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OT: Computer: A Blessing or a Curse?


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Well he was thinking it. You could tell by the look on Gary Sinise's face right before he blasted Malkovitch. He was doing Lenny a favor, man!
Actually, the favour is as much to himself as it is to Lenny. If you read the book properly, there's a guy named Candy who owns a dog which is getting really old, and is convinced by the others to have the dog put down. The other workers on the farm kill the dog. Afterwards Candy says he should have done it himself, it was his dog and he should have been the one. Same thing with George. In a way, Lennie is his dog. George takes care of Lennie and has done so his entire life. It's only right he puts him to sleep himself.Oh, and some animals are more equals than others... :)
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It is true that there are new diseases today, but a lot (not all) is based on how we live (smoking , drinking, etc)...it can not all be blamed on technology.
u r right. a lot is based on how we live. and how do we live?we want easy life with things such as microwaves with all that radiation. fast foods such as kfc- i shall not say more. all those chemicals in the vegetables and fruits now. all those preservable foods we now have. the dumbing of oils in the sea- fiiiiiish. unhealthy meats of 2day- chemicals to make them grow fast. all those drugs they make to make the sick better- um, they all have their side effects... and the list goes on.
Why would we want to know why George killed Lennie in Of Mice and Men, and who cares what Animal Farm was symbolic for?
oooohhhhh boy. this lennie story is killing me now- cause i aint know lennie :blink::angry: but i've read and saw animal farm :):blink: -----------------anyway- u cant deny that there is a big correlation between development and crime. the more we develop, the more crime. better medication- more deadly diseases. and oooohhhh- the more security we build to keep our computers safe, the more viruses, trojans, worms. etc..... then on the other side of the coin- the more harder men (and women) try to build a decent life for himself and his family, the more lazy men (and women) we have sitting at the corner of the block doing nothing to help him/herself--> smoking, guns, begging (sigh) :blink: u know what- just last night this came up in a discussion at church (yeah, i'm a church girl- :) ) about helping people and one person said that a vagrant said its easier and better to beg, cause u make money faster. and not only faster- but u wind up with more if u know how to begg good. :)
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the more we develop, the more crime. better medication- more deadly diseases.
Well, I wouldn't call that crimes really, only perhaps a small portion of viruses are developed. Most of diseases are bacteria which adapt to overcome the body's defences. Then when the body's immune system strengthens, over time so does the bacteria. This is the case with humans as well as with animals.
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But you must remember at the root of the diseases is us--our inability to keep self control and keep away from the things that are bad for us. (E.g. smoking, drinking)

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:) the biggest disease out there is we human beings. we are the ones who are killing ourselves- of course with the help of technology. :) ahhhhhh- dont scream. just accept it. (sigh) :)
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:) the biggest disease out there is we human beings. we are the ones who are killing ourselves- of course with the help of technology. :) ahhhhhh- dont scream. just accept it. (sigh) :)
Technically, I would say it is not humans, but rather our particular culture which is causing these problems. People lived on this planet for millions of years (or thousands, depending on your religious beliefs) without these problems.
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That's not true, there has always been war and violence. It is a part of human nature. Technology just makes it easier for one person (or many) to inflict as much harm as possible against their chosen enemy with as little effort as possible. It literally takes one press of a button to kill millions of people. But that's not the fault of technology, it's not the fault of a nuclear weapon for getting developed, it's the fault of the people who developed it. It's the application of the technology, not the technology itself. It comes back to human nature. Technology is always a blessing. How we choose to use it, on the other hand, is a different story.

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Technically, I would say it is not humans, but rather our particular culture which is causing these problems.
one's culture can do no harm by itself. culture is make up of norms, mores, customs, traditions, folklore, etc. It is a set of learned beliefs, values and behaviors shared by the members of a society. and who up keeps these way of life? we humans.always remember that NO one can MAKE you do anything. people can influence you highly, but they cant make u do what u dont wanna do. You can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink. someone can force you to jump off your balcony, but in the end, you are the one who jumped.
