Dave Kearns

Surprised by how you react to something. I’ve never been a big Larry Lessig fan (e.g., see Death of the Internet ). We rarely agree about things, particularly in the area of intellectual property. So when all the buzz on the web, the blogosphere, the tweetzone and even the Facebook hustings were filled with encomiums to Professor Lessig’s address to the Italian parliament, I was pre-disposed to: 1) not listen to the recording, and 2) construct arguments to what I supposed would be his theme.

At a certain point, though, it became necessary to listen simply so that I could (I thought) refute whatever sound-byte arguments would be coming my way. So, this morning, I listened.

All I can say is – listen to this recording. While I don’t agree with everything Larry says – I’m not sure anyone could – this is am important address. It sets a marker along the road to the internet age. It points the path and shows what needs to be done and – perhaps more importantly – what shouldn’t be done.

Listen, learn and understand.

Ed McMahon died today, seemingly the last link to a gentler, softer time on TV and in the media generally. In a very nice obit in the New York Daily News (Of all places!) David Hinckley writes:

“As host of ‘Star Search,’ he kept the show moving, kept the mood upbeat, never did anything to call attention to himself.

To appreciate how that style of hosting shaped ‘Star Search,’ consider ‘American Idol’ – which is basically the same show, but so tarted up with attitude that it seems to come from a different universe.”

Au revoir, Ed. We will miss you.

neuschwanstein_4300

Originally uploaded by Maimeo

Mad Ludwig’s castle that “inspired” Walt Disney to create Cinderella’s castle. This shot, from the Marienbrucke (Mary’s Bridge) above the castle is one of my favorites from our trip to Bavaria in 2008.

I’m watching the Penguins play the Sabres (it’s on NBC TV) – they’re outside, in the snow, in Buffalo. It’s everything we always imagined ‘pond hockey‘ could be – but with real nets and boards! As the late Bob Johnson (former Penguin coach) would say, “It’s a GREAT day for hockey!”

We (Anne Mary & I) spent the weekend launching “Maimeo’s Memories” in it’s physical manifestation at the Cannery Row Antiques Mall in Monterey, CA. This is the “foot in the water” test to see if the antiques, collectibles and memorabilia business will provide the right balance of interest and income for our retirement years. WE aren’t looking to make a fortune, nor to spend 80 hours a week managing our own shop – the mall concept might be just the right thing.

We’ll also soon have the “digital shop” in operation.

Maybe we can plan a buying trip to Boston during the (hopefully upcoming) World Series…..

I do have a Facebook account. And I do have a LinkedIn account. But I’ve never understood the benefit of Twitter. I’m not really that concerned with what my family, or my friends, are doing Right This Second, so why should I care about acquaintances or perfect strangers and their activities?

Houston Tribune columnist Loren Steffy has put a number of my thoughts into his commentary about Twitter. He is a bit over the top, and he does lump together things which really aren’t related, but the essence of his piece accurately reflects my thoughts:

“As I write this, I pull on my beard. My fingers idly find an eyebrow hair that seems inappropriately long. I think they may be getting thicker as I get older. Is that possible? Is it a sign of illness? Do you care? Does the world care? I rest my case.

If this is the future of the Web, then the days of the Pets.com sock puppet were truly a golden age.“

As Doc Searls mentioned this morning in his DIDW keynote, “Web 2.0 is what we’ll call the second crash.“

Refreshingly, it appears that not everyone is a Chicken Luddle when it comes to electronic voting machines. A story in PC World (another fine IDG periodical!) today reports on a new study from “Tech-focused think tank the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF)” which “…warns that a backup won’t improve electronic voting systems, just increase costs.”

Predictably, the naysayers are all quoted, but none refute the actual conclusions of the report. Instead, they attack the usual strawmen as well as the bona fides of the report’s author! Nothing like a good ad hominem attack if the facts aren’t going your way!

Global Warming itself is not a myth: the earth is getting warmer, our climate is changing. Some of the pressures bringing about that change are human-created carbon emissions. But, contrary to what Pacific Gas & Electric would have you believe, we cannot stop global warming! Still, the energy company insists on putting a tag line on it’s TV ads for energy conservation claiming (or, in some cases, alluding to) the consumer’s ability to do just that.

Reducing carbon emissions is a good thing to do. So is conserving energy. But even if we stopped all carbon emissions today, all over the world, climate change would still come.

History shows that those organisms which can survive global climate change are those which are the most adaptable. But to be considered “adaptable,” we’re going to have to either plan for mass migrations as the climate changes, or work to keep our microclimates livable through the use of energy-efficient, low-carbon-emitting changes to our way of life – adding heat or cooling, irrigation, flood-control, and other non-natural impediments to nature. Science fiction talks about humans going to other planets and “terraforming” them – “…deliberately modifying its atmosphere, temperature, or ecology to be similar to those of Earth in order to make it habitable by humans” – but we’re going to have to perfect ways of terraforming the changed Earth first!

UPDATE: I’ve just come across an excellent essay by physicist Freeman Dyson (the inventor of the Dyson Sphere) on this issue. Be sure to read thru to the end where he also tells how he almost set back the course of biology a generation!

We’re live! davekearns.com is on the air. Or on the ether, at least. Still while I feel my way around WordPress and this new hosting environment, we won’t be publicizing things very much….