LarryAnderson.org

More on my withdrawal from Google Buzz

2010-07-27T09:55:00.001-07:00

Pursuant to my last post, a few loose ends:

1. I've emailed Google to request withdrawal from the Google Buzz beta-testing program. This should happen within 48 hours, according to Google.

2. I'll be turning off Buzz in my profile sometime between now and Monday. This will likely mean the deletion of all my Buzz posts. Update: This has now been done. ~~My profile itself will remain, however~~. Edit: Turns out I can't delete Buzz without deleting my profile. So be it. ~~I'll recreate it later~~. Update: Profile has been recreated.

3. The custom URL to my Google profile has been turned off, and I have reverted to the standard numeric URL. This is to prevent possible future abuse of my Gmail address. Edit: If you'd like an easy-to-remember URL for my profile, just go to profile.larryanderson.org.

That's about it--my Google Buzz experiment will be coming to an end soon. If you follow me there and you wish to continue doing so elsewhere, here are the relevant addresses:

larryanderson.status.net

twitter.com/larand

larryanderson.org

alt.larryanderson.org

Posted via email from alt.larryanderson.org

Changing it up a bit

2010-07-23T23:50:00.001-07:00

Today, I tuned into my Google Buzz stream to find this comment on a post by Josh Braun, left by someone who's abandoning Buzz:

To be honest, aside from my obvious social difficulties with Buzz motivating my switch back, I like Twitter better. I think the 140 character limitation forces me to think more creatively when trying to say things, plus I much prefer "yelling into the void" then "yelling into a room full of people who all have their own opinion and want to share it with you".

I know what he means. When Buzz first came out, I was a huge proponent of the new service. It incorporated two of the things I had liked most about Jaiku, the service that Google bought and subsequently killed through neglect: threaded responses and the ability to pull in feeds from other sources. It seemed like the answer to a prayer--a more full-featured service than Twitter, with none of Twitter's connectivity problems (no fail whale!). Integration into Gmail seemed like a stroke of genius, as having one's status updates, email and chat in one place promised a one-stop approach to online communication. And, of course, being an early adopter is kind of exciting, because you get to help define some of the basic etiquette and best practices.

Soon, however, some of the basic weaknesses of the service started to make themselves known. First there were the privacy concerns, which I felt were overblown, but they scared many people away. More irritating, at least to me, were the usability issues. Muted posts didn't stay muted. Posts jumped around in the queue in a seemingly random fashion, rather than staying neatly chronological. The method by which one could add a site to feed into Buzz, which involved editing one's Google profile, was more complicated than it needed to be. Commenting didn't always work, particularly when something was shared from Google Reader. As our British friends sometimes say, it was a bit of a dog's breakfast. And while integration into Gmail seemed like a winning idea, it started to become apparent that there were times when it was inconvenient to have to load Gmail before being able to access your Buzz account.

Then there were the unidentified and unblockable followers, as seen in the screenshot above. There's a link to block, but they keep coming back. I eventually gave up trying. Although all of us who post online make a conscious choice to be public, there's something more than a little creepy about being followed by anonymous strangers.

So when I read the comment on Josh's post today, it struck a chord. I've mostly withdrawn from active participation in the Buzz community in the last several weeks, as increasing responsibilities at work have cut into the time I can spend on social media (and blogging). I just don't have the time to devote to it lately, particularly with respect to Buzz, which demands a higher level of participation given its conversational nature. And while everyone is going to have a different experience depending upon whom they follow, my stream lately seems to have more and more shares from Google Reader (and posted-from-the-web links, which amount to the same thing) and fewer and fewer original posts. Frankly, there isn't much pulling me in these days.

At the same time, I've started to feel more and more frustration with Buzz's tendency to jump posts around in the stream. I'm no longer certain that I'm seeing everything from the people I follow, nor that my own posts are being seen by those who follow me. There needs to be an option to view in chronological or reverse-chronological order, and Google seems disinclined to provide one. It's a shame, because the current model simply isn't working for me any more.

