But for a heavy user like me, e-mail is a moth in the social fabric. I've dodged people on the street to communicate with them from a cubicle. In that e-mail is as good for avoiding communication as for abetting it, it's the poster child for circa 2000 communication. Technology has no stake in bringing us together. It exists for us to use as we see fit to deploy it.
Civility is a big-ticket issue in America today.
Four of five Americans believe people are less civil than they used to be. I believe it. At Columbia University now, several hundred computers are scattered around campus. A few hours before midnight, over 1,000 Columbia students, faculty members and staff are locked into the university's server. With each sentence I write, I debate whether to take a break to check my e-mail.