Comments on: Will the spirit of Wikinomics survive in harsher times?

By: Mike Baker

Mike Baker — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 05:06:12 +0000

Being BORN in the mid-60′s, when Brian Eno was whooping it up, I was raised on optimism. I was four when Armstrong and Aldrin set foot on moon. Star Trek was still new, with it’s message of hope that mankind would survive the Cold War, mend fences on Earth and reach for the stars. Even though Vietnam was a daily reminder that we we not there yet, it was contained and a world away.

I fully believe, make that EXPECTED, that I would visit the moon in my lifetime, or at the very least vacation on a space station like the one in 2001: A Space Odyssey.

But now I look around, and wonder where’s my space station? Where’s my flying car? Why do I see terror alert levels to keep me vigilant of impending attack while I’m shopping at the mall. What’s this global warming thing and can it be stopped?

The point is that the optimism and predictions of the 60′s didn’t quite pan out. However, we do have cell phones that look for all the world like Star Trek Communicators (web-enabled, no less) and cars that can parallel park themselves.

Look at Eno’s body of work. The All Music Guide (www.allmusic.com) lists the various styles of his music:

“Moods:
Atmospheric
Cerebral
Reserved
Complex
Insular
Pastoral
Circular
Clinical
Quirky
Poignant
Playful
Eerie
Ethereal
Wintry
Soothing
Restrained
Hypnotic
Laid-Back/ Mellow
Melancholy
Nocturnal
Wistful”

It appears Brian is not famous for his optimism. I am not going to get on Eno’s worry train just yet.

Tom’s point about macro / micro perception is quite valid. In America, we say we dislike Congress, but usually we like our OWN representatives. A major disconnect if there ever was one.

My personal experience has been that the people willing to cooperate and collaborate far outnumber those that won’t. I think most people want to be part of something bigger than themselves, and collaboration is a convenient vehicle to meet that need.

By: Matt

Matt — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 14:06:11 +0000

I think Eno struck a CHORD, and not just because he’s a musician.

The beauty of post-internet collaboration is that the payoffs of altruism can be arranged to be immediate (or nearly so), and hence even a dumb panicky herd can be smartened.

By: Mr Luke M

Mr Luke M — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 00:32:14 +0000

Eno in gloom mongering shocker! Much electronic music thrives on the concept of dystopia, so I wouldn’t take his comments to heart Anthony.

As the core actors in your thesis are the science and business communities, and because both are located in broadly optimistic paradigms (ie see themselves as moving deliberately towards truth, better technology and better method), I don’t think wikinomics should fear a Hobbesian trust crunch.

By: Tom

Tom — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 11:47:42 +0000

Interesting, but let me put this out there. From my experience I’ve found that usually people see things in terms of the big picture (macro, objective) and the small picture (micro, subjective), giving them two perceptions. For example we could think that the “average” person is dumb, selfish, and untrustworthy (macro) while thinking that they themselves or their friends are smart, unselfish, and trustworthy (micro). While this has the potential to create cognitive dissonance, we are usually good at keeping these perceptions separate in our mind.

I think this is the case here, where we have faith in people on the micro level to be civil and collaborative while on the large scale thinking there will be mass panic and survivalism. In short, Tommy Lee Jones said it best in “Men in Black”: “A person is smart, people are dumb, panicky, dangerous animals and you know it.” If we want to promote the essence of collective culture, we need to make sure people don’t think about the big picture in a flawed “doomsday” way, but rather at smaller, more communal and managable level.