The upshot of all this is that with all of its problems, Twitter is serving my needs better at this point. Short posts that require some thought to put together are more interesting to me than 3000-word blog posts imported into Buzz and promptly forgotten by the poster, who may never visit Buzz in the first place. It's not perfect, of course; anyone who tried to log into Twitter during the World Cup knows the fail whale all too well. But it's where the crowd is, by and large, and it's where I'll be spending more time in the days and weeks to come, at least when I can get in.

When I can't get in, and when I want to post a status update, I'll be doing it from my single-user Status.net site. It federates with Identi.ca and other sites running Status.net software, and pushes updates out to Twitter instantaneously. I find that being on Twitter is almost obligatory, but Twitter is not always reliable. This way, I have a backup, and it should also be noted that Status.net is in some ways superior to Twitter, for example in the way it handles conversations (click the "in context" link by the timestamp, and you get a threaded conversation view). The community surrounding Identi.ca and Status.net also is quite a bit smaller, and in general much, much geekier than Twitter's. This is a good thing. And, when Status.net rolls out its premium services, which founder Evan Prodromou has told me will be quite soon, I can map my site to my own domain, which is also a good thing. It's important to me to own my own stuff, even if I put it out under a Creative Commons license, and there's no better way to do that than on a domain that you own.

So, to recap, here's where you can find and follow me from now on, if you're so inclined:

Microblogging: twitter.com/larand or larryanderson.status.net

Blogging: larryanderson.org (fancy-schmancy Blogger site) or alt.larryanderson.org (stripped-down Posterous site) -- Same content on both sites

Buzz? I'll still poke my head in from time to time, but it won't be my main thing any more. Eventually, if it seems appropriate, I may delete my profile, but for now I'm leaving it alone.

And lastly, a brief word about something different. I've started the preparations to launch separate blog, Twitter, and Status.net sites for what I envision will be a very occasional series of posts on a religious theme, something I've shied away from on my main site out of a sense of my own inability to address it properly. However, as I've grown more and more disenchanted with politics and the culture of the world we live in, I find myself compelled to start writing on religious themes--not deep theological treatises, which I leave to those with more knowledge than I have, or triumphalist polemics, which I find generally misguided, but simply what it's like to be an Orthodox convert who's made many stops along the way. It seems appropriate to give those posts their own home. When the time comes to launch, I'll put links in all the relevant places.

Consider yourselves warned. :-)

Posted via email from alt.larryanderson.org

Larry's health update, July 2010 edition

2010-07-20T20:54:00.001-07:00

Not much else to say, except that my weight is down to an official 219 lbs. (total loss of 76 lbs.), and my cholesterol is actually just a tad low. Oatmeal is my friend.

Next update in three months...

(From this status update)

Posted via email from alt.larryanderson.org

iPhone madness

2010-07-16T22:56:00.001-07:00

OK, folks, it's over.

Steve Jobs hauled himself back from vacation in Hawaii, which like totally harshed his mellow, and spent an hour or so explaining in front of God and everyone else that the iPhone 4's antenna problem really isn't much of a problem. Well, it's sort of a problem, but it's not unique to the iPhone 4, so it's really not a problem (like the guy at the dealership said, they all do that). Still, Apple loves you (they like you! they really, really like you!) and since they want all you whiny crybabies everyone to be perfectly happy with this totally awesome phone that's like, life-changing and stuff, and totally cool, they're going to give away free cases to everybody who's bought an iPhone 4 until September, when they'll presumably introduce some kind of fix or mod that, uh, takes care of this, um, non-problem. Or something.

Got that?

Good. Now, I'd like to say something about the whole debacle.

I don't care. Get over it. Grow up. Get a job.

