Toward Innovation.

Over the last 10 years, there has been something bothering me that I couldn't quite put a finger on. It was ethereal and numbing, something that defied description- yet aspects were apparent in so many different things. While people were busy trying to outblog each other in some insane competition for popularity and implicit revenue, I kept reading the same hype on different topics that simply didn't seem... warranted. Things were going to transform our lives. I thought I was becoming a grouchy old man - in fact, that may be happening - but even if I am becoming a grouchy old man, the truth is that there's not a whole lot of exciting innovation happening. Sure, you can walk around with an MP3 player and listen to music - but let's be serious: that was just a logical progression from the Sony Walkman. No genius there. "How can we make the Sony Walkman better?" would have been enough, but it was, "How can we make the Sony Walkman better while making sure that people can't legally claim Fair Use, and so we can support this large bureaucracy that we only need now to protect itself?"

I give you... iTunes and the equivalents, an effective penile implant for the people who get paid to stay between the musicians and the people who want the music. It's an industry that thrives on penile implants since they seem intent on screwing both artists and users alike. No wonder they came up with Viagra and Cialis. It was to keep the recording executives in shape to keep screwing everyone. And really, what value do they add other than making sure that... they keep their jobs? None, really. When Steve talks about Jobs, he's talking about himself. Always has been. Southpark did a good job on that, though you have to wait to see it online until 5/27/2011 due to contractual obligations. We want fresh stuff, but they still keep canning it to sell it to us. No wonder some people are flinging open cans of Black Eyed Peas all over.

As much of a conspiracy as this may sound like, it isn't. It's just people looking out for themselves. Self-preservation of an industry where users have less and less rights - imagine, buying a DVD and paying more for a 'digital copy' included. No, don't imagine. Go to the store. This little thing called 'Fair Use', which has always been at odds with the Copyright Laws in the Internet Era, now has people paying more for the same rights that they used to have. No kidding. Wow.

What does all of this have to do with innovation? The correct answer is that it has nothing to do with innovation - and that's the problem. The idea that some self-important *corporations* - which are now upheld to have the same rights of human beings without the responsibilities - are running a system that assures that they are the only ones allowed to innovate is somewhat... disturbing to those who aren't being used as batteries for the corporations. Can a corporation get a DUI? Nope. And when corporations screw up, the wrong answer is the right answer: Bail them out with the money paid in taxes by the employees that they laid off.

Innovation? Where?

There was a time when we didn't have these artificial economic bubbles to exist in. There was a time when the opiate of the masses was religion instead of technology. "Keep them quiet. Make them pay arms and legs for devices that they really don't need but we tell them they want."

It's no wonder there's so much civil unrest where people can't get iPods, iPhones, iPads, iTampons and iDemocracy. That implicit egocentrism that sells itself by, "Be different just like the rest of our customers who are cool because we say so."

No, no. Bring back the public domain. Bring back actual innovation, not Bill Gates trying to kill mosquitoes with lasers (Seriously? Why no nuclear fission to kill mosquitoes?). How about patenting stuff only when you intend to use it, instead of causing the patent office to consistently allow patents for things that they shouldn't?

No, no, I want my papercuts at the edge of the envelope. Get me out of this box of insanity created by people who are only interested in... having jobs... and who aren't truly interested... in creating value. Don't believe me? When you throw away your next phone, get back to me. Your world is obscenely boring. If Galt were around, he'd probably defecate on all done in Rand's name.