“IT’S gonna get easier and easier, and more and more convenient, and more and more pleasurable, to be alone with images on a screen,” David Foster Wallace predicted in his 1996 interview for one of his books.
Those who study people and the society in the last years will give a nod to the talented writer for warning us two decades earlier about the a society of what they call, “screenagers” (and nope, Albert Einstein never said the line: “I fear the day that technology will surpass our human interaction. The world will have a generation of idiots”).
Worse than the TV, the “screen” (smartphones, tablets, computer) and the internet, although they have positively impacted the information and communication systems of the world, have also become a culprit, not only for stress-giving fake news, but also for social participation disintegration. This includes a decline in the attendance to community gatherings, parties, and community events.
For instance; although, the social media may have made it so easy to invite people to an event or gathering, technological innovations have also made it easier for them to cancel, most at the last minute –hence, what we call “drawing lang.”
The increasing and rich volume of online content and downloadable movies (the most popular recently which is the Korean Drama), including computer and phone games, also replaced most of the younger generation’s Friday and Saturday nights.
Undeniably, more and more people today are ditching the traditional social gatherings for safe nights at home with the gadgets, or with the pleasure given by their smart phones and the internet. The world has definitely changed.
One would reminisce about video rental stores, 90s games and collecting comics, and running around neighboring forests before the madness of screen images and the screen society, but those were only our time (though I’m still a millennial myself). The older nostalgic generation would present this as another hazy premise on why their generation is better, but the fact is, the situation is not entirely the younger generation’s fault.
Modern culture in a society changes with the present available tools, in this case, it is the technological advancements which have evolved from their time...it is just how it is.
Since every member of the family today, including toddlers, have their own screen time, it should be the government’s best move to advocate and invest on the underappreciated concept of real social relationships through special events and community infrastructures – public parks, meetings, and simple community gatherings like barangay fiestas, concerts, and artistic events. The challenge, however, is on how to encourage the community’s participation knowing fully-well that they might cancel in a snap (not that I am “advance mag-isip”).
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Tourism Legislations are thriving in La Trinidad. After the Coffee Festival Ordinance, STOBOSA Ordinance, and Farm Tourism Ordinance, I would like to express my gratitude to Councilor Roderick Awingan, the Chairman of the Committee on Tourism, for proposing three more important Tourism-related ordinances which will be publicly heard on July 24, 2018 (1:30 p.m. @ the Lednicky Hall/Muncipal Bldg.) These are the ordinances establishing the “Tourism and Cultural Affairs Office”, the “Celebration of the La Trinidad Tourism Day”, and the “Highland Vegetable Week”.
Inviting everyone to attend the meeting and wishing a productive week for everyone!