This is well argued. Had I known the author he cites felt that the printing press was an ultimately negative thing for humanity, I would have found the quote he used to be suspect. My personal thoughts on the matter is that a smartphone, or the internet, is a tool used by people. In and of itself, it is neutral. The way people use it is what should be examined (by the people using it) and, as those have said in these comments, if there is an imbalance between it and the other aspects of human life, change should try to be made. I'm trying to separate the fear of technology from the valid points. I still think it's an interesting debate. And while I also felt to dichotomy of reading his indictments against the internet on the internet, I believe we can and should discuss the impacts of this medium while together on this medium. We shouldn't let the absurdity stop us from weighing the highs and the lows of this technology that connects us with so much today, and assessing how much is too much. Individually. That's as far as I'm willing to argue. Others are free to disagree if they believe it necessary to proselytize unaware iPhone users to a more technologically-balanced lifestyle. Lastly, I want to say that I don't think a face-to-face conversation has more value than catching up with someone on the phone. I'm against monocultures, against cutting yourself off from the diverse array of conversations and connections walking past you while you're looking down.