Rant number 61
Today at work, I had an epiphany - and a worrying one at that.
This is not an every day occurrence for me (lets face it, most epiphany's happen to philosophers and the like,) but I really did.
It's a simple one really - and yet quite worrying.
The human race is doomed!
The reason for this? simple. Every generation gets a little bit less practical and able to look after themselves without modern conveniences. If this continues exponentially then, by the year 3000 only about 4 people will be born in any given generation who can say - use a can opener.
Its frightening, and ridiculous.
Look at cavemen for instance: The environment they lived in was harsh, dangerous, disease ridden and all round bloody difficult, but they made it.
And how? Practicality.
They made tools from what meagre knowledge and experience they had mustered. Flint axes to cut wood, flint against pyrite to create fire, tools to work stone - stone to make more tools. They foraged, they ate what they knew to be safe, they created shelter.
Put a modern British person in this environment and we would not have this memory and experience - because we have forgotten it all in the cotton wool of convenience we are wrapped in.
Frankly - put most people now in that situation and we would be sabre toothed tiger food.
It doesn't stop there either. In the past furniture was made by hand by the poor using scraps or by artisans with love and craftsmanship. Now, furniture comes in convenient cardboard packaging - with clear (text free, oh god I hate it when they can't be bothered to write text) instructions. Often even the artisans now use power tools now!
Going back to my original point, for your interest: the reason for my realisation was part of the assembly of one of the products we sell.
Without going into specifics, it involved a clamp and a pin to hold it in place - what I would consider to be a toddler level common-sense based part of the construction.
The person I was speaking to however was perplexed by it to the point where they had failed to be able to work it out. I just don't understand how someone can't be able to think their way through a simple constructive task. Did they never get access to Meccano as a child?
There seems to be a practical side missing to things now - and a class divide ever growing between those who can - and those who think.
I can do both, and I just don't get why everyone doesn't want to.
It annoys me so much!
Rant over.
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