Category: Society

This past week it was announced that Barack Obama is the recipient of the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize.

Really?

Things to think about -

1. Nominations for this prize were due February 1, 2009. That’s less than 1 month after President Obama assumed office.

According to Alfred Nobel’s will, the peace prize should go to an individual who:

during the preceding year [...] shall have done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses.

2. I believe bestowing this award is really the the Nobel Committee doing what they can to box President Obama into his campaign rhetoric which focused heavily on international relations and specific U.S. participation on the world stage. Since assuming office, the President has, obviously, been dealing with some high-priority domestic issues. They are nudging you, Mr. President.

3. Jimmy Carter and Al Gore are both former recipients of this award. I think this award is also the Nobel Committe sticking it to President George W. Bush in their own way.

I do think that President Obama is a fantastic speaker (though he and his team should have rethought content for both he and his wife in Copenhagen!) and seems to be committed to socio-economical and geo-political progress (define progress?) in the global theatre, but the award of this prize, considering timing and absence of real action, significantly decreases my respect for the Committee and the award. Shame on them for leveraging their position for political statements and hope for action.

i use twitter primarily for consumption. im not one to thank those following me. per my model, i assume im somehow adding value as they are consuming what im tweeting.

that said, i wanted to take a little time to thank all of those who im following. i really and truly enjoy diving into seesmic desktop (my new desktop twitter client of choice) and feeding on my twitter stream. i primarily follow industry (web) folk, VCs and angels, economists, journalists, and media. i also follow some friends around the country and some colleagues, friends and acquaintances in town (columbus, ohio).

i depend on my stream to a) provide great links to things im interested in: web, technology, economics, politics and current events . the stream ive built does this phenomenally. they are people who want to be on top of things, who NEED to be on top of things, who truly believe in horizontal sharing of information and the incredible results of realtime sharing and conversation. b) provide a diverse perspective. my stream is composed of some incredible people in different walks of life, in different parts of the country and world, working on and interested in myriad things. the information and topics im exposed to because of them allow me to be a more balanced and learned person. [ *** IMPORTANT NOTE - 2 key realities of the twitter-dynamic surface here 1) the access to people that twitter provides - i can consume (even if im not interacting with) thought, conversation and information from people i otherwise would not have access too and 2) the nature of twitter and the BIY stream actually creates a push model (to me) so that i can access tons of info without digging through what i now (i didnt used to) consider a smothering volume in a RSS reader ] c) just be flat out interesting. seriously. the people i follow are observant, curious, innovative. links and important information aside… i love reading witty, insightful, hilarious tweets. they remind me that people are thinking, that life is happening to everyone, that there is a human condition (as fractured as it may be) and that people do notice the things that i do.

twitter isnt for everyone (individual or company), but its definitely for me.

so, thanks, people i follow, for being interesting and deciding to share.

I, like many others, get sick of hearing the (at this point) age-old quip “but I don’t care what you had for breakfast” specifically in reference to Twitter, but also to the use of social tools and social web behaviors in general.

So, for all of you naysayers, let me paint a picture for you…

Tehran, Iran - circa June 2009

Let me explain.

There are many questions to be asked regarding the “election”, not the least of which may be whether or not it matters who is president in a supreme-power theocracy. However, it is the events surrounding the recent happenings which are intriguing - a convergence of global social behaviors, technology, now-web and modern web application development practices and theory. In short, the techy geeky “stuff” which you presume to be a fad, isn’t. It is communication now; it is communication of the future. The results are profound.

Ingredients:

Global Social Behaviors - We live in a global economy and society. If you don’t believe that, please crawl back under your rock. It’s not just about multi-hemisphere conglomerates and international relations anymore, though. As is the common theme these days, it’s about the individual. Social technologies have connected the Common Joes of the world and they are genuinely interested in listening, talking, sharing, teaching, helping and learning from each other. From Bengal to New Hampshire they are participating in each others’ daily lives and having trivial(?) conversations.

Technology - It’s cheaper, more powerful, more accessible and better mastered than ever in history. We all know a computer as powerful as my iPhone used to be the size of an entire room… blah…blah…blah. The amazing capabilities of technology today, IMHO, are not so much computational, but connective combined with the ease by which they can be applied. You can connect almost anywhere. You can connect with almost anything… and that’s the point… YOU can do it.

The mobility of technology is also a key component. Mobile phones and smart-phones are of the utmost importance.

