Now I've seen it all...
This has GOT to be the most ridiculous 'feature' I've seen on any vehicle. Ever. There are no words to express my disdain for this 'feature.'... If you can't figure out which way to turn the wheels...
Forum Discussion
This is really not about whether or not one is a Luddite or a Super "Technologist". What this is really about is an idea that Carl Sagan the Astrophysicist made a case for in one of his later books.
His position is that for centuries the average man was able to repair and fully understand the technology that surrounded him. An example: In the 50's and 60's MOST men could repair anything in they owned including their TV and their car.
No longer is this the case. Now most of us cannot repair and do not have a full understanding of how the technology that we use everyday works.
Sagans take was that this is creating a "priesthood" of "technocrats" that is overall a small percentage of our population who hold information and knowledge that the rest of us have little capability of understanding or using. He thought this was a dangerous trend and that our school systems were doing a very bad job in training our kids to not just USE the technology but truly understand it's inner workings.
This new feature from Ford like so many of the other features now on the market that will park your car for you and find your way are just an incremental step in the process that Sagan was talking about. It's the next logical step and it will result in a generation that cannot park or back a vehicle, just like most of our generation and the one younger cannot begin to repair their own cars. The motor skills necessary to drive park and back, which are learned and honed over time with practice will be lost. And the new generation will be saying..."My Grandfather could fix anything on his car..but I cant even back mine up"
In my view people need to keep control of the vehicle, learn to back and park and repair everything possible. Otherwise we mortgage our future to those few who have specialized knowledge. And worst of all it endangers our very independence.
His position is that for centuries the average man was able to repair and fully understand the technology that surrounded him. An example: In the 50's and 60's MOST men could repair anything in they owned including their TV and their car.
No longer is this the case. Now most of us cannot repair and do not have a full understanding of how the technology that we use everyday works.
Sagans take was that this is creating a "priesthood" of "technocrats" that is overall a small percentage of our population who hold information and knowledge that the rest of us have little capability of understanding or using. He thought this was a dangerous trend and that our school systems were doing a very bad job in training our kids to not just USE the technology but truly understand it's inner workings.
This new feature from Ford like so many of the other features now on the market that will park your car for you and find your way are just an incremental step in the process that Sagan was talking about. It's the next logical step and it will result in a generation that cannot park or back a vehicle, just like most of our generation and the one younger cannot begin to repair their own cars. The motor skills necessary to drive park and back, which are learned and honed over time with practice will be lost. And the new generation will be saying..."My Grandfather could fix anything on his car..but I cant even back mine up"
In my view people need to keep control of the vehicle, learn to back and park and repair everything possible. Otherwise we mortgage our future to those few who have specialized knowledge. And worst of all it endangers our very independence.
