The End of Democracy as We know it??

The End of Democracy as We Know It?

Many years ago, I heard a speaker describe this situation:

Two teenage couples are on what appeared to be a double date and the two couples were in a convenience store of some nature (if I remember correctly, a 7-11 store).  The two guys were at some kind of game machine and the two girls were off on the side talking to each other.

In this speaker’s analysis, two couples on a double date should be doing something as a ‘couple’, not as boys playing video games and the girls idling chatting.  The speaker used the statement “this could be the end of democracy as we know it”.  

I have wondered about that statement casually over the years.  What did he mean? That “red-blooded American boys” should be at the theater making out with their girlfriends?  That electronic and video games were causing the new generation to stop talking to each other, and that open and honest discussion and communication is the backbone of democracy.  In effect, we are becoming isolated by technology.

Here we are in 2020 in the midst of a crisis and maybe the communications channels aren’t working.  In the past two years, I have relied on texting more than email - and less than face-to-face meetings.  Yes, that might be because I am retired and not going into work, and not having those “water-cooler” talks or short meetings in the halls.  

But, in this COVID-19 (Coronavirus) crisis, isolation is being pushed.  It almost is a mandate to separation. Don’t talk to anybody, stay away from all people.  Don’t even trust your spouse (or friends), they could be carriers of the virus. Don’t go to work, you could be spreading the virus; don’t go to school, you could get the virus.  Learn online. Learn with technology.  

Let’s talk about the common lunch (let's say before the virus - maybe six weeks ago).   You might have a couple sitting at the same table - and neither one talking to the other as they are both texting, checking out webpages, and other activities - without talking to each other - in fact not even looking at each other.  No looking dreamily in each other’s eyes. No thinking, “wow I married a great person’. Nope, If there is conversation, it might be something like “CNN just announced that <something” followed by “But ABC just said something else”.  

I’ve heard of having a table of four friends at lunch and the ground rules are that they stack their phones in the middle of the table and the one who picks up her phone first (that is before they are finished), has to pay the whole check. 

Conversing is part of our culture, part of a democracy.  And, being able to converse without becoming disagreeable or becoming so rigid and dogmatic that we can’t even exchange alternate opinions on topics.  Pleasant conversation is part of what makes us human.  

I’m not sure when it happened and how it happened.  We got comics - like Don Rickles, who made a livelihood out of insulting people and cutting them down.  Maybe we knew that it was just an ‘act’ - but maybe not. Then we got celebrity “Roasts” - not just “toasts” - so-and-so is a great person, but throwing mud and “roasting” the person in public.  

Maybe we’ve lost something - something small and precious - like toleration and respect. I think there is also a gender thing going on there.  Guys who respect a friend, but it would be inappropriate to say “Bill, I love you”, instead say little jabs and ‘snarky’ remarks. The expression “If you can be anything, but nice” comes up more and more.  Is it wrong to be nice to fellow travelers on this planet? As a woman, I don’t see this snarkiness as much. I’ve actually said “I love you” to more people in the past year - because I do love them, and because I wanted to tell them and let them know they are respected and appreciated.

Can the breakdown of communication, the use of technologies more and more instead of human speech, and the physical separation of people take us away from a democratic principle of free and open communication?

Just my bias!!!

Hugs!!!

Karen