Wolfrunner 2048

The year is 2048. Technology runs rampant in society. It has become almost impossible to get things done without some sort of technological assistance.
My eyes hurt, as I have been staring at my computer screen for 5 hours now trying to come up with ideas for an article. All the while I am distracted by a smaller device showing me quick, attention-grabbing videos. Even blue light glasses cannot remedy the pain on my corneas. I press on, eager to complete this assignment. However, the night drags on and my eyes grow weaker. Eventually, I cave and fall asleep.
As I arrive onto campus on a cool, misty morning at 7:15, there are already several groups of students milling around. Each one has their neck craned downward at an awkward angle, ogling at a bright screen. Although the students huddle together in groups they make no conversation or even eye contact with each other. It’s like everyone is in their own world, obsessed with their phones. As I scramble past the mindless-phone obsessed zombies, I wonder how one can be so desensitized to destroying their eyes so early in the morning. Many have even begun to destroy their bodies with technology, or as they call it “enhancing”. It wouldn’t be out of place to see a student wandering the halls with an iPad 20 inserted into their thigh. The other day I saw someone running around with an iPod 48 in their eye! Even couples barely make conversation, they lean on each other but it’s almost like they’re not even touching. Their thumbs numb from swiping, I wonder how such little communication can get by in a relationship. Maybe it’s different when their main method of communication is through texting and Instagram DMs instead of human interaction.
Eventually, I come across our principal, Doctor O’Connor. For a long while now, students have known that his name draws similarities to Marvel comic’s Doc Ock. Despite this, I was left amazed as I witnessed him walking around with 4 large, metal, (what seemed to be) tentacles attached to a mechanism on his back. As he walked around on this phenomenal piece of technology, the looming figure that is Doctor O’Connor continued to cement himself as a wonder. I watch as he chases down a student for littering. Ironically, the student wears a Spiderman backpack as they swing around corners and jump from trashcan to trashcan with much vigor as they’re chased by the daunting authority figure, hoping not to get squashed.
Everything on CHS’ campus has been technologically enhanced. Large cables run in and out of the buildings making the school a complex web of electronic wiring. The new water fountains charge 5 cents for each use! Even sports have been affected. The various sports teams around CHS use VR to practice. Most swimmers haven’t felt the touch of pool water in years! Within the classrooms, the teachers seem to be ineffective in leading and controlling the class. The student’s attention is focused on online games they play on the iPad they lug around. Teachers’ loss of power and students becoming all that more apathetic to school due to their high investment in technology is all too telling of the grip that electronics have on this campus.
Can we as a society hope for change? Are we doomed to a life of ruined eyesight, destroyed posture, and broken attention span? I say no, and I present a solution along with that. Everyone must switch to flip-phones, Blackberrys, and Nokias. Instead of walking around with a speaker blasting music, maybe try walking around with a boombox! I see this as the best approach to dismantle the oppressive technology in CHS, it also acts as a safety measure to prevent Doctor O’Connor from walking around in a giant Power Rangers Megazord! Sometimes to solve future problems, one must go retro.