We may never know what killed the dinosaurs all those millions of years ago, but in the not so distant future, when this planet is run by robots and computers, there will be no mystery as to where the human race went wrong.
The Willy Wonka Analogy
I like to think of Mark Zuckerberg as a modern day Willy Wonka, and Facebook is his chocolate factory; a glorious creation that offers unprecedented wonders and endless joys. It's easy to see why someone would be drawn into Zuckerberg's creation, just as you would a top secret factory full of extraordinary sweets and dancing, green-haired dwarves.
But when does it all become too much? We know what happened to those who delved too deeply into Wonka's factory, yet we continue to do the same with Zuckerberg's brainchild.
Sometimes it takes a wake up call for us to realise when something has gone too far and I experienced that last Saturday night. As a 19 year old I don't usually spend Saturday nights in with my parents but I decided to give myself some respite from teenage life this particular weekend. I sat across the room from my mum and tried to engage in conversation. However, each attempt I made to start a conversation was met with a grunt and, if I was lucky, a reluctant glance up from her phone. My mother had been swallowed up by Zuckerberg's online world and there was no turning back now.
Any efforts to bring her back to reality would be futile now.
Our detached reality
I have an image in my mind, much like a scene from Dawn of the Dead, with a bunch of brain-dead dimwits staggering through the streets unable to think or act with any real conviction. Only, instead of ripped clothes and blood-stained bodies, we'll be dressed in our Sunday best over our make-up covered bodies (how else will we get enough likes on Instagram?) as we lose all ability to function offline.
Of course I myself spend many hours watching Facebook videos, tweeting details about a football match that everyone else is watching too and snapchatting until I can't bear to see another photo of my own face swapped with somebody else's. I may be a hypocritical moron for doing so, but at least this moron knows where he stands. Wake up and smell the hyperreality, people!
