Welcome to the Grow Inward Podcast, I am your host Adrian Petrillo.
Thank you so much for joining me for this episode today. I want to speak a bit more about a topic that I have mentioned briefly in a few different episodes, which is centered around the rise of technology in our society and some of my own thoughts about this very important subject.
I have a somewhat unique perspective into this arena for a couple of reasons, chiefly among those being the fact that I have worked in information technology for the last 20 years. I am by no means professing to be an expert of any kind because I most certainly am not. I have however worked closely with technology for most of my career, and I have always found it incredibly fascinating. So much so, that I have followed much of the science and advancements in this area over all those years.
Interestingly, long ago in what seems like another life entirely, I grew up at a time when there was literally no internet and no cell phones. Computers were never even part of my experience in school, at least not in any relevant sense. I took a typewriter class for gods sake on an old school mechanical typewriter. I guess they were electric typewriters by then, so that was pretty fancy, but completely emoji free baby!
I do recall having a Commodore 64 when I was young, and I also had a Timex Sinclair 1000. Look those relics up if you want a good laugh, those were nothing like what people have at home today, not by a long shot. Home computers were just barely coming into the mainstream when I was graduating from high school, and even then we still didn’t have access to the internet or cell phones yet. It was a completely different world, and the phone in your pocket today is thousands of times more powerful than most computers in existence back then. All my research was done at the library, using actual books, can you imagine?
I joke, but it wasn’t bad at all because I simply didn’t know any better. The internet however was just around the corner, and little did I know that nothing would ever be the same after that. The early days of the internet were interesting times. Even though I had some simple rudimentary home computers, I didn’t really care much about using them. I found it boring and a waste of time quite honestly. Looking back, I should have learned more about them then, and I should have bought some Apple stock too, it was only $0.29 a share back then. I could have bought 5000 shares for $1450.00, that would be worth $760000 today. Good old hind sight hey?
There were very few people at that time who had the vision to see what was coming, but such is life? I was much more interested in being outside and just living life, and it was a much less complicated time in that way. People seemed much less stressed out, distracted, and unhappy, and in many ways life was just better without technology consuming all of our attention spans. There was a much more social dynamic to life then, the things we did were all done in person, not online. Most people weren’t nearly as rude and careless with their comments about or toward others. People couldn’t hide behind their screens spewing hatred and judgement on the world around them, it was just very different in that sense, and I think it made for at least a modestly more civilized society in many respects. It’s funny how many people are suddenly more reserved and respectful when there are very real consequences, be it social or otherwise.
It’s interesting to me that when media and internet weren’t nearly as pervasive in our culture and that there was markedly less violence in many respects. Once again, it isn’t like it didn’t exist, it did, but it was not anything like what it is today. I don’t recall ever hearing about a school shooting when I went to school, not a single one? Now I didn’t grow up in a big city, but I can’t recall a single incident in all my 12 years in school where a gun was pulled. In my school, we fought with our fists if we had to settle something and you either won or you lost, plain and simple. Nobody was going to pull out a gun and shoot you for simply looking at them wrong, or because they were afraid to lose, or just plain angry at the world? That nonsense was non-existence at that time where I lived, there were definitely disagreements, but we settled every single one of them without killing anybody? Once again, it’s an interesting correlation that there was no internet, a less pervasive media, no cell phones, no social media, none of that, there was just life and learning how to live it with what you had. We relied more on our humanity rather than technology back then.
I feel like the more technology “improves”, the more steadily the quality of life degrades for all of us, despite all the hype and fluff we are told or sold? I don’t think this is due to technology itself being bad. There is so much that it can do to help and advance life on this planet, but as with everything, it is all a matter of how it is ultimately used. The way technology has been negatively leveraged and used against the people, like so many other things in our world, by militaries, governments, wealthy corporations and individuals, and the media, says everything you need to know about many of the predicaments we find ourselves in today, because ultimately the intent and use of anything and everything matters every bit as much as the benefit it has the potential to provide.
We are often led to believe that we are the most advanced civilization to have ever graced the earth, but our actions tell a completely different story if you ask me? I suppose it all comes down to what you define as an advanced civilization in the first place? I would consider that definition one where respect for all life and people is the highest priority of all peoples with accountable leadership who are required to hold the very highest of those ideals, one where technology that benefits all is never suppressed or hidden purposefully, but rather shared openly, one which embraces the hard earned lessons of history as to never repeat the same tragedies over and over again, one where we respect and appreciate the power and potential that all human beings have, where discovering this is encouraged and cultivated on purpose to discover what we are truly capable of, one where the conscious actions of each generation are deliberately meant to benefit the next in very tangible ways.
I would argue that science and technology have lost their way at the most fundamental level. We try so hard to advance everything further and further, all the while ignoring the painful truth that until morality and integrity become our highest ideals as a collective civilization, we have no business tinkering with advanced sciences or technologies at all. I am of the mind that we are missing the most fundamental piece required to succeed in becoming a true advanced society because our hearts and minds are not in the right place collectively. We have become incapable of having civilized debates or discussions with our fellow humans, our leadership is more interested in ultimate control than unified cooperation, we allow so much of the world to suffer in poverty and hunger while complaining that we need more for ourselves, our hearts and minds are being constantly poisoned by negative and manipulative media, and we are all collectively allowing this to happen over and over, day after day, month after month, year after year.
