How Quickly We Can Become Vulnerable | Raymond Lavine
September 22, 2026video
About
This short reflection highlights how quickly modern, digitally-dependent systems, like electric vehicles or smartphones, can unexpectedly shift us from a state of self-reliance to one of helplessness and vulnerability. When these systems fail, we can find ourselves unable to perform basic tasks, illustrating a growing reliance on technology that can leave us feeling exposed.
Transcript
Read transcript
Raymond Lavine (00:00)
Look, I just bought an electric vehicle and I sort of understood or I suspected that I might have issues with it and my suspect has been realized is that I had to get a technician to come out that spent two and a half hours
you know, updating my electric vehicle because it wasn't opening. And then when I put it in park, then even with my key fob, I couldn't get it to start. And that's concerning to me. If you can't get in your car and it's cold
Stefan Lindberg-Jones (00:40)
Yeah.
Raymond Lavine (00:41)
or, you you could put your key in and you could do something, but this was, there is no key. It's electronic. And so a lot of things weren't connected.
You know, what's happened is that, you know, our lives are have shifted from manual or analog to digital and phones. I mean, a couple of weeks ago, my phone got blocked and I panicked because if I wanted to get a coat, if I wanted to get anything, there was no way that I was helpless and vulnerable. I.
Fortunately, the store was open, so I went and they solved some of the problem. But this is how quickly you can go from self-reliance to being vulnerable or, Houston, I have a real problem here.