You see, there is a whole host of reasons why I'm not particularly interested in an iPhone anymore, and the antenna issue is about the least important of them. You could start with the network (AT&T is bloody useless in half the places I find myself during the day), move on to the whole app approval concept (it's my phone and I'll put whatever I want on it, thank you very much) and finish up with Google Voice, or more precisely the lack thereof (want it, use it, love it, gotta have it). And did I mention AT&T sucks? Well, it does.

So when a bunch of overpaid tech journalists and self-important bloggers start in on what a horrible problem the iPhone's antenna is, and how Apple needs to recall the whole lot of them, and give everybody a free case and solve global warming and plug the leak in the Gulf while they're at it, my response is "meh." You're having a First World problem. Go climb in your Priuses and drive to Starbucks and commiserate over a couple Grande White Chocolate Caramel Mocha Cinnamon Orgasmaccinos, because I don't care.

Look, here's the deal: Apple generally makes nice stuff. If the iPhone 4 works for you, use it. If it doesn't, go get a different phone. There are lots of them out there, including some very nice Android phones. Get an Evo, or a Droid X, or a Nexus One or an Incredible. And if you can't bear the thought of being torn from Apple's loving embrace, get a case--ANY case--and slap it on there. Yes, it'll cover up the neat little metal strip that runs around the phone, but you'll be able to make calls. (And what's the big deal about the metal strip anyway? I had a Cowon iAudio X5L that had a metal strip around it, and it looked like it was designed by East Germans. There is truly nothing new under the sun. Sheesh.)

Of course, if none of this soothes your damaged and fragile soul, you can always think about the gear you were using ten years ago--massive and bricklike phones, computers that were beige plastic boxes connected to boxy CRT screens, pagers, cameras that required film, and maybe even a Sony Walkman. Now consider that most any smartphone you buy today, including the iPhone, not only functions as all of the above, but is likely to be smaller, cheaper, and more powerful than any of them. And you get to pick exactly the one you want. Got a flawed one? Pick another one.

And that, my friends, is why I love living in the 21st Century.

Posted via email from alt.larryanderson.org

Leveraging the global social media thinkosphere

2010-07-15T08:16:00.001-07:00

If you're interested in the global automotive industry (and let's face it, who isn't?), the company I work for has started a global automotive blog, which is titled, oddly enough, "Global Automotive Blog." If you're a big ol' car geek like me, it's probably worthy of a spot in your Google Reader stream.

Let me add that I have nothing whatsoever to do with it, and stand to gain nothing from its success except the possibility of continued employment, which is a good thing.

This is probably also a good time to repeat that this blog is strictly a personal effort on my part, and does not represent the views or policies of the McGraw-Hill Companies in general, or of J.D. Power and Associates in particular. They are not to be held responsible for anything said here. 'Nuff said.

Posted via email from alt.larryanderson.org

What's the point?

2010-07-13T09:28:00.001-07:00

From Autoblog:

We already knew what to expect for the standard police-spec Caprice, but we've been extra curious about the special "Detective package" that adds some plainclothes stealthiness to the Caprice, especially as it seems to hint at what the oft-rumored civilian version of this car might look like. It's available in seven different colors (we'll just stick with black, thanks), uses all the same mechanical underpinnings as the standard Police PPV, and for the moment at least, remains unavailable in a retail model for John Q. Public.

Someone's going to have to tell me what the point is of a plainclothes version of a police car that’s not going to be sold to the general public…who are they kidding? Then again, one could say the same about black Crown Vics with steel wheels and an official license plate.

Posted via email from alt.larryanderson.org

Simplicate, and add lightness

2010-07-09T08:09:00.001-07:00

Constant readers of this blog (advt) know that I'm an inveterate
tinkerer, and on occasion this has brought me some good-natured ribbing.
The last several months has seen frequent changes in the structure,
format, and host of this blog, and you might think I would leave well
enough alone for a while. You would be wrong.