People lived on this planet for millions of years (or thousands, depending on your religious beliefs) without these problems.
problems there were. problems there are. problems there will always be. and where did problems come from? sin. satan. and when will it end? not until Christ returns to this earth again. so all the politicians can campaign for ur votes with the promise of stopping wars and crimes. but..... they are humans just like u and me. lol.
But that's not the fault of technology, it's not the fault of a nuclear weapon for getting developed, it's the fault of the people who developed it.
and not even so much those who created it, but those who use it.
Technology is always a blessing.
well, not always a blessing. creating new diseases for the sea creatures and killing them off by dumping oil, mud, trash, dirty water, sewage, other toxic wastes, etc into the sea is not a blessing,
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...Technology is always a blessing. How we choose to use it, on the other hand, is a different story.
nuf said! I could not agree more. Technology, by definition, is simply the application of an observation, identification, description, experimental investigation, or theoretical explanation of phenomena. Therefore, technology alone cannot be blamed for anything - it is the user that is always to blame.It is why lawsuits filed against the cigarette and gun manufacturers are so contraversal. If our society were to hold true to any consistency, we would be suing automobile manufacturers every time a drunk driver gets behind the wheel and ends up killing someone.With great technology, comes great responsibility.:)
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With great technology, comes great responsibility.:)
I think the original saying (at least how it's presented in Marvel's Spider Man) was "With great power..." but I guess technology is power.
...Technology is always a blessing. How we choose to use it, on the other hand, is a different story.
My point exactly.
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one's culture can do no harm by itself. culture is make up of norms, mores, customs, traditions, folklore, etc. It is a set of learned beliefs, values and behaviors shared by the members of a society. and who up keeps these way of life? we humans.
It is precisely those beliefs, values, and behaviors that are causing the problems. People within a cutlure follow those beliefs, values, and behaviors because they are indoctrinated into it and have not begun to question how their beliefs, values and behaviors are affecting everything around us. Therefore, I believe the majority of the blame belongs to the culture itself, rather than the members of that culture.
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That's not true, there has always been war and violence. It is a part of human nature.
There has always been violence. There hasn't always been war. Animals (Creationists, close your eyes!), and remember, we ourselves are animals, (Ok, you can open them) must engage in violence when they are threatened - it's self defence. There are no wars amongst any other species besides our own. It is our culture (the members of it) that engages in war. Other cultures do not. And I'm not talking about Switzerland. I'm talking about indeginous peoples who live off the land. There may be fights, and raids, but war is non-existant to them unless it is in defence against our culture.
Technology is always a blessing. How we choose to use it, on the other hand, is a different story.
I have to disagree with that too. Is nuclear technology a blessing? Sure, it can produce seemlessly endless supplies of power, but at what cost? How many of you here are old enough to remember Chernobyl? What about guns? Is that a blessing? What possible good can come of having a gun other than to enforce ones will upon another and/or to murder? You can argue that cops need guns to defend us, but that is only true because the "bad guys" also have guns. I still content that technology is a curse. Some technology has benefited our culture, some has caused great detriment. Life, however, would be much simpler and our world would be much better off had we never thought of any of it.
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It is precisely those beliefs, values, and behaviors that are causing the problems. People within a cutlure follow those beliefs, values, and behaviors because they are indoctrinated into it and have not begun to question how their beliefs, values and behaviors are affecting everything around us. Therefore, I believe the majority of the blame belongs to the culture itself, rather than the members of that culture.
lol. but u cannot blame the culture. u must blame those who uphold the culture. so- that goes right back to us--> humans. without people, a culture will die, for there will be no one to carry it on. if you are from a society where young men use a lot of drugs- it does not mean that you have to get hooked on drugs too. u have a mind of your own and is solely responsible for your actions.
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You can argue that cops need guns to defend us, but that is only true because the "bad guys" also have guns.
