civil society
There are so many angry people these days. It's something I don't really remember from my youth and childhood. Only in recent years does it seem that everyone is angry. I've been trying to understand why there should be more anger now than in
future
Free people offering their labour in exchange for monetary reward has been fundamental concept for western society. Since the mid-nineteenth century we have not really used forced labour for production. But two examples in recent times make me wonder if that assumption still holds true: 1. Prisoners painted room for
civil society
I was reading Bill Bonner's recent post Zombies Born of Government Spending where he posits the notion of zombies in our economy. As Bill defines it: "In economic terms, a zombie is a parasite. He contributes less to the economy than he takes from it. He lives
social innovation
Jeff Jarvis sparked my thinking on this recently with his post on The Jobless Future. As Jeff so bluntly stated: "We’re not going to have a jobless recovery. We’re going to have a jobless future. Holding out blind hope for the magical appearance of new jobs and
social computing & social media
There is a tendency to put the word social in front of many other words to day to describe some new use of technology. I remain uncomfortable with the way we have plonked the word 'social' in front of so many other things, for example; networking, media, computing,
civil society
Want is a funny word. It can mean different things, such as: "absence or deficiency of something desirable or requisite" or "to be lacking or absent, as a part or thing necessary to completeness", or "to feel a need or a desire for; wish for&
civil society
It seems strange watching the sad events unfolding in the United Kingdom from such a distance. With the spreading riots, looting, and mob violence it is apt to recall the words of Charles Dickens describing turbulent times past: "It was the best of times, it was the worst of
civil society
Over the weekend I listened to this moving talk from the Burmese pro-democracy leader and Nobel Peace Laureate, Aung San Suu Kyi, where she examines what drives people to dissent. Reflecting on the history of her own party, the National League for Democracy, Aung San Suu Kyi, examines the meaning
civil society
Over the past several years I have come to think that capitalism as practised in the western world is fundamentally broken. Even before the global financial crisis (GFC) this feeling was strong. But in the aftermath of the GFC my discomfort with modern capitalism has continued to grow. Nothing I
ideas
I recently discovered that one of my ancestors was arrested by the British in 1828 as a pirate and sent to Australia as a convict. He had originally been sentenced to death, but he appealed to the King and his sentence was commuted to life as a convict in Australia.
ideas
"Sometimes life happens and you can't stop it. Now is that time. When it happens, you discover where true love lies, and where it never existed." A good friend said this very recently in response to a significant life event. It got me thinking about how
civil society
Many people who were vaccinated as children do not realise that by the time we're all grown up some of our protection no longer works. In the case of whooping cough, or pertussis, the protection can wane in as little as six to ten years. This means that