My last move, to Blogger, was largely because it offered more eye candy.
I was tired of the limited theming available to Posterous users who
don't want to become CSS experts, and Blogger offered me some attractive
alternatives. I still like the look, but I must admit I'm missing
Posterous' unrivaled ease of use and autoposting ability. Being able to
post a photo with a caption, have the photo sent to Picasa and Flickr,
and post a tweet with a link all in one shot is a thing of beauty. I'm
also wondering if the background, widgets, and other bells and whistles
are just adding bling and detracting from what should be the focus--my
entries.

In pursuit of an answer to that question, I'm trying something
different. I've used Posterous' import tool to re-import my entire blog
into Posterous, and picked a relatively simple theme with dark text on a
light background to enhance readability. Thanks to Posterous'
aforementioned autoposting ability, I'm going to run both blogs in
tandem for a while. It doesn't cost me anything to do so, and gives me a
chance for an extended comparison.

You can see the alternative site at alt.larryanderson.org. As always, I
welcome your comments, and let me know which site you prefer.

Posted via email from alt.larryanderson.org

The testing continues

2010-07-08T17:52:00.001-07:00

This is another test post. I want to see what happens when I post a photo to my Posterous site and pipe it into Blogger, because frankly I don't remember if there were any formatting issues that cropped up.

I'm seriously thinking of moving my blog back to Posterous (hence all this testing), because it's just so bloody simple to use. I'd lose some of the bells and whistles I get by using Blogger, and it's certainly a much plainer thing to look at (no lovely sunset background), but the autoposting thing is brilliant. It's also nice having a complete site backup, which is why I'll probably keep both sites around regardless of which one I point the domain larryanderson.org at. (Yes, I'm ending a sentence with a preposition. Get over it.)

Anyway, here goes...

Posted via email from LarryAnderson.org - Back Channel

Test post

2010-07-08T08:37:00.001-07:00

This is a test to see if posting to Blogger via Posterous will get rid of the miserable HTML formatting that Outlook puts in my email.

Push the button, Max…

Posted via email from LarryAnderson.org - Posterous Edition

Happy Canada Day

2010-07-01T08:08:00.000-07:00

To everyone north of the 49th parallel, Happy Canada Day!

The headline is just a distraction

2010-07-01T07:48:00.000-07:00

I happen to think Apple deserves a good spanking for this and a few other things, but the headline of this article is not the most important thing on the page.

Seems to me that those four orange words below the title of the publication are far more significant in terms of what they mean, not only for the future of Apple, but for the future of publishing in general.

Entertaining angels

2010-06-21T18:56:00.000-07:00

Rod Dreher has an interesting post (to me, anyway) up on his blog on the notion of entertaining angels. He relates a conversation he had earlier today with one of his parents' neighbors in Louisiana:

"There wasn't a soul to be seen anywhere," he said. "No trees, nothing, as far as they eye could see. I was all alone, eating my lunch. Suddenly, a man was standing behind me, and asked, 'Buddy, do you have something to eat?' I said sure, and gave him a sandwich and fruit. I asked him if he needed a ride somewhere, and he said no, he didn't need a ride. I turned and packed my things, and when I lifted my head, he was gone. I have no idea where he went. There were no other cars there, and no forest, no nothing.

"Ever since then," the neighbor continued, "whenever anybody asks me for money, I don't turn them down, no matter what. You never know. The Bible says sometimes we entertain angels unawares."

Anything like that ever happened to you? Me, no.

Maybe he hasn't, but I have, and it's probably time I set it down in writing and got it out in public. Some of my more secular friends may think I've gone off the edge, or turned into some kind of religious nut, but sometimes you have to stand up and say what you believe.

Here's the comment I left on Rod's blog (posted under my baptismal name, Lazarus). Make of it what you will:

Yes, I have had a similar experience, which led directly to my conversion to Orthodox Christianity.

For some time, I had been struggling with the decision to leave a religious group which I had joined several years earlier. I won't belabor the details, but there were several things troubling to me, and I had begun to seriously consider returning to Christianity.