But "bad guys" don't always have guns. They sometimes have blades/showrds/knives and other "cold" weapons. The only way for a law enforcement to enforce someone is being one step ahead.The cold weapons themselves are also a technology (though primitive) which is both a cursed blessing and a blessed curse. You can use an axe to cut trees from which you'll make homes, furniture, paper, etc.; use a knive to cut animal meat more easily (we're predators... it's our nature... so what?).... or you can use all of the above to kill a man (and cut it's meat more easily... I mean, we are animals, right? :) ).Again, it comes up to the way the user uses the technology.
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lol. but u cannot blame the culture. u must blame those who uphold the culture. so- that goes right back to us--> humans. without people, a culture will die, for there will be no one to carry it on.
Well, then you also can't blame humans, because there are humans that are not members of our culture who do not cause any of these problems. Therefore, it's not a human problem. It's not in our "nature". It's a problem with the people who are members of our culture.
[Technology is] a cursed blessing and a blessed curse.
OK, I can agree with that! :)
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Well, then you also can't blame humans, because there are humans that are not members of our culture who do not cause any of these problems. Therefore, it's not a human problem. It's not in our "nature". It's a problem with the people who are members of our culture.OK, I can agree with that! :)
lol. heheheheheee. well, yes there are people who are not members of our culture- but they are members of someone else culture! and every single man, woman and child is a human being. so, unless we have wolves, lions and goats that looks like humans, then its not a human issue. but i dont think there are such (unless they are in the making in a lab somehere- :) ). so- it's a human thing. sit and think about it b4 u respond. whether u are from africa, asia, europe, the caribbean, the u.s.- u are a human. whether u r negroid, mongoloid or caucasoid- u r human. whether ur culture practices the class system or the caste system, its a culture. whether ur culture loves meat, or promotes vegetarianism, it's a culture. and guess what? we all fit into a culture somewhere.and by the way- culture is not only restricted to a country or a community at large. every school has its culture. every home has its culture. every church has its culture. every club of what ever kind has its culture. and who carries on the culture- we humans.lol. :)
we're predators... it's our nature...
em em em.... maybe u r a predator by nature. NOT me tho. lol.
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lol. heheheheheee. ...
It appears that my definition of "our culture" in this conversation is different from your definition. I am speaking about two distinct meta-cultures. "Our culture", to me, is the culture from which almost all modern cultures have derived. It is the culture of those who believe that they own and/or have control over the environment. Those that believe the world belongs to them. Since you appear to be a religious person, it is the culture of Cain. Cain, who shaped the world to his liking and offered up to god the sacrifice of grain. The other meta-culture is that of those who recognize that they are dependent upon and part of the environment. Those that believe that they belong to the world. The culture of Abel, whom god selected because of his offer of sacrifice of a lamb.Because the members of the latter culture are not affecting the problems that we are experiencing, they, the humans, cannot be held responsible for this. Because the members of "our culture" are affecting these problems, they ought to be held responsible. Therefore, it is not a "human" problem. It is a cultural one. :)
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But you must remember at the root of the diseases is us--our inability to keep self control and keep away from the things that are bad for us. (E.g. smoking, drinking)
Bacteria and viruses have and will always be around. The black plague was not caused by humans. AIDS is not caused by humans, sure it is spread by/through humans, but it doesn't have its origin in human technology. Leprosy is not caused by humans. Neither was smallpox. Nor SARS or Bird Flu. Saying that everything bad in the world is caused by humans is just being downright negative.
:blink: the biggest disease out there is we human beings. we are the ones who are killing ourselves- of course with the help of technology. :) ahhhhhh- dont scream. just accept it. (sigh) :blink:
True, we are the only creatures who harm ourselves against better judgment, but that is not to say we are the only things who harm us.
That's not true, there has always been war and violence. It is a part of human nature. Technology just makes it easier for one person (or many) to inflict as much harm as possible against their chosen enemy with as little effort as possible. It literally takes one press of a button to kill millions of people. But that's not the fault of technology, it's not the fault of a nuclear weapon for getting developed, it's the fault of the people who developed it. It's the application of the technology, not the technology itself. It comes back to human nature. Technology is always a blessing. How we choose to use it, on the other hand, is a different story.