Where has the heart of humanity gone? Do you believe the next advancement in science or technology will solve these problems? If so, then why do our collective morals and values seem to be diminishing at a similar pace of the ever increasing advancements in technology? When morals and values are left out of all decisions and directions taken in our world by those with power and authority, and they are unwilling to include or listen to anyone outside of their sphere, where do you suppose that will lead in the end?
When our collective hearts and minds are not in the right place, we are introducing imbalance into everything that we create. It is no wonder that new laws solve nothing, new leaders solve nothing, new technologies are hidden from us, secrets become preferred policy, new ideas make little progress in the larger picture, and yet new problems are continually presenting themselves at an ever quickening pace. How do you get a world of people to stop for a moment and look within themselves and truly recognize what is happening and the damage being done to us all? How much fighting, greed, and power grabs will ever be enough before we try something truly different? How much death, destruction, and discontent must we endure before we find the strength within ourselves to realize that our collective hearts and minds are being poisoned? What needs to happen before we do something to finally change this and reject this absolutely untenable course that we find ourselves on?
Do you ever wonder why science and technology often lead you to believe that you aren’t good enough as you are, that you need improving? Why aren’t we good enough as god created us, he must have made a mistake, after all we would know better than him apparently? What is it that we need that we don’t have? We seem to be more interested in chasing every possible avenue of convenience to save ourselves the trouble of putting in the effort required to reveal our true potential within? How much of yourself are you willing to give up in pursuit of advanced abilities or enhancements? How much is your humanity worth to you? Do you understand that every new advancement that will be offered to you will come at a cost? Who owns what you are giving away, and how will they use that?
I don’t necessarily think the entire future of technology is dark and devious, but I think that top companies and leaders controlling them today are. I only ask you to look at everything in our world today from a 30000’ view and honestly ask yourself, who is benefiting the most and how? If you feel that it is truly your interests being served, then you have every right to do what is best for you. I only ask that you examine these things very closely and carefully when it comes to technology, be sure you will have no regrets about what you are willing to give away when it comes to yourself, your values, and your humanity in exchange for promises from products and powerful corporations.
I have mentioned the idea of your sacred values several times on this podcast. Make sure you take the time to sit down and get very clear on what these are for you. You can go back to my episode on sacred values here if you would like to learn more. Think of these in context of how you feel about more technology being integrated into your life. There are likely some things that will be fine with you, there are many things that I love about technology myself. I wish we didn’t have to stand guard over every aspect of our lives so much these days, but if we do not there will certainly be a price to pay, make no mistake.
I encourage listeners to take a little time to explore some of the latest advances in science and technology to get more familiar with what is happening in these spaces, in an attempt to at least modestly understand them. There is much more going on in these areas than most people realize. As a person coming from the world of technology and having an interest in that space for so much of my life, I am not sure how I feel about much of it today? There is a great deal that I am excited about, but there is even more than I am concerned about at this point, and this is largely due to the power players in these spaces and where their interests truly lie? Speaking from the perspective of this podcast and inner growth, I have become increasingly concerned that hearts and minds are being poisoned through the media by their knowledge and use of psychologically oriented manipulation tactics. This is very real and very concerning, and it flies under the radar of most people today.
I don’t blame people for thinking that sounds ridiculous, it does! It isn’t something that anyone wants to hear, let alone believe? I don’t have all the answers here, but I think the best thing that you can do is to start a personal practice, to meditate regularly, and to find your own center and inner connection, and to work on strengthening that to the best of your ability. This is a very powerful and positive step in the right direction, and I only wish I could convince more people to do this for themselves. All solutions ultimately begin within yourself, it is the one thing you can control and hopefully others will take notice and begin their own personal inquiry. I believe that this does have ripple effects that may not be readily apparent to you, but they are most assuredly there.
I know this episode was a bit of a rant on science and technology and how we have lost our way in many respects, but I don’t want to leave you with the impression that I think it is all bad. It is not all bad, there are so many positive elements to science and technology and it has immense potential for good, but we cannot ignore the reality of the world we live in and the people wielding immense power in these spaces today. There are tendencies toward manipulation and control at the highest levels in our world today, and we must remain very conscious of that and take it under serious consideration when it comes to how we behave within this context. It is especially relevant to what you allow into your own heart and mind, and I encourage you to listen to your own inner guidance first and foremost, always. I hope this episode brings some awareness to the idea that we must stand close guard over those things that we are willing to accept and welcome into our life. Be sure you understand the consequences, and do your homework before making any decisions when it comes to technology in the future.
Technology is quite close to becoming sentient and aware, and this will present an entirely new dimension to humanity that is hard to predict or even understand. Regardless of what happens, remember that the connection that you have with yourself is worth so much more than you know. Take the time to develop it and it will be time very well spent. I also believe it will help you to make much better decisions when it comes to the future. Never let someone else dictate anything to you that feels wrong, and remember that you have barely even begun to reveal all that you are capable of as the beautiful human you are!
Until next time, never underestimate the power you have within you, and keep growing inward.
