“They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.” —
Benjamin Franklin
Although he spoke of essential liberty, Franklin surmised correctly that the concept of freedom is woven into the fabric of humanity. So why then are so many reluctant to seize liberty? There is a John Gault in all of us. Dig deep and find him.
Among all of the “liking” and “+1ing”, people tend to forget that technology is just a tool that can be used to amplify our lives. At one point, the pen was the most innovative piece technology created. It allowed passing thoughts to be captured, expressed, and shared. Now technology has taken another leap. Our thoughts..experiences..and lives can be shared shared instantly with everyone for little to no cost.
The entirety of human knowledge and experiences are at your fingertips at this very moment. But at the core of it all is and always will be life. Explore it, live it, share it.
“Ever since you were a little kid you always had this fidget..how you can make things different…” —
@danielpatricio
Re:
‘Hard Drive’ from Eighteen Eighty on Vimeo.
“So you think that money is the root of all evil?” said Francisco d’Aconia. “Have you ever asked what is the root of money? Money is a tool of exchange, which can’t exist unless there are goods produced and men able to produce them. Money is the material shape of the principle that men who wish to deal with one another must deal by trade and give value for value. Money is not the tool of the moochers, who claim your product by tears, or of the looters, who take it from you by force. Money is made possible only by the men who produce. Is this what you consider evil?
At a panel I was observing recently, the moderator asked if the panelist believe we live in a “post racial america” and at once the “multicultural diversity panel” set forth responses. In the end, all of the panelist agreed, that we don’t live in a “post racial america”. Citing personal experiences of adversity and even personal preferences.
I somewhat disagree and believe whole heartily that people care more about value than ethnicity.
Yes, perhaps much of the capital is controlled by a group from a certain ethnic background. However, I am willing to bet that if that group is given the chance to get in on a minority run business that will generate a 500x return, they would want to be involved.
Corporations, are sending jobs over seas to people who can create value regardless of the ethnicity of the workforce.
Everyday people, are also obsessed with VAUE. The success of value based companies Target, Walmart, GroupOn, etc exemplifies this new paradigm. The great thing about this is that there cant possibly be a correlation between one’s ability to deliver value and their ethnic background.
So why is this different than 25 years ago?
During the industrial age, the only real value the average worker could provide is that of muscle. Moving widgets, lifting loads, building roads, etc. Muscle can be denied, stifled, or suffer discrimination. The intellect, however, isn’t held by the same physical constraints as muscle. In fact, intellect thrives where muscle fails. While it does have preferences, intellect has no “ethnicity”.
Contrary to the industrial age, where muscle was powerful, in the information age, intellect rules. We have the ability to generate value strictly through intellectual pursuits with very little muscle needed -Facebook, twitter, foursquare, etc.
What does this mean? Quite simply put, Dr King isn’t dreaming yet, but he is definitely on sheep 84. Grab your bootstraps. Its time to get to work.
“That roll is hot as f&%$&!” I’m like sweating.
It is with great honor that I am able to celebrate my brother, Spencer Smoot, who served as a Specialist in the US Army for 4 trying and difficult years.
“Drive thy business, let not that drive thee.” — Benjamin Franklin
Yes, Santa Claus is coming to town soon, but for all the good little boys and girls, is he upping the ante with the new advances in technology? Has he figured out how to combat the escalating production costs? Has he worked out a deal with the elves’ union and adjusted to the shift from a blue-collar to no-collar workforce? Normally, I would just check the annual report of a company for answers, but, as we all know, the North Pole is not exactly traded on NASDAQ.
“Money will not serve the mind that cannot match it.” —
Ayn Rand via Francisco d’Anconia in Atlas Shrugged
I have recently started the major undertaking of reading Atlas Shrugged which at first seemed to be a herculean task. Since beginning, however, the book has literally changed my life. I HIGHLY recommended read for anyone in business.