# Collateral Obsolescence Rant Considering Climate // 19-8-22

(To prevent overlong lines,
but without the need of postprocessing,
I'm writing single lines on the Palm.)

Warning: grumpy old man ahead!

So now I can start throwing away
fully functional mobile phones,
adding more crumbs to the heap
of junk our consumer world causes.

And it's your fault, you guys who
watch TV on your mobile devices,
you kids who communicate merely
by tons of pics and movie snippets,
you advert people who want more
interactive mind-numbing sugar,
you chatternuts who need to see
your pals moving their mouths.

Because all of you and some are the
reason telcos are installing 5G but
abandoning 2G and 3G networks.
And so my old Nokias have begun not
getting any network recently.

Cherry on the stupidity cake:
The salesman at the provider's shop
told me they have the redo of the
Nokia 3310 (IIRC) capable of using
the new networks. I don't want to buy
new stuff, I want to continue using
the old working one, for f***s sake!

I'm already feeling bad enough for
the fact I recently bought two new
batteries for my old Acer Aspire
laptop, and now it doesn't boot any
more. Agreed, it's old, but it fit my
needs perfectly. *sob*

So I try to consume less, but the
crap gets shoved down my throat.

Yeah, I'm an old man, and they were
never happy with how the world is
turning around them. But for all we
know, it's no longer the same world
where making and using new stuff
is just progress, but became harmful.

My son yesterday asked me whether
we would/could go to New Zealand
in a year or two. It was at bedtime,
so I kept it short and didn't discuss it.
But I will have to tell him that I think
flying around the world just for fun
does not do it much good, and that
we should well consider all the effects.
(Luckily, my wife and I are totally on
the same page in this respect!)

Yes, I've done it myself before, and
although it's been a wonderful time
in NZ (including ham radio contacts
over short-waves), I'm having serious
doubts whether we should do such a
trip. Which is difficult to justify to a
kid whose colleagues at school were
in Australia or elsewhere for a week
or two during summer vacations,
and their parents are regularly
jetting around the world on their job.

Sometimes I cannot get rid of the
feeling we're all doomed because of
our indifference. I can relate to Miss
Thunberg's intention to make others
feel panicked about the climate,
although I think panic is the wrong
reaction. But we do have lost the
past thirty years, methinks, and we
have to make some tough decisions
NOW.

.:.

*written on PalmIII*