In the Soup

There’s a line in the Marx Brothers’ Duck Soup when Groucho (appearing as a dictator of Fredonia named Rufus T. Firefly) says:

Why a four-year-old child could understand this report. Run out and find me a four-year-old child. I can’t make head nor tail out of it.

That can sum up how many of us feel about the current state of technology. I say this as someone who has just come off spending way too much time trying to install a new printer for my computer (many, many tries finally yielded result but there was a lot swearing along the way).

It’s often noted that technology is changing too fast. Just when you adjust and adapt to a new interface or peripheral, they change it. Along comes verification codes followed by two-factor authentication. We adapt as fast as we can, but as many boomers have pointed out, it shouldn’t be this hard to complete what used to be simple tasks. We are rapidly losing proprietary control over our affairs because we are getting technologically inept.

I share the same frustration as Rufus, only now what I would really like to have is a twelve-year old tech guru to help me navigate the daily barrage of technical hurdles. Of course, I want her/him to be bonded in order to protect the nest egg. If that sounds like an extreme step, you have not peeked around the bend to see the next level of encrypted paperless online transactions that will be coming to a computer near you.

The irony here is that most of us naively thought that technology would help us simplify our lives and make them less complex. The true effect has been just the opposite. From banking to borrowing a book, the technology gatekeepers demand more of us every day. If you have not experienced a technical melt-down trying to complete what was once a simple task, you are the rare exception indeed.

Change is inevitable. I accept that. Just wish that it would not come at us at terminal velocity. No such luck. Tech acceleration is here to stay. And don’t even think of trying lure away my 12-year old guru.

Jay Harrison is a writer and creative consultant for DesignConcept. His newest mystery novel, Rio Puerco Demise is available on Amazon. His first mystery novel, Head Above Water, is also available on Amazon. But that’s not all. You can also purchase the Best of BoomSpeak on Amazon.