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Apart from perhaps the industrial revolution, the latter half of the 20th century saw the greatest period of technical innovation in the history of mankind.
Are all these inventions for the better?
Are there any inventions from the last 50 years that you wish had not been invented.
My possibly controversial one is the mobile phone – I hate the blessed things. They are so intrusive. You cannot go anywhere without seeing someone walking round with a phone clamped to their ear. You constantly end up overhearing conversations you don’t want to hear – most of them inane and pointless.
You’re considered a social pariah if you don’t have one. I take the term mobile phone literally – I only use it when I am mobile – when I am home I turn it off – and the abuse I get. “I tried to ring you on your mobile but you didn’t answer.”
“Yes I didn’t answer it because I wasn’t mobile and was at home and if I wanted you to ring me when I was at home I would give you my home number.”
When I worked in a "real job" I was expected to have my phone on 24/7 – notice I used the word expected – what they expected and what they got were two different things!!
OK mobiles do have a use in emergency situations but otherwise they are more trouble than they are worth.
An do you know the oddest thing – I managed to survive for over forty years of my life without having one and I never came to any harm as a result.
Totally agree with that; mobiles are brilliant for using in emergencies or if you have a teenager just becoming independent, but why people have to be permanently attached to one I really don’t understand….it was funny in Bamburgh churchyard a couple of years ago [the signal up there is pretty bad]; two old ladies were one their mobiles; one of them turned to us and said ‘we’re trying to get in touch with our husbands…’…we wanted to say to them ‘ how long have they been dead??? ‘
Are there any inventions from the last 50 years that you wish had not been invented.
Yes – The speed camera.
Lee
Absolutely agree with both of you on all of the above points, and to add that people conveniently ‘hide behind’ them when it suits them.
I would love to ban Animalintex and Vetrap (poultice and cohesive bandage). I’ve seen far too many horses knackered by muppetish use of either or both.
Though I do have one I see nothing controversial about un-inventing Mobiles. What should have been no more than a rather clever little gadget designed to replace the tiresome business of shoving two-bob bits down public phone boxes has become – for reasons I fail to fathom – a ‘fashion accessory’; an accessory that has seen no attendant etiquette or common courtesy develop intended to minimise annoyance to those within ear-shot. Belching in restaurants, holding a conversation in libraries and body odour are generally regarded as unacceptable and bad form, so why isn’t shouting down a Mobile?
Other than that I would un-invent Credit Cards and MacDonalds; both are a blight on the civilized world
"Chelsea Tractors" – especially the affordable ones that hypocritical urban dwelling "mums" drive their kids the 10 mins journey to school every morning whilst claiming to care about "the world my children are going to grow up in".
Nicely put Firefox
"Chelsea Tractors" – especially the affordable ones that hypocritical urban dwelling "mums" drive their kids the 10 mins journey to school every morning whilst claiming to care about "the world my children are going to grow up in".
Good God yes.
I was nearly cleaned up twice one day a fortnight ago by the same Chelsea Tractor outside Berkhamstead Public School. The ghastly woman behind the wheel twice jammed on the brakes at zero notice to allow her equally ghastly offspring to be dropped off right outside the door of each of their respective "houses". The distance between one house and the other? No more than 50 metres.
Over-generalising never helped anyone, but the the mindset that seems inherent in many of the drivers of these blasted things is not one of which I want any piece, ta muchly.
gc
Jeremy Grayson. Son of immigrant. Adoptive father of two. Metadata librarian. Freelance point-to-point / horse racing writer, analyst and commentator wonk. Loves music, buses, cats, the BBC Micro, ale. Advocate of CBT, PACE and therapeutic parenting. Aspergers.
Nuclear Weapons
Wait til the nutters get hold of them
Wont be worrying about Chelsea tractors then….
I would love to uninvent or ban any person from using the word "Cool" to describe things.
Dont know why but i hate that word as someone who is probably uncool anyway which i am very proud of.
one thing about mobiles – i cant afford a house phone, and it’s either that or a mobile. if an accident happened up the gallops these days at least we can get hold of people quickly!!
one thing that shouldn’t have been invented is marmite in all its ‘evil’ forms! lol sorry couldn’t think of anything else, but i do agree with most of the above
daiesy
Daiesy,
You are so right about the value of mobiles in an emergency
…but so wrong about Marmite, ’tis the anticipation of that spread (sorry Crizzy) on toast that gets me out of bed in the morning
Karaoke…….I believe the Japanese started it all off and whilst I like the Japanese, I do curse them for inventing this embarrassment in human activity. Apart from the fact that I am an awful singer and if I did join in then all the cats within a five mile radius would show me up by creating a better sound, I simply don’t like listening to other people ruining some good tunes and meaningful songs.
Perhaps I like music too much and take it too seriously because another thing I hate is tribute bands. Why pay money to listen to imitations of other musician’s work? Would people pay money to see fake Van Gogh paintings?
OK that’s my rant over with…..next please
Pete
Surely previous posters’ real issue is with lack of good manners or etiquette, rather than with mobile phones per se?
I’m always careful to observe proper protocol when using my mobile phone, and only ever use it in crowded places when closing my latest million-dollar deal.
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