The Problem With Abundance

GRW writes "Peter de Jager, "a speaker/writer/consultant on the issues relating to the Rational Assimilation of the Future", asks, 'What do traffic jams, obesity and spam have in common?' He answers that 'they are all problems caused by abundance in a world more attuned to scarcity. By achieving the goal of abundance, technology renders the natural checks and balances of scarcity obsolete.' His article is a thought provoking discussion of the unintended consequences of technological change."

Comments

The problem ISN'T abundance

[Eberlin]

The problem isn't in the abundance, it is in human choice. Though I admit that an abundance of food makes it more difficult to choose not to consume it, for example, there is still a human choice to do so. (insert Matrix Architect/Oracle joke here)

Humans must sacrifice convenience sometimes for personal, psychological, and spiritual gain. Turn that IM into a phonecall, that e-mail into visiting your co-worker -- bring the human factor back!

Abundance isn't the problem. Technology isn't the problem. Humanity and their choices are the problem...and it doesn't have to be.

The growing scarcity is time and money.

[thisissilly]

When there is an abundance of goods and services, the scarcity is your attention. All the activities, music, movies, resturants etc. are competing for your time, attention and $$$.

I'll grant you, I like having more choices, but the time constraints point out where growth is likely: trendsetting. People want to be able to make decisions without having to read pages of data, or doing testing for themselves. So expect Branding to increase in value, as well as review sites like amazon, epinions, and consumer reports.