Techno Snobs The New Divide

I often hear people that I come in contact with bragging about their lack of technology or knowledge thereof. One person braggardly remarked " I don't own a cellphone." Another remarked that they do not have cable or the internet at their home. To them it was a good thing to be disconnected and uninformed. I think it a tragedy and another attempt by the elite to separate themselves from the masses and once again prove to the rest of us that they are better.
I for one, find this to be an attempt to put down the rest of us who use tech as a tool to increase our knowledge and to make information more accessable.
I find this snobbery to be the most prevailant in my profession of teaching. I was at a workshop this summer, and was informed that laptops are now banned from school district meetings. How could a profession where technology is not a luxury but essential be so resistant to technology.
Many of the teachers that I work with, find technology mof of a nusance than an inhancement. Once I mentioned that student achievement would be greatly achieved if all student had laptops . One of the older teacher remarked in a patronizing tone that laptops would be a wast of money.
This lack of knowledge and insecurity amoung teachers toward technology is disturbing and one of the reasons why public schools are so far behind technology wise and otherwise. All of us need to see technology for what it is a tool to enhance our lives and not what it is not a burden or hinderence on our lives.