How far is it acceptable for technology to be used only for financial benefits Essay

?The inexorable development of technology has indeed become an integral part of our lives. Evidently, we often involve technology almost in every aspect of our lives. As a result, business in technology area seems very enticing for most people as they can potentially generate a lot of profit from this field. Hence, more and more people start to invest in it. However, as people are getting indulged in profit maximisation, problems concerning ethics and societal welfare start to arise from technology. Some argue that the usage of technology only for financial benefit is acceptable because such benefit can be redistributed to the less privileged ones to improve their welfare. However, others claim that it is unacceptable to do so because people, more often than not, may pursue such benefit at the expense of others. I, personally, am more inclined to the latter stand as the sole usage of technology for financial benefit will deal a fatal blow to the global society. It is acceptable to use technology for financial benefit only because it can indirectly contribute to the societal welfare. This is because some of the profit gained from the selling of such technology is used to help those in need. Hence, money earned is, in a way, redistributed to the poor to boost their welfare. A case in a point is the Gates Foundation in which Bill Gates, the founder of Microsoft, channels some of his profit from his business in the computer field to build this foundation to empower the needy to lead a better life. his is obviously unacceptable because every person has the right to have fair wages and enjoy conducive working environment. Thus, the use of technology only for financial benefit is still unacceptable, regardless of such benefit that may be used to help the last and the least, if some groups are being made worse off in the process. Furthermore, focusing only on financial benefit when we harness technology will make technological development shifts towards the favour of rich people only. Rich and poor people certainly have different kind of needs; while the rich aims, mostly, for self-enhancement, the poor are still struggling to survive. Hence, since the rich’s demand seems to be more lucrative for many investors because self-enhancement, like plastic surgery, is indubitably extornionate and, hence, generates a lot of profit, they will just invest their money for technological development in this area. As a result, more rudimentary aspects of technology, such as the mass production of food using food technology, are neglected. The poor will then suffer even to a greater extent than before. Another concern from this shift is that the widening of chasm between the rich and the poor will be more pervasive. Such result entails even worse implications in our society as social unrest may occur. Hence, given the dire consequences of the ill-use of technology, utilisation of it for financial benefit solely is unacceptable. Finally, the sole use of technology for financial benefit may corrupt our intrinsic values and virtues as human beings. Paradigm shift on our attitudes towards technology -more accepting and dependent – has made commodification of technology more successful. Thus, more and more people are focusing in this area and if their only goal for the use of technology is on monetary reward, they will do anything to its commercialisation to be even more successful. This includes the addition of elements in the technology itself to allure more people to use it. Unfortunately, those elements sometimes blemish our values as responsible humans. A case in a point would be the advent of violent video games (gaming technology) that distort the values of people, especially the teenagers and children. If they are exposed by the wrong principles throughout their stages of life, they will, most likely, not grow to people whom the society wants them to be. Hence, since the use of technology only for financial benefit results in such a case, I believe that it is unacceptable. In conclusion, it is unacceptable if technology is only used for financial benefit because others aspects concerning global welfare are most likely to be neglected. Therefore, a holistic approach should be adopted in harnessing the technology, so that multifarious fields in human lives are benefited. Hence, â€Å"technology is a social product† encapsulates the essence in the usage of technology as it should act as a representation of the fundamental needs of our society.