On July 27, 2006, I had just returned from vacation, and had a few extra dollars left over in my pocket. I was out doing a bit of shopping, and was about to return home when I noticed a gray-haired woman of unusual dignity, dressed entirely in black, who was holding up a sign asking for money. She was standing at a side entrance to the shopping center where I was, at an almost unused exit. Her head was down, as if she was deeply ashamed to be begging, in contrast to the usual panhandlers that tend to congregate at the main entrance. She did not have the disheveled look of so many homeless, and she seemed rather out-of-place.

I sat there in my car for some time, watching as car after car drove past her. There was something compelling about her, a sense of a power that belied her apparent helplessness. At that moment, I heard a voice in my head that quoted something from the scriptures of the group I was struggling with leaving: "the most despised of men before God is he who sits and begs."

At that moment, I knew I was no longer a member of that group. My God does not despise anyone; my God is a God of infinite love and mercy. The decision whether to act was no longer mine; as if by someone else's volition, I started the car, drove over and handed her a $20 bill. She fixed me with a peculiarly direct look, smiling and saying, "God bless you," and I returned the sentiment. When, just a few moments later, I turned around to look at her again, she had vanished, seemingly into thin air, as if she had never existed. There is no way she could have walked or run that fast, and there was no vehicle anywhere near her.

I am convinced I had an encounter with an angel or a saint. I will not be at all surprised if someday I see her in an icon.

The Book of Mammon: The Evolution of Mormon Belief and Practice

2010-06-21T11:51:00.000-07:00

Regular readers of this blog (advt) know that although I am an Orthodox Christian, I have a longstanding and ongoing interest in Mormon history, the organization of the Mormon Church, and the evolution of its beliefs and practices. Well, I just finished listening to a four-part podcast interview that hits all the right spots for me: an extended conversation with an LDS anthropologist who worked at church headquarters and wrote a book about his experiences.

It's a part of the Mormon Stories podcast series, started by John Dehlin. It's neither pro- nor anti-LDS, just an honest appraisal of how things have evolved in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and I highly recommend it. Find it here:

149-152: LDS Anthropologist Daymon Smith on Post-Manifesto Polygamy, Correlation, the Corporate LDS Church, and Mammon

Why nobody in his (or her) right mind would want to be President

2010-06-17T20:23:00.000-07:00

Consider the following two items:

1. President Obama's approval ratings have declined, in part because of the Gulf oil spill. Everybody expects him to do something, but I have yet to hear anybody say exactly what he can do to plug the hole and put everything back the way it was. Obviously, there's nothing the President (any President) can do in a situation like this, but everybody wants him to be Daddy and fix it. (For the record, I think Bush the Younger got something of a raw deal with Hurricane Katrina, too. He just happened to be the lucky one in office when decades of bad federal decisions met the hurricane from hell.)

2. According to this story in the Los Angeles Times, his ratings in the Muslim world have declined, apparently because of the Arab-Israeli conflict. The fact that this conflict has been raging since at least 1947, has roots going back many years before that, and has defied the efforts of Presidents Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan, Bush I, Clinton, and Bush II to somehow solve it is, apparently, irrelevant.

It's extremely unlikely that anybody will ever attempt to get me to run for President, but given the above, were someone to try, I think I'd run as fast as possible in the opposite direction. Frankly, I wouldn't blame the President if he sometimes thinks he should have remained a senator. You only have to run every six years, you can serve for life if you can manage to get re-elected, and you get to be the one sniping instead of the one being sniped at.

Internet Explorer users: If you have the Google Chrome Frame extension installed, you can view the wave embedded below here.

Continued light posting

2010-06-14T13:12:00.001-07:00

Just a quick note to let everybody know that this week will probably be somewhat sparse in terms of posting, whether on my blog, on Twitter, or on Buzz. The office is still very much in recovery mode following last week's pipe break—we still have holes in the drywall—and I've been assigned additional duties with another work group as well. It's good to have a job, and it's great to add a bit of variety to the daily routine, but it's not conducive to posting online. Additionally, my daily Wave postings are going on indefinite hiatus as I dial back my online presence to accommodate real life.

