Pass me the butylated hydroxyanisole

Remember the old days before the cell phone? In fact, the days before phones could take messages for you? Days when "the party line" didn't mean that your representative was once again voting against your best interests?

Back in that day, a conversation without multiple "clicks" being heard as your neighbors tuned in on your conversations would be a rarity. Even in cities like Toronto, phone lines were shared, and you didn't just get an "in use" signal: you heard what the other party was saying.

Interesting, therefore, is it not, that improvements in technology brought the private line within reach of the ordinary user. An expectation of privacy grew out of that advancement.

Ironic, therefore, is it not, that advancements in technology have made it possible for millions of daily conversations to be culled for keywords and phrases that might catch you up in an unwelcome net of inference. The party line is back, and you'd best be adhering to it or you'll be invited to a hearing.

And so, as the art of literate communication fades, the algorithm of text messaging surges. Today's instant messengers have rediscovered what the ancient Phoenicians knew: y dnt nd vwls 2 b ndrstd.

We were a hardier crew back in the day. If we were out on a car trip and a tire went flat in a way that we couldn't fix, we bundled out of the car and sought a farmhouse or a phone booth. Or we waved down a passing motorist who invariably would help in some way. The technology of travel was not advanced enough for us to be able to hold a cellphone up to our head, let alone have a car that knew where we were at all times, and what the problem was and how to report it.

So life is easier in many ways, but more expensive, for those services are pricey. And at some point, our dependence on technology will inevitably bite us in strange ways. Tech that reduces our physical activity levels contributes to all sorts of potential harms, such as thrombosis caused by poor circulation. Cell phones themselves are suspected of inducing tumors over long exposure.

At what price does convenience become too expensive? With oil going as it is, our ability to eat a wide range of imported foods in the off-season will be curtailed. Of course, this could be better in the long run, given the preservatives that are often added to extend the life of perishables. But extending the lives of perishables may not be extending the lives of those who eat them. Other methods may be developed to reduce the chemical components of our feasting.

Fortunately, the internet is the easiest resource to use to identify risky food additives. In a sense, the technology of information is available to counter ignorance that is fed by habit. Inertia must give way to motivation, and searching for answers is good exercise.

If you don't have enough irony in your diet, consider this: while we may be living longer, we need to work longer in order to afford our longer lifespan.