Remember the 1960′s, the Age of Aquarius? Creativity flowered. Tabus were broken. People loved the one they were with and marched against war. What charming innocence. Eventually the country evolved into something more materialistic and hawkish.
Frank Zappa, thinker and skeptic
I think the Internet is in its own Age of Aquarius right now. Consider:
- We’re advised not to actually sell in online communities, but rather to “build trust” and “form relationships” in unspoken anticipation of enhancing sales.
- Content is given away for free. It’s almost a requirement.
- You can still contact important people like Jane Friedman, Chris Brogan or Seth Godin and have them answer you back.
- With just a Twitter comment you can scare a big company like Lowe’s home improvement.
- You can send a question out to the vast unknown and get a helpful response. Maybe from a person in another country.
- People still feel important when their name appears in a blog post, even if only in the comments section.
- The statement, “I have a blog,” isn’t yet greeted with a yawn.
It’s kind of endearing, don’t you think? So earnest and open. So 1960′s.
I don’t mean to bum you out, but I suspect this age of innocence might not last. For example, if I were the editor of a big newspaper I’d be ready to jump from the boardroom windows to the streets below over this expectation that I run an international news-gathering service for free. Governments are felled by text message. I don’t know how long they’re going to put up with that degree of uppity-ness from the hoi polloi.
Call me pessimistic, but it seems likely that Big Business will eventually have its way with the web and we’ll be forced into narrow channels of content based on what GE, TimeWarner or the Koch Brothers want us to read, say, buy or access. You might keep an eye out in case a vote comes up, or a march on Washington or something. But at the moment, it’s still the wild, wild West. Some day you’ll be able to tell your grandkids how open and wonderful it was. Peace and love.
Sorry meant to say INEXPENSIVE bike thingy. Got it from one of those mail packets. It is surprisingly sturdy...
Vent all you want, it's healthy and the women here will listen. I suggest that when things get overwhelming, grab a bed pillow, go into the bathroom and scream into the pillow, or beat the hell out of it. That should help with the frustration a bit
Interesting. I see the “Age of Aquarius” a bit differently than innocent. I remember Kent State. I saw the morality of my generation going downhill (and it doesn’t seem to have slowed down any, either). I read about our soldiers returning from Vietnam only to get spit on.
And, the internet? Right now I see both the Senate and the House working on passing bills to be able to shut it down, not “GE, TimeWarner or the Koch Brothers.” (What I do see is a lot of paranoia when it comes to the Koch Brothers; as if George Soros doesn’t do the same things?)
And, if something doesn’t happen, and very soon (like the next election), we’ll be telling our grandkids how nice America was when it was the Land of the Free and Home of the Brave. ♥
Interesting that you should mention the Senate and the House because I truly believe that people have forgotten who really governs this country. Forget the President. He is just the pawn who takes all the heat when things don’t go as people expect they should. People better open their eyes and begin at home. Pay close attention to who you elect to the Senate and House of Representatives. Haven’t they destroyed our Constitution enough? If our forefathers could see the modern interpretation of their labor for mankind, they would be rolling over in their graves. It wouldn’t hurt for everyone with internet access to Google the Constitution and familiarize themselves with what freedoms they have already given up and if you think your search history isn’t monitored by big brother, think again!