Guns don't kill, Chuck Norris does. Um, I mean people do. :)
one's culture can do no harm by itself. culture is make up of norms, mores, customs, traditions, folklore, etc. It is a set of learned beliefs, values and behaviors shared by the members of a society. and who up keeps these way of life? we humans.always remember that NO one can MAKE you do anything. people can influence you highly, but they cant make u do what u dont wanna do. You can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink. someone can force you to jump off your balcony, but in the end, you are the one who jumped. problems there were. problems there are. problems there will always be. and where did problems come from? sin. satan. and when will it end? not until Christ returns to this earth again. so all the politicians can campaign for ur votes with the promise of stopping wars and crimes. but..... they are humans just like u and me. lol. and not even so much those who created it, but those who use it. well, not always a blessing. creating new diseases for the sea creatures and killing them off by dumping oil, mud, trash, dirty water, sewage, other toxic wastes, etc into the sea is not a blessing,
Sin? Satan? Please don't bring religion into this debate, as there are so many different views on an international forum like this. You say you can't make people do something they want, but you can change their wants, which is practically the same thing. Hypnosis is just one of the means. There's also torture, love, hate ++.You speak of culture as if it should be something concrete, when it is in fact very abstract. Culture is, as you say, made up of norms, customs, traditions, folklore and more. Also religion. Culture is the sum of human history, so whether you think so or not, it does affect us and we are influenced by it despite our own "wish" as it were. Read some philosophy by Hans Georg Gadamer on hermeneutics, spesifically what he says about historisity and tradition. In fact, even the language you use to communicate has been influenced by all of the same things, and so your way of expressing yourself is a result of you having been influenced to some degree or another. There's really no escaping that fact, and so you can't say we "choose" to keep up a certain way of life. Change your religion or adapt to another society, you're still influenced. Free will is ultimately an illusion society has indoctrinated you to believe you have. :)
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Bacteria and viruses have and will always be around. The black plague was not caused by humans. AIDS is not caused by humans, sure it is spread by/through humans, but it doesn't have its origin in human technology. Leprosy is not caused by humans. Neither was smallpox. Nor SARS or Bird Flu. Saying that everything bad in the world is caused by humans is just being downright negative.True, we are the only creatures who harm ourselves against better judgment, but that is not to say we are the only things who harm us.
Look at my examples. I mean the things that we create and are not easy to get without us choosing to get them. :)
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problems there were. problems there are. problems there will always be. and where did problems come from? sin. satan.
I'm sorry, but that's a cop out. We are a violent species. It doesn't come from any supernatural forces, it comes from a very natural force: us. It reminds me of a parable, I think from the Middle East. A scorpion was living in the mountains, and got bored with his surroundings, he wanted to travel. So for days on end he travelled down the mountains, across deserts, across plains, and finally got to a river. He walked up and down it, but couldn't find a way across. Sitting on the bank, he saw a frog. He approached the frog, and asked if he could be carried across the river on the frog's back. The frog said 'No, if I do, you will sting me.' And the scorpion said 'No I won't, if I do we will both die.' So the frog agreed, the scorpion climbed on his back, and off they went. Halfway across, the frog felt a sting in his back. As his muscles stiffen up and he starts to go under, he asks the scorpion why he did it, now that they are both going to die. The scorpion says 'You should have known I would, that's my nature.'
well, not always a blessing. creating new diseases for the sea creatures and killing them off by dumping oil, mud, trash, dirty water, sewage, other toxic wastes, etc into the sea is not a blessing,
Dumping trash and industrial waste in the world's oceans is not technology. It is a irresponsible method of getting rid of some of the side effects of manufacturing. Having high technology does not mean that you have to dump your waste in the ocean, it's just what many corporations do, frankly, because they can.
