If Quality of Life is a question, then technology is only one small part of the answer

Modern people tend to think technology is THE answer to all problems. I see the appeal-- but it is too simplistic, and dangerously so.

You wouldn't give your four year old child a razor sharp chef's knife to spread peanut butter on their sandwich, right? Of course not, because we all recognize that young children don't have the understanding or minimum set of motor skill coordination to handle it.

Technology is a lot like that razor sharp chef's knife-- you need skills to use it properly. If you don't have the prerequisite skills and you use it anyway, there are likely to be consequences. Even in skillful hands, technology can have unknown/unforseen consequences that take years or even decades to fully reveal themselves.

So, technology alone isn't the answer-- but what about technology AND skill? Is that the combination that will help us (i.e. humanity) transform ourselves into a better world/society. I used to think so-- but now I am not so sure.

Germany in the 1940's possessed sophisticated technology, and were proficient users-- they even conducted experiments (some of them barbaric and sadistic) to develop new knowledge. To be fair, Germans aren't the only people to have done this. It's not hard to make a compelling argument that some nations/groups *today* are using technology in abusive and unethical ways.

So, technology + skill + ethics-- the equation is getting longer and more sophisticated. Is there anything else I'm missing?