A Thought Experiment

Imagine you want to buy a car. You go to a dealership and the dealer offers you a choice between two cars. The cars are identical in almost every way – make, model, year, mileage, price. There is, however, one exception. Car A has a maximum speed of 40 mph, while Car B can go up to 120 mph.

-Which car do you choose?
-Car B, of course.

-Why?
-Because it's better.

-How so?
-It can go faster.

-Why does that make the car better?
-In today's road environment, there are many situations where it is necessary to drive faster than 40 mph. It is a necessity to go faster than 40 mph.

But why should it be a necessity? For the majority of humanity's existence, no one has had the ability to travel faster than 40 mph, let alone need to travel at such speed. It was not until travel at such a speed was realized to be feasible that it became necessary to do so. And here is the underlying principle: In a progress-based society, the moment a technological advancement is birthed is the same moment that the said technological advancement becomes a necessity. You do not argue with the ability to travel faster than 40 mph. Now, obviously this phenomenon, when specifically applied to vehicle speeds, has been limited by the state in the form of speed limits. But government intervention does not void the effect of a "progress" and technologically oriented society; to the contrary, it reinforces it. For example, it may be illegal to drive faster than a certain speed, but it is also equally illegal to drive slower than a certain speed. There is no other option; technology has eliminated the choices.

Take, for example, the atomic bomb. It was not necessary to have a weapon that could destroy cities until the weapon was invented. Now, it is seen in the best personal interest of every country to have nuclear weapons, not necessarily because the country intends to use them, but "just in case". Why build something you do not wish to use? But that is the control of technological advancement: There is no other option.

Technological advancement and progress become the masters of society – even daily life. To live in a world that values efficiency and speed is to be enslaved.