Our terrifying great leap forward 4
Historian Niall Ferguson says that this time of ours, NOW, is one of the most dramatic ever in history. Because of the Technological Revolution. Because of the Internet.
As dramatic as the invention of the printing press. But “history today happens 10 times faster” than it did when the printing press was invented.
As dramatic as the time of the Reformation.
And in a way, that is “terrifying”. Books that did great evil – such as the burning of witches – were even bigger sellers than the mass-produced bibles on which religious reformers, such as Martin Luther, pinned their hopes for the moral improvement of mankind. (Margin note: Luther was a giant of immorality, but that’s beside this point.)
Of course we value the Internet highly. Can’t think how we, or anyone, ever managed life without it.
