No Power Day
By Frederik L. Schodt
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電力なしの日
筆者は、連続小包爆弾魔ユナボマーが書いた、産業文明を非難する論文を読んでいる。もちろん彼に賛同するわけではないが、筆者は最近、技術文明が支える近代社会のもろさを体験した…。
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I've been reading the Unabomber's manifesto. For those who have already
forgotten, "Unabomber" is the name of a deranged American mail-bomb
terrorist (hopefully now in jail) who blew up scientists and others for nearly
two decades in protest against our industrial civilization. His treatise ― a
disturbing essay on the problems of modern industrial society ― is now
widely available in bookstores.
I don't agree with the Unabomber at all,
but I recently had a chance to reflect on the vulnerability of our
technological civilization when the power went off in the western United
States, in an area four or five times larger than all of Japan.
The outage
was unprecedented in size but not in duration; it only lasted a few hours for
most people. For people in airplanes or in elevators or subways, it provided
some hair-raising moments, but for most people I suspect it was merely an
inconvenience, perhaps a not-so-unwelcome diversion from an otherwise
humdrum existence. It was a weekend, so most people were at home relaxing.
Luckily, most hospitals had emergency power backups which helped them tide
over the blackout without major problems.
Most of all, what the power
outage provided was a few hours to contemplate the fragility of modern
society and the degree to which we now depend on electricity.
I'm a fairly
technological person, who depends on power for a living, so I immediately
felt the lack of electricity. My computers and communications devices all
went dead, so my room was suddenly quiet, with no humming. If the outage
had continued, it would have been a disaster for me, but since it was
short-lived, I didn't worry. After all, I knew I could always use the outage as
an excuse for being late with this column!
Of course, all my normal
entertainment machines went dead, too. The television was out, but I didn't
mind because I think television may be the biggest source of cognitive
dissonance in the modern world, and I'd rather not watch it, anyway. The
stereo was more of a problem; luckily I had a guitar (an acoustic one at
that!), so I got it out and made my own music. As long as it was light outside,
I didn't feel too inconvenienced, but I started to worry about the food in my
refrigerator going bad.
Luckily, the power soon came back on again. I
wouldn't want to be without power very long. I owe my modern way of life to
modern technology. In fact I would already be dead several times over if not
for modern medicine.
But perhaps it's not such a bad thing to have the
power go off for short periods every now and then, just so we don't forget
what sustains our modern lives. Perhaps we should arrange a special day,
once a month or so, when all power is turned off for a few hours. It might not
be such a bad thing at all.
ST
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