Modern Web Application Development Practices and Theory - Non-technicals stick with me here… there are a few crucial aspects of how people and companies develop web applications these days. Namely, the primary focus is on the engine - the core functionality. Many developers build and release Software Development Kits (SDKs), most commonly Application Programming Interfaces (APIs), for their applications. These tools, libraries, protocols and services allow other developers to leverage the engine in unique ways - pulling, pushing and mashing up data and interfaces. If you’ve ever seen a Google Map with unique data or elements in it, you’re seeing the result of an API. Users and developers find new uses for applications and engines all the time. Google is releasing it’s APIs for it’s new project - WAVE - to developers around the world long before the application will be accessible to the public. The idea is that thousands of progressive and diverse minds will help to finish the product, find new uses and  make it better. So, applications are being released “unfinished” and “wide open”. *Note -Ownership and monetization are another story!

Still shrugging and saying ’so what?’, huh? -

Tehran - People are trying to mobilize, trying to tell the world what is happening, but communications are being shut down. Traditional media are being banned. Sites are being blocked. But remember - people around the world are watching, people around the world want to help, people around the world care. Technology is accessible, connective and collaborative and our good friends at Twitter are aligned with the API-empowered web community.

What does this mean?

This means that because Twitter has an API, Twitter.com is not the only access point to the engine. It means that there exist 1000s of 3rd party applications through which people can read and publish tweets. Tehran can’t block them all, they don’t even know about them all. Fantastic! The masses with their mobile phones can be anywhere, communicate with each other, organize, assemble, and keep the rest of the world up-to-date while foreign journalists are being “controlled” and mass media is dropping the ball (have a look here too).

Well, what about connectivity? Internet access? If you can’t connect, you can’t tweet. Tehran certainly has control over access, right? Yes and no. Enter software engineer in Oklahoma who is interested in the situation and wants to contribute. He configures his laptop as a proxy and whala - people in Tehran can connect to TwitterFall through his computer and communications resume. That is, until Tehran finds him, and blocks his proxy. But then, another pops up in the UK, in Florida, in Singapore… you get the picture.

So let’s summarize that. People in Iran can communicate with each other and with the rest of the world while their government is scrambling to block things as quickly as they can because they have mobile technology, the global community cares, is interested, can facilitate connectivity, and because modern web applications focus on the what, not the how/when/where.

Does it matter? I sure think so. A major geopolitical occurence was consumable in real-time and not only that… but it was MADE POSSIBLE in real time because of this convergence. Still not convinced it matters? Well, the State Department decided it did too… they contacted the crew over at Twitter - a small group in a loft in SOMA - and asked them not to go offline for scheduled maintenance because… well… Twitter was contributing to democracy.

How da ya like DEM apples?

I was thinking the other day - what’s going to happen to my social media personas/profiles/accounts when I die? I’m hoping that this doesn’t become a real issue for quite some time, but just the idea of it caused me to question - I wonder how long it will be until people begin to make specifc (and legal) stipulations about their social media presences in their last wills.

Seriously though, when are we going to read a news story that says: Mr. So-and-So has indicated that he would like his Facebook status to read: blah blah blah, that he’d like his grandson to update this status every month with the following list of quotes. Additionally, he would like his Twitter Account to respond with the following DM: blah blah blah to any new followers.

Or how about this - when is there going to be an app written that you can pre-populate/stipulate/dictate your SM behavior once you’ve left us and have gone on to that better place? [interested? ive already got user-cases and wireframes]

I’m pretty sure Facebook might have a policy on this, but I didn’t care enough to look it up.

I’m interested - what do you want your social media presences to do once you die songs of love hate download mp3 ? How will you take care of it? What is your list of requests? Let me know.

So today President Obama is visiting Columbus to recognize 25 new officers graduating from the police academy. It’s great news for the city…the 25 jobs that is. The jobs were made possible through federal stimulus money and in a state with 8+ % unemployment and rising, people with income are a good thing. (from what I’ve heard, by the way, unfortunately this job growth is not sustainable as the academy won’t have a class next year due to budget constraints)

What’s not good news for the city is the fact that we (Columbus - a city operating at a deficit and making cuts) have to foot the bill for logistics and security for this visit. And Oh, by the way, the president of the United States has one of the biggest carbon footprints on the planet. Any time he moves, he’s got an entourage to move. Any time he flies, he flies an Airliner. Any time he rides in a car, add 10+ because it’s a motorcade.

