http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2010/05/10/obama-warns-grads-twitter-ipad-peril/

I haven't laughed this hard in quite a while. XD
Quote:
"With iPods and iPads and Xboxes and PlayStations -- none of which I know how to work -- information becomes a distraction, a diversion, a form of entertainment, rather than a tool of empowerment, rather than the means of emancipation,"

Obama also lamented the spread of social media and blogs, through which "some of the craziest claims can quickly claim traction."

Sounds reasonable to me. As I watched fellow students rush from Pokemon, to Digimon, to Playstations, to Gameboys, to Xboxes, and dozens of derivative products, each with countless sequels in their legion, I often wondered why they bothered, given none lasted long in the face of technology improvement, and they were all expensive fads. I think Obama is on the verge of an important point - you don't need these things to live.

The original article quotes:
Quote:
Obama came close to declaring technology -- and the information it spawns -- the enemy.

"With so many voices clamoring for attention on blogs, on cable, on talk radio, it can be difficult, at times, to sift through it all; to know what to believe; to figure out who's telling the truth and who's not," Obama said.

I think that that is sensationalism, and that what Obama says there is true, although he may have pushed the point a little far.

His comments on social media are certainly true.

To quote a user on the original New York Post article:
Quote:
"Obama declares war on technology..." - REALLY? This seems like a fair and balanced report of the commencement address? At best, that is a obviously prejudiced and politically-spinned interpretation of Obama' message. At worst, it is blatant misrepresentation.

Clearly, Obama was making a statement that we, as a society, need to be aware of the impact that these new technologies have on us, in particular the affect of instantaneous exposure of non-qualified information when it reaches levels of absolute saturation - information overload, if you will.

The point, if you read the actual transcript of the President's speech, was that we, as individuals, need to use judgment to filter and qualify the information we consume. And the best way to be able to make those sound judgments is to be an educated individual. The article did make that point, albeit buried under the way over the top headline and lead... disappointing coverage, and indeed part of the problem but typical for Fox News, NY Post et al, and part of the reason why I typically choose to filter these "news" sources.


In fact, trust Fox to go and report on such a fantastically accurate news entry in such a fantastically accurate way anyway.
No, we don't need those items to survive day to day. That isn't the point he is making.

Quote:
information becomes a distraction, a diversion


THAT is the point he is making. Information isn't a distraction. Well, it is if your name is Obama, and your ratings are sinking. XD
TIFreak, I expected better of you. Sad

Quote:
technology, its straining our democracy

Technology: It's Straining Our Democracy
tifreak8x wrote:
No, we don't need those items to survive day to day. That isn't the point he is making.

Quote:
information becomes a distraction, a diversion


THAT is the point he is making. Information isn't a distraction. Well, it is if your name is Obama, and your ratings are sinking. XD

It is, technically. You aren't going to benefit watching the TV Shopping Network all day, (to use a slightly dated example) but you certainly have the option of doing so, and some people do.

Facebook, to name a more modern idea, is now the leading social network. The website currently has more than 400 million active users worldwide. The amount of time and importance my peers alone put into and on it stuns me.

Videogames don't earn you money, teach you things, nor achieve concrete things (with the exception of a few). They also are technically distractions when you consider it (information technology), and I wonder how much time people sink into them? Information (in terms of communication and knowledge) can be interpreted in many forms, and many of these do have the potential to simply remove time from you're day.
Information != entertainment.

Entertainment is that TV Shopping Network you mentioned. It is also any and every video game that has ever been made. Facebook, myspace and the like is entertainment. Ipods, Ipads, mp3 players in general are entertainment.

Information is having knowledge of the world, of how things work, and what is going on right now.

Not really seeing how his speech holds any real water at this point.
I think this all hinges on the definition of "information." While I admit, to me, "information" colloquially means factual data, and I reckon that's somewhat how all of you guys define it. I think this is because we, the frequenters of the internet, are used to being able to find "information" (and by that I mean facts) rather instantaneously. The more widespread and dictionary definition of information is much more vague though:

Information: Knowledge communicated or received concerning a particular fact or circumstance.
(From dictionary.com)

So, me telling you that Angelina Jolie had a third leg is information, just not the kind you would usually deem it. Likewise, knowing that Sally Sue is currently level 40 on FarmVille (some stupid facebook fad) is technically information.

In typical political fashion, it's all up to interpretation. Right Wingers will say that Obama is alluding to a 1984esque control of information "Ignorance is strength" proposition, while Left Wingers will say that Obama is a visionary for a future in which we are not plagued by the idleness caused by things such as FarmVille and the like. Meh.
Hey we should not go to far on this "war" that we end up in a second middle ages!!!



Imagin people can beat us at war using hi-tech weapons while we have pitchforks Smile


Plus I think this can include ti-calcs too since I find them entertaining and distracting.
elrunethe2nd wrote:
Videogames don't earn you money, teach you things, nor achieve concrete things


I disagree. I've achieved a lot in the 170 hours I've clocked in Fallout 3...
DShiznit wrote:
elrunethe2nd wrote:
Videogames don't earn you money, teach you things, nor achieve concrete things


I disagree. I've achieved a lot in the 170 hours I've clocked in Fallout 3...

Oh do tell.

Let me guess, learned to defuse an Atomic Bomb, saved Megaton, killed nigh on hundreds of mutants and developed your appreciation for endlessly repeating jazz tracks?

But seriously. What did you learn.
elrunethe2nd wrote:
DShiznit wrote:
elrunethe2nd wrote:
Videogames don't earn you money, teach you things, nor achieve concrete things


I disagree. I've achieved a lot in the 170 hours I've clocked in Fallout 3...

Oh do tell.

Let me guess, learned to defuse an Atomic Bomb, saved Megaton, killed nigh on hundreds of mutants and developed your appreciation for endlessly repeating jazz tracks?

But seriously. What did you learn.
And none of that is material or concrete. You loose it all when making a new account or purchasing a new system.

Anyone of a archive link on that article? It's not on Fox News anymore +/
Actually I blew Megaton the f*ck up on my second playthrough...
If you tell everyone that information is distracting, hint that they should ignore what they hear, and let them know that such things are unimportant, what do you get?

Governmental control of the populace. If no one researches things, no one will be able to vote intelligently and hopefully will go for someone with a smooth line.

Although he did mention Xboxes and other video game systems, such references were camouflage, designed to conceal his real aim to limit people's knowledge. This is a fascist viewpoint. We need to be very cautious not to fall for such traps.


And guess how easy it is to learn how to operate one of the items Obama listed?


Even if he were referring to video games (he wasn't, not really), what he said was false. RTS, TBS, FPS, platform, and RPG games all enhance the brain in various fashions, by improving strategical abilities, teaching to think under pressure, and honing reflexes.
  
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