|
|
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.
Oh My God, the RSS Feed Actually Works!
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)
"It's really funny and informative." - Dave Eggers, author
"The Blah is becoming a daily destination for me." - Richard Marsh, Playwright
"I like it, and I don't." - Fiona Hogg, Teacher
"Better than Xanax." - Lessley Andersen, journalist
"Dude, lay off the crack pipe." - Souris Hong-Porretta, gamesmith
Friends, Bloggers, Countrymen ... lend your ears to these people. I come not to bury them, but praise them.
Arik
Bill
Dan
Cole
Emily B
Emily G
Helena
Jee
Jewelz
Kaila
Kathryn
Mac
Robin
Slim
Souris
Mr. West
My TIME articles
All magazine articles (subscription required for older stories)
Online column index
|
|
|
|
|
Daily Blah for... Saturday, June 17, 2006
US Plays Good Game of Soccer. Apocalypse to Follow.
I never thought I'd find myself rooting for Team America as much as I did this afternoon, watching the US-Italy match with friends. Not that I haven't supported the Yanks before. I generally do, partly because they're the underdogs, and I always feel drawn the underdogs in any World Cup match that doesn't directly or indirectly affect a British team, and partly because I want this country to continue its growing acceptance of real football, and nothing will do that more than a few good US victories. I can already feel World Cup fever spreading slowly around the office, around the city -- put the national team in the quarter finals again, hell, put them in the semis, and who knows how far into the heartland that fever would spread?
But against Italy, I was supporting the US for a different reason, an entirely suprising one -- they were the better team. Down to nine men, and they played with more heart than a freezer full of organ donations. When they scored what seemed to be their second goal, we were on our feet, screaming, whooping, high-fiving -- and then came that moment of anguish, oh so familiar to an England fan, when the ref made an insane call and disallowed the goal. Still, the rest of the second half was a joy to behold -- even poor plucky McBride, who kept charging down the field only to knock the cross well to the left of the goal. We surmised he must have concussion from the red-carded elbow shiv in the first half, and started calling him "McBride of Frankenstein." Well, it's no fun supporting a team if you can't gently mock them too.
I thought of all the Americans getting it for the first time -- understanding that soccer levels the playing field like no other game. Find your pluck and your courage, slow the ball down, look for the man in space, and you're in with a chance even if your opponent is one of the world's top teams.
Someone must have sat on a remote control or something after the match, because all of a sudden we were watching enormous volcanos belching out smoke and dust and massive lava flows. What's this, someone asked. "It's what happens if America wins the World Cup," I said.
Then I went home and played as the US team in FIFA 2006 on the Xbox. Just for a laugh, yet I made it straight through to the final, beating Brazil 4-2, something I've never been able to do as the England team. Take heart, America. It is possible.
|
|
|
|
