"Smart" phones for "stupid" people?

That is a question that keeps coming to my mind, way too often during the last couple of months. I like walking a lot, so I usually take long strolls in and around the small town of Markopoulo, where I reside since 2013. Almost everywhere I turn my head to, I can see mostly young people passing by, on foot or by car or sitting in cafeterias, all of them either making phone calls or listening to music or looking into the screens of their "smart" phones.

It is understandable that modern technology is appealing to young people, after all it is fabricated with that exactly in mind, to be popular among young people, the younger the better. It is much easier to manipulate young, inexperienced minds, especially when you offer them a chance to become "cool", interesting, accepted by other people of the same age. This becomes even more apparent in countries like Greece, which, after savoring the fake abundance of all goods the modern western civilization had to offer for almost 35 years, are now entangled in a devastating downward spiral of self destruction, of economic and social disintegration.

How else can someone explain the fact that, in a country that has just entered the seventh year of economic depression, with almost half of its national income lost and almost half of its working force either unemployed or barely occupied, people spend hundreds of euros to buy the latest model of smart phone, as soon as it is available in the market? You can see them driving, with one hand on the stirring wheel and the other holding their phone firmly to their ear, paying the least attention to the road ahead. Or you can see them "sleepwalking", with their eyes and minds fully concentrated on the screens of their phones, even when trying to cross a street. Or, even worse, you can see them sitting around the same table, but not talking to each other, because everyone is too busy talking on their phones or checking their facebook accounts.

Of course, one may argue that these smart phones are a powerful tool for professionals, who can fulfill their external duties, while litterally carrying their offices in their pockets, having access to important e-mails or being able to send offers to customers, thus becoming more efficient and productive. I have no doubt in my mind that this may apply to 20% of smart phone users, but for the rest 80% these devices are the means to stay connected to their "friends" or their "followers", to "chat" for hours about trivial things, to take and instantly upload "selfies", or just to kill their time, playing internet games with friends or perfect strangers.

In my eyes, this constitutes a form of modern escapism to a dream world of virtual reality, away from problems of real life. One might even say that it is only natural that people, especially young people, who face the appaling face of modern society, with unemployment, lack of ideals and principles, attempt to seek a refuge in this phantasy world. But, unfortunately, problems in the real world won't go away if you stick your head in the ground like an austrich. They need active citizens, with integrity and love and wisdom and idealism, to question the very foundations of modern society, to find out for themselves where we have gone wrong and to demand the necessary changes for a humane and sustainable future, in harmony with each other and mother nature. And to this end, modern technology can only help, by providing more efficient communication to unite people.