Our children need tech.

My 5y/o daughter can use the Internet quite well. She's got a $300 netbook that gives her wireless access to the web and a handful of other basic applications, games, and functionality. Using Stumbleupon and Google I quickly found and bookmarked the better learning, game, music, and video websites, then let her figure it out. A child's drive to understand things provide all the motivation they need to quickly pick up the necessary skills to gain proficiency. She had about a +40 word recognition ability before she could sing her ABCs. The ability to recognize words is more important then the letters when using a computer; she knew which bookmarks went where, she played a lot of games that relied on word recognition, and could quickly find "games" on any website.

The old joke has always been about kids and VCRs. Growing up with the Internet is going to be an incredibly life altering for those who are allowed access. The Internet is changing the way we learn. Governments are going broke, student loans are drying up, college tuition is inflating, and no one has any money. Yet the jobs of 10-15 years from now haven't even been invented yet. People will learn the information of the future on-line. Old institutions fall and better ways of doing things win out. American children that fail to become tech savvy will be part of the 3rd world of the future. Those who integrate into the network most quickly will be far better off. Imagine if Einstein had access to Wikipedia as a child. China alone likely has 4,000 Einsteins. Unfettered access to the information of the web is a generational quantum leap in human culture, the implications of which can't yet be imagined.

The Mennonites are important. They keep traditions alive, we need people to keep traditions alive. The rest of society marches forth. Many of the old ways of doing things are very important. I want to raise chickens, have a garden, grow mushrooms, can my own food and my wife is making her own shampoos and face wash. I want to teach these things to my children. Technology is not about a metal box in the city anymore. What is important is diversity. Mennonites are diversity, so are others who branch and deviate. Diversity is what is important, the right to self-determination. Everyone has the right to live their life as they choose. So many rich choose to be poor, many of the poor choose to be rich, optimists see possibilities, pessimists only opportunities for failure.

"Watch your thoughts; they become your words…
Watch your words; they become your actions…
Watch your actions; they become your habits…
Watch your habits; they become your character…
Watch your character, for it will become your destiny." ~Hillel the Elder

I envy my children for the range of destinies available to them, and I fear the paths they might take. All I can do is: "Prepare the child for the path, and not the path of the child." I get them started, teach them everything I know by the time they're 10, and they're supporting me with their start-up businesses at 15. Who knows? Where will this world be in 10 years anyway? At the very least I teach them what I know so they can surpass me and teach me something one day. Video games are also important. The ability to drop away from the human interface and feel immersed in a virtual environment, problem solving skills, troubleshooting and problem solving skills, etc. Our children need tech.