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Friday, February 7, 2025

The Crossroads of Progress: Where are We Heading?

This article centers around a saying that seems perfectly suited to describe the times we are living in: „The old world, as we knew it, is dying, and the new world struggles to be born, and now is the time of monsters.” Although these words may sound grim, it is hard to deny their relevance, especially since we are direct witnesses to these changes.

However, the winds of change did not start blowing yesterday; they gained strength with the rapid advancement of technology. But where does this story begin? And, more importantly, why has change brought more disorder than progress? These questions can help us understand the profound impact technology has had, not only on our individual lives but also on the structures of society as a whole.

Undoubtedly, technology has brought extraordinary benefits. Work productivity has skyrocketed, and medicine has achieved milestones that seemed like science fiction just a few decades ago. However, along with these gains, we have also received a „poisoned gift”—a sense of ease and triviality that has seeped into our daily lives.

This apparent comfort has transformed important matters into simple habits and has untrained us from appreciating the complexity and effort behind progress. A mere push of a button provides answers to any question, instant deliveries, and virtual connections spanning thousands of miles. Yet, in the process, we have lost something essential: our connection to reality.

Progress and Responsibility – A Lost Balance

A revealing example of this disconnect between technology and responsibility came in an interview given by a high-ranking general from a country with one of the largest nuclear capabilities. After describing the impressive technological facilities his country possessed, he presented the results of simulations that hypothesized a nuclear dispute with other similarly equipped states. The general stated that, according to these simulations, tens of millions of his country’s citizens could be saved—a result that, in his view, would constitute a „victory.”

What frightened me, however, was not the simulation’s outcome but rather the cold, impersonal tone with which he spoke about the fate of billions of people. Such an attitude, coming from someone in a position of enormous responsibility, reveals a mindset that trivializes the gravity of decisions with catastrophic consequences. In that moment, I understood how profound the gap is between technological progress and the human wisdom required to use it responsibly.

This dangerous detachment is not an isolated case. It is, rather, a symptom of a world in which technology advances faster than our ability to fully grasp its implications. In a way, we have become captives of our own inventions, and those who should be humanity’s guardians have turned into cold administrators of statistics, ignoring the true essence of life: empathy, community, and moral responsibility.

A Virtualized Economy – Losing Our Anchor in Reality

Another defining moment in the history of technological and economic progress was the abandonment of the gold standard for the U.S. dollar. While I am not an economist and cannot claim to analyze all the complex implications of this subject, one thing seems clear to me: the decoupling of monetary value from a tangible asset and the unlimited creation of credit with the mere push of a button is yet another example of the disconnection from reality that technology has brought us.

This fundamental shift enabled the creation of a global financial system based on trust and vulnerability. The generation of debt and inflation through a seemingly harmless technological process—completely unanchored in real resources—has led to massive economic imbalances. States and individuals alike have become trapped in a game where virtual numbers seem to matter more than the tangible reality of resources, labor, or actual value created.

This example highlights how technological progress can have enormous consequences for society when used without discernment. Rather than strengthening economic stability and fostering sustainable development, this innovation has amplified inequalities and vulnerabilities. Moreover, it has cultivated a mentality of consumption and debt that disregards planetary resource limits and the need for long-term responsibility.

Technology – A Means, Not an End

That humans are prone to error is a universally accepted truth. However, what we are experiencing today seems to exceed the usual boundaries of human fallibility. We are witnessing an alarming dynamic where both state leaders and ordinary citizens appear incapable of stepping out of the paradigm of abandoning fundamental human values and reality’s anchor points. These are being sacrificed on the altar of illusory ease and convenience, while individual responsibilities are increasingly delegated to „technology.”

This substitution of responsibility not only distances us from our human essence but also creates a dangerous dependency. Technology has come to be perceived as a mechanism capable of solving any problem, no matter how complex. Yet, in this superficial vision, we completely ignore the moral and human dimensions of the issues we face.

This tendency is risky. Technology, no matter how advanced, cannot replace judgment, empathy, or human wisdom. Moreover, when we transfer to it tasks involving moral or social decisions, we risk losing control over our own direction as a species.

Conclusion: The Direction for Part Two

Whether we can find the necessary solutions to counteract this trend remains to be seen. This is a question that will be explored in detail in the second part of this article, where I will attempt to propose ways to restore balance between responsibility, human values, and the use of technology. Ultimately, the problem is not technology itself but how we, as a society, choose to use it.

Razvan Moise
Razvan Moise
With academic and professional knowledge in the fields of political science, geopolitics and security studies, Răzvan wishes to contribute to the development and promotion of these fields of study in Romania. In particular, he aims to generate interest and understanding of the importance of intelligence and to promote responsible and balanced approaches to the defense of national security.

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