Barely A Blip In GDP

I am not a huge fan of technology. I fought for years before getting a home computer; I resisted blogging for years. Once these sorts of things came into my possession, well, then yes, I succumbed.

I fought the cell phone, the HDTV, the computer, the pager, the DVD, the perpetual Internet connection, the laptop, the GPS, the DVR, the in-car Nav, and the blackberry. In every case, I'm among the last to enter and today I still don't have 2/3ds of these devices. I do not have to be among the first to get the latest device, and in that respect I've saved a ton of money, effort, and anguish over the years compared to many of my contemporaries.

I am of the opinion that technology does not equal energy, and I am also of the opinion that technology does not equate to a better standard of living. Truthfully -- can you tell me that having a cell phone is better than not having one?

Remember that old line from 1997 -- "We need a cell phone for emergencies?" What a crock of shit that was! How many married men fell for that line from their wives? This was the classic case of moulding a technology around a fake need and then because everyone else had one it became a "necessity" to live in our society.

I ask again -- is having a cell phone better than not having one? On the surface you most certainly would answer yes, but after you consider the increasing social retardation caused by texting and other fake forms of non-human communication like twitter, et al., the apparent increase in vehicular accidents caused by their use, their $80+ per month in user fees and other charges...is it really better? I could, and might, argue that it isn't.

But no one listens to me, and thank god for that! Today I have a cell phone, along with a DVR, a high speed internet connection, etc. On one hand I bitch about what these things take away but on the other hand I embrace them for what they provide. How do I learn to live with all this? How does anyone else?

I had an opportunity two weeks ago to float around the isles of our Elk Grovian consumer-electronic warehousal unit -- Best Buy -- as I was looking for a speaker for my truck. I commented to my wife how utterly behind the times I am. I spent several minutes staring at a display of accessories for the iPad -- the dock, a wireless keyboard, skins, USB power adapter, etc. It was all lost on me. Let alone the cost of the iPad itself and the fuckering away of countless hours of downloading apps and getting the thing to work the way you want, you are enticed to blow $39 on a personalized wrapper around the thing, along with myriad other $49 and $29 accessories.

And people do, and thank god for that. If you had to count on people like me to keep the economy running you might as just give up now.

I strongly believe that technology doesn't equate to a better standard of living...but what it does do is increase that hallowed metric of that standard -- the GDP. Every time any of us drives to Best Buy and Buys one of their Best items our GDP increases -- from the purchase of gasoline for the car and the wear on the tires and the payments made on time for the HDTV to the burning of bunker fuel in container ships to deliver your product from Southeast Asia.

But I get on my bicycle, bought and paid for now some eleven years ago, get some exercise while eliminating a car trip and bicycle to work and this barely registers any GDP.

As you buy these iPad accessories, your tax dollars promote government spending which raises GDP, along with the monies funneled into Best Buy headquarters' employees' bank accounts in Richfield, Minnesota. The bankers develop GDP for providing access to other people's capital, while the Best Buy employee will go out and buy a shrimp dinner at her favorite restaurant and raise GDP (along with raising her credit card bill).

But I turn on my stove and cook up a yellow split pea soup that lasts for days, using vegetables I purchased from the local CSA that I picked up on my bicycle ride home and again this barely registers any GDP.

As you turn on the AC to cool down your new 3,550 sq ft garage majal, the electricity production definitely increases GDP, as does the diesel burnt to deliver the coal from the mine to the power plant.

But I made a one time purchase of solar panels and a one time purchase of a share in a local solar farm and the ongoing receipt of this solar derived "input" doesn't develop any GDP. As my electricity bill declines I am happier, as I paid for my solar panels not through deficit financing but through reduced consumption and savings I most certainly feel wealthier (I now own these panels), but every year going forward my contribution towards GDP declines.

Yet -- I got exercise. I ate well. I had as much access to electricity as the next American.

From my own gauge of happiness, success, satiety, and concern for the environment, I'd say I did just fine, but from the perspective of our governmental accountants and actuaries I must live like a schlub. I must be poorer.

And so it is with consumer electronics. The fewer I own, the less time I spend getting the fucking things to work and the happier I am (a wholly personal perspective). This obviously doesn't apply to most other Americans, but then, I have never identifed with the larger group at any point in my life. And thank God for that!