If the human race wants to go to hell in a basket, technology

Charles Mengel Allen once spoke with grave irony: “If the human race wants to go to hell in a basket, technology can help it get there by jet.” In this warning lies not only wit but also prophecy. For he saw that technology, though wondrous in its reach, is not guided by its own hand — it follows the will of humankind. If our desires are base, it will hasten our ruin; if our vision is noble, it will lift us to heights undreamed. The power of the jet, compared to the basket, is the power of acceleration. What once took centuries to decay can now collapse in decades, what once took years to build can now be destroyed in hours.

In the ancient days, the fall of empires came slowly. Rome, mighty and adorned with marble, took centuries to unravel. But in the modern age, the world has seen ruin strike with terrifying speed. Think of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, where in a moment of fire the work of generations was obliterated. Here Allen’s words reveal their truth: technology is no gentle servant. It magnifies the hand that wields it, and if the heart of man is reckless, destruction comes not on weary feet but with the swiftness of thunder.

Yet the saying is not a curse upon invention, but a call to wisdom. For just as a blade may serve the farmer in harvest or the warrior in slaughter, so too can technology heal or harm. Consider the tale of Jonas Salk, who gave the world the polio vaccine. With his gift, millions of children were spared paralysis, millions of families were spared sorrow. The same age that unleashed nuclear fire also gave rise to healing on a scale never seen before. Thus the jet may fly toward heaven as well as hell — it is the direction of the pilot that determines the journey.

Allen’s metaphor of the basket is itself ancient. For centuries people spoke of “going to hell in a handbasket,” a phrase of slow decline and inevitable doom. By adding the jet, Allen makes the saying sharper, urgent, terrifyingly modern. He speaks to us across time, reminding us that the pace of our tools has far outstripped the pace of our wisdom. And unless we cultivate the latter, the former will carry us headlong into ruin.

This truth is seen in our present day as well, where digital networks spread lies as swiftly as truth, and machines of industry consume the earth faster than forests can grow back. Never before has the race between creation and destruction been so narrow. If our hearts are greedy, our tools will obey and devour. If our hearts are wise, our tools will obey and serve. The battlefield is not in the circuits or the engines, but within the soul of humanity.

From this teaching, let the lesson be clear: do not worship technology as savior nor curse it as demon. Instead, master it as one would master a powerful steed. Guide it with ethics, with compassion, with vision rooted in the good of all. Let your hands build, not destroy. Let your voice speak truth, not deception. Let your inventions serve life, not death. For the tools themselves are mirrors — they reflect the will of their maker.

Therefore, take up this charge: pause before you create, and ask — to what end does this serve? Before you speak, before you build, before you wield, measure the weight of your choice. For Allen’s words still burn like fire: the jet can carry us swifter than ever before, but the choice of destination — heaven or hell — rests not with the machine, but with us. And so, future generations, learn this well: technology is the wind, but the soul is the sail. Steer it rightly, and you will not perish in the storm.