Off the Grid

It has been a long time since I have been “out of commission” due to illness. At the very least it has been a long time since I have been out of contact for more than an afternoon. Unfortunately, for the last few days, I have been totally off the internet grid. Among other things, it has made me realize how much I have become dependant on the Internet news and information.

During the last few days, when awake, I did try to watch some TV news but found they devoted a lot of time to stories that were of little interest to me and the ones that did catch my attention were overly sensationalized and lacked depth. It is really interesting how on line news has changed the level of information we have… how many different directions a story can take with the simple click of a mouse. At some level, it reminds me that packaged news programs limit our knowledge and understanding much more then we are aware. On the other hand, while we are equipped to have all the information at our fingertips, is there so much information available that we lose interest in anything that does not quickly stimulate us.
Case in point might be the recent United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen

Over the last four years, motivated by both business and personal interests, climate change, environmental impact and the global and local concerns about sustainability have been a part of my daily reading. For me, trying to educate myself, to disseminate the variety of information and wade through the complexity of the challenge has been a monumental challenge. At first I found it easy to read articles and form opinions. The more information I try to filter the more conflicting opinions I have. Then begins the process of challenging the information. What is real versus what is politically motivated? Who’s interests are being served?

Unfortunately, it leads to a very cynical view of how the world is approaching the issues and what the real issues are?.
Back to Copenhagen and I think many people lose interest in the event simply because they get buried in massive amounts of conflicting information.

Have a great day!
George