During the COVID-19 pandemic, technology created a facade about bringing people closer together during times of isolation and quarantine. However, it is time for an end to remote learning and jobs. Nearly two years into the pandemic, the dependency on Zoom and other means of remote communication no longer serves as a precaution, but rather a convenience and false sense of protection from a virus on its downswing.
With Maine being overwhelmingly fully vaccinated, what purpose do these measures still serve? The increase of anxiety and depression among all ages is disheartening. Virtual communication gives a false sense of being connected, but in reality drives relationships further apart. We have become too accustomed to inauthentic access to one another. Access is restricted to the bounds of a laptop.
The building of interpersonal relationships is confined to a neck-up portion of a screen. This ongoing dissociation affects a person’s sense of purpose and drive, in both professional and academic settings. The advantages to meeting in person cannot be lost. The time to ditch the days of Zoom is now. The students and workers of Maine have endured long enough.
Hayden Sprague
Portland
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