I don't think any of us can do much about the rapid growth of

Hear the voice of Neil Postman, a sage of modern times, who declared: “I don’t think any of us can do much about the rapid growth of new technology. A new technology helps to fuel the economy, and any discussion of slowing its growth has to take account of economic consequences. However, it is possible for us to learn how to control our own uses of technology.” These words ring with clarity, for they remind us of the truth that invention, once loosed upon the world, runs forward with a speed that no hand can restrain. The tide of progress does not wait for the hesitant, yet Postman teaches that while we cannot stop the river’s flow, we may still choose how we swim within it.

When Postman speaks of the rapid growth of technology, he names a reality that has shaped every age. From the invention of the plow to the rise of the printing press, from the steam engine to the computer, each tool, once birthed, has spread with unstoppable momentum. No king, no council, no law has ever held back invention for long, for every new tool fuels the economy, giving advantage to those who wield it and leaving behind those who do not. To try to slow such a force, Postman warns, is to ignore the deep currents of history, where necessity and desire pull mankind ever forward.

Yet within his words lies not despair but wisdom. For though we cannot halt the march of technology, we are not its slaves. We retain the power to choose how we use it, how we allow it to shape our lives, our children, and our societies. The fire that cooks a meal can also burn a city, but the fire itself is not master—the hand that wields it is. So too with the tools of today: they are mighty, they are quick, they are beyond stopping, but they are not beyond guiding. It is the soul of man that must govern, or else man himself becomes governed.

History offers us proof of this wisdom. When the printing press was invented, it unleashed torrents of knowledge across Europe. The economy was fueled by books, pamphlets, and new markets of learning. Yet the press also spread dangerous lies, incited wars, and split nations in conflict. No one could stop the press; its growth was inevitable. But individuals could choose what to read, how to use its fruits, and what wisdom to pass on. Those who learned to control their use of the press prospered in knowledge and culture; those who did not were swept away in chaos. Postman reminds us that the same choice stands before us today, in the age of digital machines.

The meaning of his words is heroic in scope yet humble in application. He does not urge us to dream of stopping the storm, but to learn how to walk through it with steadiness. To rail against the growth of technology is futile; to master its place in our lives is wisdom. He tells us that the fate of the world lies not only in the hands of inventors and governments, but in the daily choices of individuals—whether we let our tools command us, or whether we command them.

The lesson, then, is clear: discipline must rise alongside invention. Do not allow every device to dictate your hours, nor every innovation to claim your heart. Ask not only, “What can this technology do?” but “What should it do for me?” Choose wisely, use sparingly, and shape your tools into servants of your purpose, rather than becoming servant to theirs. For Postman’s wisdom is this: though you cannot stop the flood, you can still build the vessel that will carry you safely across.

Practical action follows: limit your use of machines when they steal presence from your life. Make time each day for silence, for reflection, for human connection that no screen can replicate. Learn to ask of each new tool: does this bring me closer to my values, or does it carry me farther away? Teach the next generation not only to embrace invention, but to question it, to wield it with caution and vision. In this way, we honor both progress and humanity.

Thus Neil Postman’s words endure as counsel for all who live in the whirlwind of innovation: “We cannot slow the growth of technology, but we can control our use of it.” Let us not despair at the speed of the future, nor surrender to its power. Let us instead walk with vigilance, guiding our tools with wisdom, so that they serve not as chains, but as instruments of a fuller, more human life. For mastery of technology begins not with invention, but with the discipline of the soul.