Technology saved the day multiple times in the military. Technology gave us intelligence on what the enemy was planning, where the enemy was located, we even had the technology to stop radio waves from transmitting to explode Improvised Explosive Device (IED).  

I have used technology to save the day for other people as well. I have used technology to help stop credit card fraud for multiple people and have used technology to help track and locate suspects.

I think there is one device most of us have where it / technology has gotten us in some kind of trouble. That device is a smartphone. Have you ever been somewhere when you are told to make sure your phone is turned off and then 20 minutes later your phone rings and for some reason the ringer is turned up full blast and everyone looks at you like you are an alien from outer space. Or what about when you are playing a game on your phone and relies its hours past your bedtime.

WordPress was fun and there were so many different things you could get and use. The options were almost overwhelming. I would have played around more but I was afraid of getting booted out for changing up things multiple times. I don’t think that was a WordPress thing though I think it was a server issue.

So I would say a dislike I had for WordPress was it would let you download different plugins even if they were not compatible. I ran into that issue and went down the rabbit hole way to far trying to fix the problem. I lost about two weeks trying to figure it out. Yes it was due to me being stubborn and not wanting to ask for help, thinking “I can figure this out” lol.

Being constantly connected for example your smartphone can have social media accounts giving and sending you information. People can call and or text your smartphone. It is almost like an electronic leash and when someone calls you and you don’t answer that person might assume you are ignoring them because they think your phone is next to you at all times so they should be able to get ahold of you at any time. So that can be the bad, now for the good. If you get hurt or need help, being connected makes it a lot easier to get the help needed. That compared to if you cannot contact someone might be crucial or fatal.

I wish there was an app that could give me free money. All I have to do is go into the app and click on what bank account I want to send digital money to and bam my bank account money goes up.

Is there such an app or is it possible. No, but a person can dream about how cool it would be. Even if I could only use it to buy other people stuff and not myself would be awesome. That makes me go to this thought, what if there was such an app that would donate money, food, or other essential needs to people in need. Maybe you could donate money for food and another person would donate money for hygiene supplies. I think I like that idea better.    

I am sure it is possible, there are apps for donating.

A favorite current app of mine is my USAA banking app. In the past the USAA app was a pain in the but to cash a check because the light and angle had to be 110% perfect. Now that they have fixed that issue it is supper easy to cash a check. I can also transfer money from different banks, have the bank send a check or even automatic payments. When I want to see how my investments are doing I can check them out as well on the app.   

•Social media increasingly dictates social stature. Why is that?  

Sharing a picture or personal information about you or someone else on social media can dictate how others react. On the show, people’s reactions are to give ratings. Those ratings are averaged out, segregating people by their average rating. Thus, a person can be good and do good things but the bad will always stand out and be remembered.  

•What is it about social media that gives it so much power over us?

We don’t give social media power over us.  The influence of what other people think may persuade the way you think because as humans we tend to follow suit as to what others are doing.  For example, if a person keeps seeing and hearing that something is good. That person most likely will think whatever it is to be good as well.

Another example but more of an in person situation, if you are talking to someone and they have their arms crossed and closed offish, if you cross your arms and mimic the other person while slowly uncrossing your arms can sometimes get the other person to follow your body language. Making the “stand offish” kind of fade away.

•What did Lacie want at the beginning of the episode? Did she get what she wanted?

Lacie wanted to have a high social rating and live a fake uppity life. The harder she tried the worse her situation would get. In the end she ended up with a low social rating and learned how life can turn around from good to bad or vice versa.

The internet has helped me find, stop, and prevent fraudulent purchases and other types of theft. The internet provides the opportunity for new apps and usage of apps to help track just about anything.

The internet has also changed the way I get information along with speeding up the process because sending and receiving information happens within seconds. There are so many resources that are available on the internet to help with just about anything. For example, I have learned how to fix things by looking up a video on YouTube or, watching live video from a remote camera.

When I was in the Army and deployed the internet helped me keep in touch through the use of Skype and VOIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) along with social media platforms. I keep in touch by sharing pictures of my kids with my family and friends on FaceBook, or I can just drop a line to say hi to someone. On a drunken night I can write something for the world to see and felt really embarrassed the next day.

The internet changed the way I manage my health starting back in 2008 when I was in the Army and deployed to Iraq. I would use the internet to learn how to work out, eat healthy, and what supplements to take.

Recently I have used the internet for managing my health by looking for different healthy ingredients I can use for cooking. I have used the internet for communicating with my doctors and refilling medications at the VA hospital.