anyone’s precious time by calling now, would you?
And you can imagine what the third casualty
would be? Yes, the depth of relationships. I think the word “casualty” must have
been coined from “casual”, as in, a casual approach to everyone and everything.
Be like a computer. No emotions required.
The computer doesn’t understand them. An Alexa or Siri can answer any question
in the world but you can’t find a shoulder on it to rest your head and cry. Tears
and fears may not be found in a virtual world and would show you “no result” in
a couple of years.
Research says human beings will soon live
for 150 and more years very soon. Virtually impossible in our book but getting
there, we are told.
Virtually no one I know would agree to
extend living so long. Not if all we have are robots to communicate with. There
might not be any “real” people left by then. What a thought!
Surekha Kothari
surekhakothari.wordpress.com
Speakingtree Blog:
www.speakingtree.in/public/surekhakothari
