Android butlers, flying cars, laser guns… So much of the technology we take for granted today got started in the 1950s. It was a time of unprecedented modernization of industry, communications, and culture. We got the first microchips, modems, optical fiber, and credit cards. Ike's "Farewell Address" came at the beginning of the 1960s, when a whole new tsunami of tech development was about to come roaring over the nation.
Ike understood how fast things were moving, and how fast they were getting faster, so it's no wonder one of the biggest things he emphasized was balance. The most amazing thing about Ike's speculation is how relevant it still is. If someone had given this speech last week, it would have seemed up-to-date. Technology is still moving so fast that we're chasing after it hoping we catch it before The Singularity arrives and our robot overlords decide it's payback time.
Questions About Technology and Modernization
- How much of consumer technology was originally created for military purposes? Do you think Ike had a problem with that?
- Do tech billionaires have outsized influence on American life like Ike feared? Are companies like Google and Facebook a danger to the American way, or do the services they offer outweigh the downsides?
- What would Ike have thought about the internet? Would he use Twitter or Instagram if he was alive today?
Chew on This
War is always the biggest motivation for technological development throughout human history.
Ike couldn't even begin to know how right he was about the potential danger of the scientific-technological elite.