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The increasingly inaccurately-named blog of journalist and futurist Chris Taylor. Either the most sporadically brilliant amateur blog, the most brilliantly amateur sporadic blog, or the most amateur sporadic brilliance on the Web since 2001.
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Daily Blah FAQ
Who are you?
I'm the newly-appointed Future editor at Business 2.0 and the former San Francisco correspondent for Time Magazine.
Wow, so does this mean everything you write reflects Time Inc's opinion? Or do you perhaps have some sort of standard disclaimer to the effect that it doesn't?
Naturally, the opinions contained in this blog are not those of my employers. In fact, some opinions may be the polar opposite of my employers. Some may be the same, for all I know. Hey, it's not like I ask my employers their opinions about everything in the news, okay? Let's just say that if this were a Venn diagram with one circle marked "my opinions" and the other one marked "my employers' opinions", there would doubtless be some overlap. But neither I nor my employers are able to pinpoint exactly where that overlap is.
What is this Daily Blah thing?
An experiment for a column I wrote about blogging back in December 2001. All these years later, I haven't been able to kick the habit.
Do you write any other blogs, by chance? Could that have something to do with the fact that Daily Blah isn't always Daily?
Yes -- the Future Boy blog for Business 2.0. And yes. If you want true, editorially-mandated daily coverage from me, that's probably the best place to look.
Mister, you talk funny. Are you one of them furrners?
Why yes I am, as it happens. I was born, raised and educated in Great Britain. I've been living in the U.S. since 1996 and identify as British.
I say, old chap, you forgot the "u" in "colour."
No I didn't. I may identify as British, but I am also an American journalist writing for an American audience about mostly American issues. These two different sides of me are a constant source of tension. Nevertheless, Daily Blah will adhere to American English grammar and spelling.
Praise for Daily Blah:
"It is fun to watch the author's navel-gazing joy." - Sunday Times (UK)
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"Better than Xanax." - Lessley Andersen, journalist
"Dude, lay off the crack pipe." - Souris Hong-Porretta, gamesmith
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Daily Blah for... Tuesday, December 13, 2005
Future Man
I've known about this for a few weeks, but now it's official. The theme of Burning Man 2006 is -- drum roll, please -- The Future. From the BOrg blurb:
We take comfort in the notion that we have a past to guide us, but we reinterpret history every day according to what happens in the present. The future, too, is a projection of our hopes and fears in what is called the here and now. [Several sentences of tangential proto-Zen rumination on the nature of the present moment later ...] This year's art theme will allow us to explore how we create futurity. Express what you most hope for in the future! Express what you most fear!
And as if that weren't enough to guarantee my attendance -- hell, maybe I can even expense the entire trip this year, the future being my beat -- The Man will be kitted out with an irresistible Art Deco pavilion and a bizarre voting system:
Artists will also be invited to install various kinds of voting devices in the vestibule of the Pavilion. Some of these devices will depend on chance, like slot machines ... Voting booths will also be stationed at locations throughout Black Rock City ... All of these devices will be connected by a closed Wifi network, and linked to a secure computer equipped with a sophisticated software program ... All will offer up a stark and simple choice: Will you vote for hope, or will you vote for fear?
Hmm, tough choice. I confidently predict a 93 percent landslide for hope -- unless, of course, Diebold has been subcontracted to run the voting machine network. This being Burning Man, I further predict that so-called "secure network" will be hacked six ways to Tuesday, and that no opportunity to have fun at Diebold's expense (and let's face it, there's a lot of fun to be had there) will be missed. Hey, choir -- time for a sermon.
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