BY NELSON PAVLOSKY

In print | Published February 17, 2005

By now, most people are well aware of the changes that advances in communication technology have wrought on our campus. The dramatic drop in use of campus phones in the face of increased cell phone use forced ITS to drop long-distance service rather than spending money on a system that nobody was using. Students IM one another across the hall rather than leaving their rooms. E-mail lists, such as SWIL’s “Fun” list, allow student groups to organize events and get-togethers on the fly.

However, there is a general sense among many students that these changes are negative, and a substantial (although decreasing) number of students refuse to participate in these new forms of communication, boycotting cell phones and avoiding instant messaging. Many complain that being constantly accessible would be a horrible thing: They worry about being unable to get away from their work, unable to get away from other people, unable to spend long blocks of time uninterrupted or alone.

Their feelings are shared by many outside of the college; the Wall Street Journal recently ran an article on how the constant presence of cell phones has changed the way that we communicate. Among the negative changes listed in it were “Spontaneity Over Planning: People don’t stick to their plans/appointments anymore, they can change them on the fly when something better comes up” and “Voice Mail Suspicion: If you can’t reach someone on their cell phone, not only are you indignant, but become suspicious. Is the person filtering you out, ignoring you or with someone else?” I’ve often heard my father complain about people who endanger others by using the cell phone while driving, and others become annoyed when people prioritize the person they are talking to on the cell phone over the people physically present around them.

These are all valid concerns. It’s good to be suspicious of broad, sweeping changes in our culture, and it’s right to examine closely the possible results of the transformation in society, to try to mitigate the inevitable negative consequences. However, it’s also good to be suspicious of the status quo, to question tradition and to refuse to accept “the way things are” simply on the basis of inertia. When presented with a choice between the devil I know or the devil I don’t, I’m inclined to choose the devil I don’t, because at least we can make new mistakes and learn new things when dealing with new evils rather than repeating the same old tired errors and suffering the same old injustices for eternity. We’re not going to build a better world by preserving the existing inefficiencies and tyrannies.

It’s important to recognize the benefits of cell phones, IMs, and e-mail beyond mere convenience: Among other things, they empower citizens and activists to organize more effectively. They give us tools that are as good as the communication systems that corporations and governments rely upon to steer their ponderous command-and-control hierarchies as they crush people’s rights and freedoms around the globe. In Indonesia text messaging played a central role in organizing the massive protests that led to the collapse of the government. Less dramatic applications of these new tools for organizing are slowly becoming part of our daily lives, and constant connectivity allows activists to move quickly, providing agility that is necessary in our wired world. The money and might of the old dinosaurs could be counteracted by the speed and breadth of grassroots efforts, if we play our cards right. Many Internet-based organizations, such as FreeCulture.org (which Luke Smith ‘06 and I co-founded), could not exist or function without this communications revolution. I treat my IM buddy list as my virtual office: Like a physical office, I can check in with people to see how they’re doing, chat idly about their projects or personal lives, or quickly contact them about an urgent action item.

Rapid and easy connections make the world smaller and bring people together. And while you may contend that Swarthmore is already too small and doesn’t need to be further shrunk through the use of technology, there’s far too much distance, alienation and division in this life, and we shouldn’t be afraid to take steps to overcome that separation here and everywhere.

Nelson Pavlosky is a junior. You can reach him at npavlos1@swarthmore.edu.

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