In My Lifetime

When I look back on my life and fast forward to where I am today, it is apparent that I am part of a generation that has potentially experienced more shifts in our daily lives than any other. There is no doubt that World War 1 and World War 2 were significant events that previous generations endured, but the technology and communication systems during these times often meant delayed knowledge of how events were unfolding, but those generations seemed to have had an absolute perspective on who was right and wrong during these events. There was no social media where obscure individuals could provide content that may reflect a small portion of the population, so these generations and 2 or 3 future generations grew up understanding how evil the Nazi’s were and that we could never allow something of this nature to happen again. Now, if we want, we can go to social media and find groups who deny the holocaust and well documented deaths associated with it. It doesn’t matter what the facts are, if I want to believe it never happened, I can find proof of it somewhere on the net.

I grew up in an isolated fishing village called St Lunaire, without roads and electricity until I was about 5 years old, so can still remember the outhouse, chamber pot and drawing water from a well. Our modes of transportation were boat in summer and dog team in winter. Being a March baby, Mom could not get to a hospital, so I was born at home with the help of a mid-wife. Being so young when we modernized, I now look back and think that it all happened at once, rather than over a number of years, especially indoor plumbing.

During the period St Lunaire was modernizing, we spent summers at a remote island on the Labrador coast called Indian Tickle, Dad fished there for several years. We had no modern amenities there, this period I remember well, so when we got married and had kids and people planned camping trips, often in jam packed parks, they would wonder why I did not see this as a great thing. I always explained to them that for the first 12-15 years of my life, I lived that life style year-round, but with the freedom to roam as I pleased, not while surrounded by people with families and pets, I could have that at home. I would rather roam the ponds and streams with a fishing rod, enjoying the quiet of nature.

Over a few short years we evolved from huddling around one radio with glowing tubes to listen to Hym Sing, people owning cars, electricity, record players, party line telephones, indoor plumbing, TV with one channel, a small airport due to air travel and man walking on the moon. We felt like it couldn’t get any better than this!

For the next 15-20 years there were some small changes like individual phone lines and cordless phones, cable television, eight tracks, cassettes, CDs, DVDs, Beta and VHS video players. We could actually rent movies to play at home, how much more could we expect!

Then came computers. At first, it was simple things like the ability to play games and write documents that could be saved and printed, eliminating the need for the typewriter, one of the most iconic inventions that was featured in many TV shows and movies as being something special, and it was in it’s day. With things like spell check and the ability to hold large files, we all felt blessed.

Then came the internet, with emails and eventually more content than we could ever imagine. Many of these changes were good as long as the content was meaningful, like the information contained in encyclopedia’s, many of us had those and spent significant money on them. They were not only used for information they often were a part of our home décor.

Then came social media platforms and suddenly people could anonymously create accounts, with no real restrictions it seems, and the fake news, conspiracy theories and deep state followers could spout whatever they wanted, while pretending to be anyone other than themselves. This has potentially been the most impactful change we have seen in my lifetime and while it should have been the most positive change for us, it has become the most negative, due to the ability for anyone to be anonymous, therefore create content that is destructive and exploitive, often catering to the most unsavoury human traits. With the genie out of bottle, the anonymous internet user may not be able to be put back in.

Then came AI. At first, it was simple things like spell check, which we all agree was most beneficial. But over time it has become a tool that is now used to fact check or provide solutions/outcomes for complex situations, replacing the need for human critical thinking, research and intuition that previously went into the decision-making process. The solutions/outcomes are void of human thought, made from a purely numbers driven perspective, and with no potential to debate the impacts of acting upon the provided solutions. Some would say this is an improvement since humans have made so many destructive decisions over the years, but others would totally disagree.

In retrospect, after living through the times and events of my life to date, the common characteristic seems to be the human want for excess, through wealth and power, that can be used to manipulate others. History tells us this is not a new phenomenon. It has existed since humans evolved.

As a Canadian veteran I have recently had an opportunity to join my young granddaughter in a couple of events pertaining to Remembrance Day, reminding me of how important it is to continue educating the next generation on the importance of freedom and the ability to stand up when needed to preserve that freedom. In this case the audience may not fully understand the extent of how not only veterans, but all citizens, did their part through many trying times to get us where we are today. During the first event with a group called Sparks(first level leading to the Girl Guides) I was joined by a serving member named Nick, as we talked about our experiences and answered questions about our medals. What stands out most about this event is how proud Nick’s daughter and my granddaughter were to have us there. The second event was at our granddaughter’s school where I met a wonderful, retired veteran lady named Marcella from Baie Verte. She was speaking to the students and had a great presentation with pictures and a number of items the students could actually hold and ask questions about that were part of her gear during her service. The young students sat respectfully through this service and then took the time to meet Marcella, who stayed in place until every student had an opportunity to meet her. In typical Newfoundland and Labrador style, she was at ease and connected to her audience, taking time to meet my granddaughter, her Mom and my wife. All of us felt better for meeting her that day. My wife and I then went to the Atlantic Kitchen in Fort Saskatchewan for lunch! A perfect way to end the experience.

So where do we go from here? If every citizen of the world is not at a point where we all agree that war is totally unnecessary, wealth should not be our only pursuit and power should not reside in the hands of a few, then we will continue to live in an uncertain world, manipulated by the few, unsure of how we can achieve purpose and forever losing sleep over our current conditions. Or can we take example from our Southern neighbor’s recent midterm election and from the ground up, citizens in every country insist our Leaders join hands, confront those who resist their people living freely and actually stop corruption before it becomes the norm. Do we have the courage to do this?