The February 8 cartoon, Shoe, (by Gary Brookins and SusieMacNelly) depicts Professor Cosmo Fishhawk at his desk with hiscomputer repairman, Wiz, saying, "You really should think about aphone upgrade, Cosmo."

"Why?" asks Cosmo; his land line has years of life left in it.He then comments, "You sure love your electronic gadgets, don'tyou, Wiz?" who responds by explaining that his iPad is connected tothe Web, his iPod to his favorite music, and his cellphone lets himcommunicate with anyone anywhere, including taking photos which hecan link to his computer, laptop and even his streaming TV."Yessir, it's one huge 21st century network."

Cosmo replies, "Y'know, one good power surge and it could be1947 for you all over again."

Claims readers who have followed this column over thedecades have seen the Iconoclast confess to being a "luddite" manytimes. Old Ned Ludd was an 18th century textile worker who took anax to the modern loom he was forced to use because it took away thecottage industry of weaving. In the 1800s, groups known as Ludditesattacked modern steam engines in factories that forced them to workharder and faster. Ever since, the anti-technologically-minded havebeen referred to (lovingly, of course) as luddites.

I use technology. This column was written on a "tablet" andsubmitted via e-mail over the Internet on which I checked myluddicious facts. But I don't tweet, follow Twitter or text. Itoot, but only at some idiot who is texting when the light turnsgreen and he just sits there. I don't own a cell phone. (My wifehas one, but just for emergencies.) Who would I call? I don't liketalking on the telephone — I'm practically deaf! As I work at homeI don't need to communicate other than yelling down the stairs,"Hey, is lunch ready yet?"

Having just finished writing a section of one of my texts oncyber hacking, I know precisely what hazards the "well-connectedtechnocrat" faces when some hacker in Outer Slabovia steals hisidentity. A hacking attack is not just a possibility — it is aprobability, and when all computers go down at once, don't look onthe back porch for a carrier pigeon. We did away with those 50years ago.

Impolite visitors

Nothing irritates me more than guests who visit our home and sitwith their nose in an I-gadget, or constantly interrupt aconversation when their cellphone jangles. It happens at church, inconcerts, lectures, the supermarket, and any time my wife's niecesand nephews visit. Their whole visit is spent playing with theirgadgets. Are children not taught manners any longer?

Even in stores, as I approach a counter to ask about a product,the clerk will be on her cellphone gabbing with a friend. Does herboss know? Social media costs the economy billions in productivityannually. A survey of Harvard Business School alumni found thatnearly half would prefer using technology rather than hire peopleto do the same work.

Unnatural persons

In preparing a course on Florida law and ethics I was amazed tolearn that under Florida Statute §626.866 the all-lines adjusterqualifications read, "1. Natural person of at least 18 years ofage…." I wondered. How could an adjuster not be a "natural" person?Then I recalled one of my first columns in this publicationentitled "I. M. Fair, CPU," a prediction penned in 1979 warning ofthe technological revolution that would reduce claims adjusting toone big mainframe computer with lots of robotics, voice recognitionand artificial intelligence. If a robot could do an adjuster's work(and somewhere somebody is already probably programming one to doexactly that), then thank goodness that Robbie the Robot can't belicensed, at least in Florida, as an all-lines adjuster; Robbieisn't a "natural person."

Technology is great, but when it steals our ability to think andreason for ourselves, and can do our work at a fraction of the costwithout employee benefits, vacations, or sick days, then those ofus in the claims vocation have become irrelevant and unneeded, inshort, unemployed. Oh, Ned, where is your ax when we need it!