Techno Revolution Rolls On

So much technology all around us.
In 20 years, we've gone from VHS tapes to hand-held computers/phones/cameras ... all-in-one. It's unbelievable.
I got my first cellular phone in 1992 and it was a Motorola phone about the size of a shoe box. You would roam as soon as you left the city limits and dead air dominated the landscape.
Today, there are phones everywhere. Scan a crowd next time you're out and count the number of people using a hand-held device. It boggles the mind.
I currently have a BlackBerry. It's a fine instrument and I will honestly say, I haven't a clue what all it is capable of. It is doing plenty for me, so I'm content.
My sister has an iPhone and it may be the coolest thing I've ever seen. Just as they did with the iPod, Apple continues to revolutionize the digital age with an incredible piece of technology.
Years ago - technology would seem to speed along then slow down. A few years later, there'd be a new product.
I remember when the first VHS recorder came out in the 1970s. Man was it neat to record television. Of course, that spawned the tape rental industry.
The poor old VHS tape was then chased by the laser disc and DVD and now Blu-Ray and High Definition products are available for all of these high tech televisions they are making.
When we finally pulled the trigger on that awesome flat screen we wanted, we realize another company has advanced the technology by doing this and that to it and ours is obsolete. It used to take a decade for things to become obsolete and now it takes a year or two.
New televisions, phones, digital devices, games, etc...
So where does it all end?
Until our current existence changes (war, famine, disease, etc.), I'd say it doesn't end. We're probably seeing just the tip of the iceberg. As the world economy broadens, the competition becomes greater. Really makes me wonder what things will be like after the next 20 years.
In some ways, it also makes me wonder what our technology is doing to us physically right now. With Alzheimer's and Autism rates continuing to climb, do all of these things being beamed from one place to another have an effect on us?
Of the things I have within 20 feet of me which emit something I count:
• Cell phone
• Remote control television, DVD, VCR, etc.
• Dish Network
• Microwave Oven
• Home Phone
• Computer
• Dog (an odor)
Are these things harmful. Hopefully not. Unfortunately, that is one of those things which will emerge in hindsight as with mesothelioma and asbestos.
I remember my first set of walkie-talkies and my first remote-controlled car. Man, I thought that technology was really amazing. Now, they're just antiques. Then again, so am I.

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Each year I feel the need to write something about September 11, 2001.
What a horrible day for this country. I found myself watching a show on 9-11 on the National Geographic Channel Sunday and to this day, I can still feel the pain I felt on that day.
Deep down, I don't care if it's been luck, great police work, national security intelligence or what, I'm thankful we've not been hit again.
Love him or hate him, President Bush has traversed a horrible storm and kept the ship afloat.
I don't know the percentages, but I imagine nearly all of us thought 9-11 was the beginning of many attacks on U.S. soil. Thank God the attempts have been thwarted. And, like him or not, Bush, his policies and personnel should be given credit.
Back on that dark day, I would have given anything for the piece of mind security brings. Now I wonder if we take it for granted.
I was single on September 11, 2001. Now I'm married and have two sons. Priority number 1 for me is security. I don't want my family blown up. Regardless of which candidate is elected president, that priority will not change.