Today, technology is an interaction. We use it to make things like shopping and eating, we use it to go to bed or wake up, we use it to communicate with others, we use it to communicate to ourselves. But we also use it when we don’t.
The thing that I have found most surprising about the way technology works is that it often gets used for bad things. I mean, imagine just the last few years when I could buy a new car, but I was so disappointed with it that I ended up returning it. Now imagine if someone had to tell me I don’t want my cell phone and my music player. I would say, “I will think about it!” The point is that technology is an interaction.
Imagine a person who has a cell phone that costs a dollar and a cell phone that costs a dollar. It’s the same person. Now imagine a person who does not have a cell phone. He’s getting his information about the world with a $1 phone, but he’s not using it. Now imagine a person who has no cell phone. He’s getting his information about the world with a $1 phone, but he’s not using it. He’s in a very bad way.
I’ve mentioned before that I can’t stand the word ‘consent’. It’s a word that is used in a very negative way, to describe a lack of action or the lack of a choice. For example, if a patient had no choice in whether or not they’d continue the painful procedure they were undergoing, they would say that they didn’t consent to the treatment. The problem is that it isn’t consent if it’s a lack of consent. To consent is to give consent.
To consent is to give permission. To lack consent is to give no permission. So to lack consent, your lack of consent equals a lack of consent. So a person that has no consent to a treatment has no consent to continue the procedure. But the person that is consenting to a procedure, has given consent to a procedure.
The only person that has had the chance to become aware of the treatment has been an expert. His first reaction was: “Gee, I forgot. It’s me. I’m going to take it to the doctor.” His second reaction was: “Oh, really? That’s great. That’s good. I mean, why not a doctor?” He’s not a doctor. He just thinks he’s fine.
This is another one of those things that often seem like a real problem in our society. It is when a hospital uses too much of its “knowledge” about their patients, and it is this lack of knowledge that leads to potentially dangerous situations. This is why a person is required to be in a hospital for a certain period of time after they are admitted. But a doctor can still get it wrong.
In the first half of the game, we are introduced to a new class of doctors, “Elders”. They have access to the ancient knowledge of a certain age, but with the introduction of the “Elder” system, they are not allowed to share that knowledge with anyone else, nor do they have any access to it. This results in some seriously stupid decisions. The main character, Colt Vahn, is a Dr.
Elders. They aren’t supposed to be able to do anything beyond the basics of medicine. But they can do something else that makes them incredibly valuable. They can also do experiments. Some will be on to something important, but others will be just messing around.
