I don’t have to write this for most people to know that they have a growing distrust of the techy-class. As a trend, the surprising revelation is how quickly it’s consolidated at the end of 2017 and into the new year. I don’t have to bore anyone about their frustrations with Google and Facebook tracking their conversations and suggesting ads in real time, or about Apple slowing down the batteries on old phones or about anything related to Comcast or Fios or Uber or a dozen other now household names. We’ve all heard the stories of frat-boy-nirvana in Silicon Valley, about excess and suspect privilege. Where does this take us moving forward?
We first have to be honest with ourselves about the tangible benefits that we derive from things like social media and next day prime delivery of goods from halfway across the country. If we fail to do so, we’ll still be tech serfs, but of the clueless variety. We have to also understand that we’ve substantially bought into our own vices and weaknesses. While there is a lot to blame on the likes of Zuckerberg, you have to own your own Facebook addiction before you start blaming others for infiltrating your life. 2017 saw the rise of named psychological pathologies associated with things like gaming and social media use. Why of course, it’s all the overlords fault, right? You have a failed non-life that you fill with diversions and you blame the diversions.
Legitimate and non-legitimate causes to growing discontent will not go away. In 2018, both will build, neither will reach critical mass, but I think we’ll finish out the coming year with camps drawing up much more visible battle lines. The fed will be in open discussion about breaking up clear monopolistic behavior of tech companies, levying new taxes, and in general, antagonizing tech because they’re ostentatiousness is reaching new levels. It’s less clear which way the public will go in as much as we are adept and holding grievances at the same time we condemn our benefactors.
As for the nature of tech, it will march on to new good and atrocities mostly unabated. By the end of 2018, we’ll start to lose our grip on controlling artificial intelligence. (To be covered separate in these articles) The only piece where we may have a small degree of leverage is in the matter of privacy. Tech companies are trampling it wholesale right now, but they’ve been marginally receptive to push back, provided it occurs. I also believe that privacy is the one area where a percentage of people will actually throw their machines away if they feel clearly violated. However, the window wherein people hold privacy near and dear is closing. ‘Home assistants’ are taking over. Within two to four years, we (the general public) will be in open discussion about wearing or implanting them into our bodies. Once augmented, you will be a mere machine extension of Google, Facebook, and Amazon in spite of what you said in 2017.