So, everybody play nicely, and I'll see you when I come up for air.

AT&T misses me

2010-06-08T19:23:00.000-07:00

Dear AT&T,

I got your email saying that you missed me. Sadly, the feeling is not mutual. I've moved on; I've been seeing Verizon lately, and I have to say the connection has been incredible.

I'd say it's not you, but I'd be lying. It is you. Your DSL is inconsistent at best, and your mobile coverage in my area is sadly lacking. We'll still be seeing each other at home, since there's no one else available there, but that's where the relationship ends. When I'm out and about, I'll be with Verizon. Don't embarrass both of us by making a scene. It won't change anything. I'm just not that into you.

Best,

Larry

Internet Explorer users: If you have the Google Chrome Frame plugin installed, the embedded wave below can be accessed at https://wave.google.com/wave/waveref/googlewave.com/w+LmD-KrZkOtQ.

God must be a Texan...

2010-06-04T22:25:00.001-07:00

...because from the looks of this simulation, the Gulf oil spill will be carried eastward, sparing the Texas coast. But apparently He looks upon the East Coast and Europe with less favor:

Lord, y'all have mercy...

Internet Explorer users: If you have Google Chrome Frame installed, the embedded wave below can be viewed here.

Where is the Soviet Union when you need it?

2010-05-30T20:47:00.000-07:00

This video shows how the Soviets plugged a natural gas leak using a nuclear detonation. Yes, that's right, a nuclear blast. Think we might have a few spare nuclear warheads sitting around? Maybe we could even have the chairman of BP set the bloody thing off manually. :-)

I'd love to see what the Sierra Club would have to say about it...

Internet Explorer users: If you have Google Chrome Frame installed, the embedded wave below can be viewed here.

The Empire Strikes Back...in 1950?

2010-05-18T19:36:00.000-07:00

This is the coolest thing I have seen all day. From the YouTube page:

Let's turn back the clock, shall we? Back to a distant time in an alternate universe far, far away... The 50s! It was a simpler age of 3-D movies, and robots named Robby, Gort, and Tobor. A hidden gem of this period in cinema is a little film called "The Empire Strikes Back", the second chapter in a planned three-part epic science fiction trilogy. While the preceding and succeeding episodes were never actually produced due to budgetary constraints, "Empire" shines as an example of 1950s 3-D space opera. The re-release of this trailer coincides with the 60th anniversary of this amazing film.

But, seriously folks... ever since I started cutting these premakes, I have had constant requests for a retro version of Star Wars. This is a little thank you gift for everyone who has been watching my work.

Here is the recipe for the trailer:
Flash Gordon (Deadline at Noon, Conquers the Universe), The Phantom Planet, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, Invasion of the Animal People, Man Beast, Lunar Walker, Golden Bat (Ogon Batto), The Mysterians, Captain Midnight, First Spaceship on Venus, The Flying Saucer, The Fighting Devil Dogs, The Outer Limits (Second Chance, Soldier, I Robot, The Sixth Finger), Things to Come, Space Patrol, Atragon, Terror in the Midnight Sun, Forbidden Planet, Rocketship X-M, Latitude Zero, Space Flight, Metropolis, The Jetsons, Devil Girl From Mars, Tobor the Great, The Alligator People, The Return of the Fly, Abominable Snowman of the Himalayas, Starman (Attack from Space), Marvel Super Heroes (Iron Man), The Cyclops, The Sea Hawk, Kings Row, Mahler Symphony No. 6, Gustav Hoists The Planets (Mars), and The Empire Strikes Back Radio Drama

The following trailer is fake, independent, and not for profit. It is not endorsed or connected to Lucasfilm or 20th Century Fox. It was made as a purely technical exercise, and as a reflective deconstruction of elements in modern cinema.

