I remember reading Fahrenheit 451 in High School which is a book about the government regulation on reading books. In this story there are fire departments, but instead of extinguishing fires, they would confiscate books and burn them. 451 degrees Fahrenheit is the temperature that paper catches fire.

When I read this story, I thought this was an interesting concept, but it would never happen here in America. I have recently noticed that for some years there has been a move from reading traditional paper books to reading electronic books and magazines. This has had an impact on our economy in such a way that book stores which have been a staple in our communities are closing down. Traditional paper books are now ordered online from Amazon and other online book sellers.

I have no issue with technology which streamlines our lives and make it more efficient. But while this is happening, many have lost the desire to hold a traditional paper book and even magazines while reading. I think this is a travesty. As paper books and magazines are becoming more and more difficult to buy off the shelf and we become more dependent on electronic versions of the written word. Will we one day have a difficult time getting them if the Internet becomes regulated or governed? Will we have rations on what we can read in the future if someone controls the one way we depend on buying books? Is a modern version of Fahrenheit 451 starting to take place and we don’t even recognize it?

Today, we have become so dependent on technology that if our electricity is interrupted by a storm, we have no idea of what to do. We are back to being cave men sitting in the dark waiting for someone to fix our way of life. Why have we lost our self dependence and have become so dependent on our government and civil authorities? Have we crossed a threshold on total dependence and the way we buy and trade can be easily transformed to be regulated?