Okay, so I haven't done a very good job keeping up this week. It's the same thing every day. There's something else I'm going to do first, THEN I'm going to sit down and write. Yet, the same thing always seems to happen... One thing turns into another, and another, and so on and so forth. So, here it is Friday already...
- I am still working my way through Johann Hari's 'Stolen Focus: Why You Can't Pay Attention - and How to Think Deeply Again.' One new phrase I picked the on the other day is “cruel optimism.” Hari attributes it to historian Lauren Berlant, and it refers to the
suggestion that a deeply rooted social problem can be solved by
individuals making tweaks to their everyday lives (think obesity, stress, addiction, depression, etc.). Yeah, ain't nothin' 'bout those easy...
- Another phrase from the same book is "surveillance capitalism," coined by Harvard professor Shoshana Zuboff. Whenever tech companies provide something for free, it's for a reason. Hari says it's to "improve the voodoo doll" they have of each of us. Gmail, Google Maps, Amazon Echo, Facebook... all of them. Yes, they're listening to you, tracking your words, clicks, habits, and figuring out who you are, what you do, and what you want. As Aza Raskin (tech originator) explains: "Imagine if I could predict all your actions in chess before you made them. It would be trivial for me to dominate you. That's what is happening on a human scale now." I have no comment.
- I've been doing some reading/research on loneliness in preparation for my next sermon. Today I happened upon this article 'Why Loneliness is Bad For Your Health' and thought this distinction between social isolation and loneliness significant: "Loneliness is a slippery concept. It’s not the same as social isolation, which occurs when someone has few meaningful social relationships, although “they’re two sides of the same coin”, says old-age psychiatrist Andrew Sommerlad at University College London. Rather, loneliness is a person’s subjective experience of being unsatisfied with their social relationships."
- How about something a little lighter? In today's 'The Friday Update' from Mike Woodruff, he notes: "In spite of being owned by Clorox, Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing now outsells ketchup; its logo has become a popular tattoo, and some bridal couples have replaced the chocolate fountain at their wedding reception with an HVRD fountain instead."
- Is there any good news? I think so. "Jesus Christ knows the worst about you. Nonetheless, He is the one who loves you the most." -A.W. Tozer.
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