(via Carlos Cuellar)

(Internet Explorer users: the embedded wave below can be accessed at https://wave.google.com/wave/waveref/googlewave.com/w+ejs-37ZkB58)

A matter of perspective

2010-05-14T09:48:00.000-07:00

I see this every morning, and it always cracks me up. The guy with the Maserati Quattroporte takes one space. The guy with the Hyundai Sonata has to use two.

This may be the first time in history that the Maserati owner is probably easier to live with.

Internet Explorer users: the embedded wave below can be accessed at: https://wave.google.com/wave/waveref/googlewave.com/w+ejs-37ZkB9r

How to create custom books from Wikipedia

2010-05-11T20:02:00.000-07:00

This falls under the category of "incredibly cool things I didn't know you could do."

(via Linda Lawrey)

Internet Explorer users: the Google Wave embedded above can be accessed at https://wave.google.com/wave/waveref/googlewave.com/w+DMZUMbZkid (Google Chrome Frame plugin required)

It's the end of the world as we know it

2010-05-10T07:23:00.001-07:00

For those of you following the crisis in Greece, here's a little depressing morning reading for you. I wish I didn't think there was a chance, however small, that this guy is right:

Most analysts (at least the ones that are worth reading) contend that the sovereign default crisis (Greece, Portugal, Spain, etc.) in the EU is about the collapse of a system that created monetary union without a political union. It isn't. That's actually a narrow, parochial view. Instead, the current sovereign debt crisis is about something much more interesting: it's another battle in a war for dominance between "our" integrated, impersonal global economic system and traditional nation-states. At issue is whether a nation-state serves the interests of the governed or it serves the interests of a global economic system.

Who's winning? The global economic system, of course. The 2008 financial crisis, the first real battle of this war (as opposed to the early losses in skirmishes in Russia, Argentina, the Balkans, etc.), generated a very decisive outcome. It was a resounding defeat for nation-states.* The current crisis in the EU will almost certainly end with the same results.

When this war ends, and it won't be long, the global economic and financial system will be the victor. Once that occurs, the nation-states of the West will join those of the global south as hollow states: mere shells of states that serve only to enforce the interests of the global economic system. These new states, more market-states than nation-states, will offer citizens a mere vestige of the public goods they offered historically. Incomes will fall to developing world levels (made easy to due highly portable productivity), and wealth will stratify. Regulatory protections will be weak. Civil service pensions will be erased and corruption will reign. The once dominant militaries of the West will be reduced to a small fraction of their current size, and their focus will be on the maintenance of internal control rather than on external threats. The clear and unambiguous message to every citizen of the West will be:

You are on your own. You are in direct competition with everyone else in the world, and your success or failure is something you alone control.

Read his conclusions here:

http://globalguerrillas.typepad.com/globalguerrillas/2010/05/the-decline-of-the-west.html)

(via Rod Dreher)

Contemporvant

2010-05-09T07:36:00.000-07:00

The only thing wrong with this video is the part where the narrator says, "It's coming...to YOUR town." Chances are, it's already there.

"Sunday's Coming" Movie Trailer from North Point Media on Vimeo.

(Hat tip to the incomparable Steve Robinson)

To join the embedded Wave below, you need a Google Wave account. If you'd like one, visit my Wave invitation page.

Or maybe not...

2010-05-04T12:43:00.000-07:00

So far, Blackbird Pie is full of fail. http://media.twitter.com/blackbird-pie/less than a minute ago via webLarry Anderson
larand

Trying out the Wave element

2010-05-01T16:00:00.001-07:00

This is just a test to see if the Wave element will embed in a Blogger post. Apologies to my Buzz followers, who won't see this on Buzz even if it works.

It worked! I may try embedding one of these in most of my posts as an alternative comment forum. Looks like Wave just got more useful!