This president is championing change. He’s also got one helluva situation relating to the economy and a society/culture with a spending/lack-of-saving problem and entitlement complex.

He’s missing a HUGE opportunity today. You want to champion change?  Lead by example. Take advantage of technology and visit Columbus via teleconference! Hell, visit 4 cities today. Interact with the reporters, answer questions, give your speech uniquely to the audience, but do it remotely. Make a point of the fact that you are paying specific attention to the city and it’s residents, but that you are doing so through innovative technology and you’re saving money in the process. You’re not incurring security costs. You’re not fueling AF1 and the accompanying fighter escorts.

Create efficiencies, Mr. President. Show the American public that you’re not just leaning on businesses to rethink the way they do things, but that you are really changing the way DC does things. Take a half day to do this a couple of times with the cities who are being positively impacted by stimulus money, and then get some work done on Penn Ave. Then, do it again next week.

I understand politics are politics, but if we really REALLY want to change things, we can’t keep telling people that everything will be OK and continue to do things the way we’ve done them.

The problem these days is that people expect to be given answers, or at least led to them, instead of finding or developing them. 

The problem these days is that people accept the answer, blindly.

The problem these days is that people expect an answer to exist. Period. 

The problem these days is that kids have to move on to the next grade for social reasons, for economic reasons, for pure capacity reasons. So, we teach to the test. We give answers.

The problem these days is that people are accustomed to instantaneous gratification. They expect a path of least resistance and expect said resistance to have been mitigated by others before they get there.

The problem these days is that too many people want the because without taking the time to ask the why.

The problem these days is that too many people think design is only creative and only aesthetic.

The problem these days is that the phrase ‘problem solving’ is too often associated only with mathematics.

I propose the White Wall Test:

7ft high, 7ft wide, 2 inch thick white free-standing drywall stands in a space. Space above, space on either side. Anchored to the floor/ground.

Well…

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[addition 1.7.2009 @ 10:55 EST - Not referring only to "kids these days" as many people have mentioned in response. There are plenty of 30+ cubicle cowboys out there to whom I'd be interested in administering the test]

download Whole Ten Yards, The

A quality I really appreciate in people is the ability to get sh*t done. Talk and ideas are great (I do a lot of both), but without execution and action, they don’t do much beyond provide mental stimulation, or make noise.

Thus, I was in a very appreciative mood a few weekends ago at Startup Weekend Indianapolis. Though I’m part of the technical/entrepreneurial/innovation community in the Midwest, I’m quick to out my region for what it is - the conservative Midwest. We talk about coastal mentalities, we yearn for a culture of innovation, we are quick to latch onto and promote success stories, but in the end it’s pocketed and systematic. Until curiosity, innovation and un-dictated action become part of our DNA (they might be already, but the genes aren’t fully active), we’ll stay on the sidelines watching the studs play and go home after the games, look in the mirror and imagine glory.

I digress… The reason I was in a very appreciative mood at Startup Weekend Indy was because people GOT SH*T DONE! (and they did it on their own) We went with an organic grouping effort - no voting - everyone pitched their ideas and naturally gravitated to their pick. No one asked for direction, no one needed structured learning. Honestly, we had trouble pulling people together for check-ins. It was a weekend of GO GO GO [IUPUI police actually kicked everyone out one night at 1:30am as people were still working]. Things happened naturally and fluidly. Groups formed, groups split, and ideas kept moving. Individuals were resourceful, from code-bases to available skill-sets, and they weren’t looking to anyone but themselves for procurement.

It was refreshing to see. It was empowering to be around. Watching people who understood things were going to be iterative, that grooming until perfection wasn’t an option, was invigorating. In the end, businesses were born. Good ideas were fleshed out, and the bad ones killed quickly. The weekend and the approach is about productivity and problem solving. It’s not about lots of talk and speculation. It’s about getting sh*t done. There’s room for this mentality, this workflow, this passionate and sometimes crazed process in all types of business these days. Of course, it needs to be honed for each situation, but the conservative Midwest will do well to take note.

*I was in Indianapolis earlier this month facilitating Startup Weekend Indy. My company dynamIt

sponsored Startup Weekend Columbus this past summer and I participated in one of the groups there as well. For those of you not familiar with Startup Weekend - it is a 54 hour (weekend) marathon where people come together and, quite simply, try to start a business.

*This post has been reposted on StartupWeekend.com