There hasn't always been war. Animals (Creationists, close your eyes!), and remember, we ourselves are animals, (Ok, you can open them) must engage in violence when they are threatened - it's self defence. There are no wars amongst any other species besides our own. It is our culture (the members of it) that engages in war. Other cultures do not. And I'm not talking about Switzerland. I'm talking about indeginous peoples who live off the land. There may be fights, and raids, but war is non-existant to them unless it is in defence against our culture.
It's a matter of time. There were fewer wars earlier on because there were fewer people, more land and resources to go around. Historically, the vast majority of the world's wars have either been fought for territory and resources, or religion. As the number of people increased, space got tighter and fights broke out. Even the native American and South American tribes fought with each other. Jews and Arabs have been fighting for over 2,000 years. Egyptians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Mongols, they all tried to conquer.
Is nuclear technology a blessing?
I can answer that without even thinking about it. Absolutely it is.
How many of you here are old enough to remember Chernobyl?
Did the reactor at Chernobyl melt down because of the technology, or because of the human factors involved? If you don't know the answer, I'll be happy to provide links, or you can Google it yourself.
What about guns? Is that a blessing? What possible good can come of having a gun other than to enforce ones will upon another and/or to murder?
Hunting for food. Are there murders because there are guns? Did humans all of a sudden become violent and start killing each other once guns came on the scene? Before guns were invented, were there no murders?
I still content that technology is a curse. Some technology has benefited our culture, some has caused great detriment. Life, however, would be much simpler and our world would be much better off had we never thought of any of it.
Ignorance is bliss, huh? What if a cure for cancer, or HIV, or instant space travel, or teleportation, what if they were right around the corner but people just gave up because of the harm that might be caused by someone using the technology for a bad purpose at some point? Technology has never caused detriment. People using technology incorrectly can be a detriment. If you want to live without modern technology, there are several villages in Africa and the Middle East that you may be interested in.
em em em.... maybe u r a predator by nature. NOT me tho. lol.
I don't know.. do you have eyes on the front of your head? Do you have canines? Those are traits of predators. Prey animals have their eyes on the sides of their heads, to watch for the predators, and don't need sharp teeth. You're either a predator or prey. Or a manatee. Nothing eats a manatee.
Guns don't kill, Chuck Norris does. Um, I mean people do.
Chuck Norris does not have a chin. Underneath his beard is another fist.
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Chuck Norris does not have a chin. Underneath his beard is another fist.
You better not make me bring out the Chuck Norris jokes. I have approximately 782.5 (3 are unfinished) jokes on my computer, and I even created a program which brings up a random one quickly so I can dish it out at anyone. You wanna mess? :)
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Chuck Norris does not have a chin. Underneath his beard is another fist.
Chuck Norris doesn't go hunting, because hunting implies possible failure. Chuck Norris goes killing. But that is hardly the point. Let's not stray off-topic here. :)For those wanting to read totally random Chuck Norris jokes, here's the site:http://4q.cc/index.php?pid=fact&person=chuckRefresh for a new fact.I believe the topic was Computer: A blessing or a curse, and necessary related philosophical questions regarding technology.
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Chuck Norris built a time machine and went back in time to stop the JFK assassination. As Oswald shot, Chuck met all three bullets with his beard, deflecting them. JFK's head exploded out of sheer amazement. Well, I guess that's not the point either. But could we bring those jokes out so fast without technology? I should say not. I doubt we would have even heard of them. :)

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I heard that Chuck Norris is so fast, that he can run around the Earth and punch himself in the back of the head. I also heard that he has never read a book in his life, he just stares them down until they give him the information he wants.I love the internet. Go technology! Quick, like a packet!

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Without technology they wouldn't have been able to digitally dampen the sound of Chuck Norris' roundhouse kicks on impact.Oh my god, someone stop us.Anyway, us humans killing each other is not the only thing we're alone on the planet in doing. We're also the only species who have so far been able to fight off natural selection as well as enviromental limitations. If all of mankind were to have/use as many resources as the United States we would need 20 earth globes. Don't know where I read that just now, but if true, it puts things in perspective. Maybe us killing each other is still natures way of lowering our numbers.

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