Of course. The more energy, technology and resources we have, the more we can do with it. And on a larger scale. What we do with it (good or bad) is up to us as a species. The greater the technology that can improve human life in unimaginable ways, the easier it gets for people to annihilate all of life itself on a "whim" or as a result of accidents and plain old human ignorance.
In the stone age, there was no way that all life on Earth could've been eliminated at the hands of one person, but the quality of life was horrendous, and that's speaking for the lucky few who survived so many factors.
I have always thought that the invention of the fission and fusion bombs was a horrible thing for humanity. But the unfortunate fact is that so many of the technologies we have today, were first in use, in some form, by the military of the world. Sadly, nothing sparks innovation like conflict.
And an interesting thing I've heard recently is that the atomic bomb changed how we waged war as a species, and in a good way. Before, people just threw everything they've got at each other. The winner takes the land and resources. But with nuclear bombs, you render the land and resources useless for everyone. Throw enough of those suckers at each other and nobody wins. We as a species have created something so destructive that everyone (sane) is scared of using them since a lot of nations have them and they know that if anyone used such a weapon today, they'd get the same right back at them. For the first time in history, we as a species have to be responsible at a whole new level. For the first time, we don't want to lash out with everything we've got. For the first time, we don't want to be the first ones to throw the punch.
That's why objectively (even though it doesn't feel like it), there are less wars today than there were in the past. And it's not as profitable as it once was, to add to the matter.
So, new technologies have an ever greater risk of wiping us out with ease, but the potential benefits are remarkable. To me, the risk is worth taking for enlarging human well-being/happiness as opposed to living in fear, stopping progress and leaving so many people in pain and sadness.
New tech plus truth-seeking, problem solving wisdom is IMO the only way to have a better future for our species.
