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JunZi's avatar

And if you buy a Tesla, then your car is actually a large phone.

I had the strange sensation a little while ago while on a conference call that for all intents and purposes the Star Trek/Buck Rogers/Flash Gordon sci-fi space world is already here. We may not be out in physical intergalactic space, but neither were Captain Kirk and his crew. Instead, they were mostly in their living room, video-conferencing with outside entities. Are Klingons really aliens? Or are they just brown people with body mods and an Insta filter on? Occasionally they'd beam down onto a planet to investigate, or do a supply run. The main characters always made it back, but examples were made of the red shirts to demonstrate the dangers of the universe outside the mega-screen armchair dwelling.

That's how post-pandemic life feels now. Spend enough time in isolation, and getting groceries or visiting the DMV becomes a perilous mission. You put on uniforms, masks, and gear you don't normally use, step into unfamiliar environments filled with beings who don't look like you, and engage in customs that seem foreign because you rarely practice them. Your normal exposure to the rest of the planet comes filtered through the media, so there's an underlying sense you could get stabbed or shot at any moment. And you are at a distinct disadvantage compared to the "outside people" for whom the spaces that aren't your house are their natural habitat.

You are out there, alone, trying to coerce these aliens into abiding by the laws of your home, following the dictates of common decency that aren't so common anymore since you barely know anybody besides yourself. And so, while your feet might still be grounded, metaphysically you are floating.

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JeremiadBullfrog's avatar

Spot-on analysis! This all started with the imposition of the Facebook Newsfeed. Everyone hated it; everyone wanted to be able to opt out of the immediate & unfiltered barrage of other people's info upon logging on to FB. But no. They forced it on us. People said, "No, it's feels intrusive -- I don't want to have all this external info blarted at me the minute I log on to my personal space to organize and administer my chosen personal communication." They said, "Screw you! We control your stimuli now!"

...and we accepted it.

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