The premise of this video is that people, mainly economists, argue about what was more important and impactful: the washing machine or the internet. I personally fall in the camp that the internet is and has been more impactful than the washing machine, but I quickly realize that, of course, I would say that because I never had to struggle to wash my clothes by hand. That's when my brain started spinning. My parents lived in a world where there was no internet and no washing machine.
So I asked them, "Do you think the washing machine has been as impactful for economic growth as the internet?" This is what they told me:
paraphrased for clarity as they answered me in Spanish
"The internet has been way more impactful to our lives and economic growth than the washing machine, no doubt. The washing machine helped us with cleaning clothes and made our lives a little bit easier, but it was not as impactful. The internet helps us with everything, not only clothing. It helps us communicate more easily with others. It makes it easier for us to learn new things. It makes it easier to do business with tools like Zoom, cloud storage, and email.
It's not even a fair comparison, I feel, because the internet helps you and makes a lot of day-to-day things easier, while the washing machine only helps in one thing and one thing only: washing clothing. The washing machine helps us a lot by doing laundry quicker, but the internet helps us now do almost everything quicker. Which one do you think is more impactful for you?"
It's interesting to hear the perspective of those who didn't grow up with the internet or washing machines. It's clear that the internet has had a more significant impact on our lives and economic growth. It has revolutionized the way we communicate, learn, and conduct business, whereas the washing machine has only made one task - washing clothes - a bit easier. It seems like an unfair comparison - the internet has made so many things faster and easier, while the washing machine has only helped with one aspect of household chores.
It's important to note, however, that the impact of the internet may not be universally positive. While it has undoubtedly brought about many benefits, such as increased connectivity and access to information, it has also introduced new challenges, such as the spread of misinformation and the erosion of privacy. It's crucial that we continue to examine the impact of the internet on our society and take steps to address these challenges as they arise.