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Deschooling Society by Ivan Illich

August 24 at 6:59 am - Link

Many students, especially those who are poor, intuitively know what the schools do for them. They school them to confuse process and substance. Once these become blurred, a new logic is assumed: the more treatment there is, the better are the results; or, - David Adewumi

Alex Iskold posted a message on Twitter

“Startup, Inc - what you need to know before starting a company: http://tinyurl.com/6c9hvr - my post on ReadWriteWeb.”

August 12 at 4:07 am - Link

David Adewumi and Allen Stern liked this

Fred Wilson posted a message on Twitter

“Obama is running a brilliant campaign and McCain is running a terrible one. I think that's telling and speaks to their mgmt skills”

July 29 at 5:41 am - Link

Paul Haahr, Chris Pounds, Andy Kaufman, Christian and 24 other people liked this

I guess if you're completely uninformed and think the candidate runs his own campaign it does. - Vincent Ferrari

Well, the candidates do hire the people who run their campaigns. And McCain's people have allowed him to make repeated gaffes like the wife-beating joke and referencing Czechoslovakia as if it still existed....Not good reputation management. McCain is much better than his handlers have let him appear. - Abby Martin

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McCain's campaign is nothing but whining ('why does the world love Obama?'), attack ('Why didn't Obama make political hay out of wounded vets in Germany?'), and big-oil ideas ('more drilling -- in 30 years we'll start to really think about getting off the crack!'). It is amazing to watch the mainstream media cower before the GOP message machine, regardless. - JB Holston

I did like the fact that he made a speech from in front of a German restaurant on the day Obama spoke in Berlin. That was cheeky. (Still, I'd rather the other fellow won! I'm a Mama for Obama.) - Abby Martin

wait a sec... isn't Obama losing according to latest polls? what in the hell are you talking about? - Noah David Simon

I think your rating of either campaign might be slightly influenced by which candidate you favor. - Michael Tefft

true, somehow McCain isn't getting any press coverage(and if any all bad), and Obama is parading around the world like he's already won. - clarke thomas

I agree (with Michael) - Aaron Myers

a little parading around is kinda welcome after 8 years of absolute crap - Marko

http://www.barackbook.com/ - Craig Eddy

@Abby Martin: Fred's point was that his campaign's success is a sign of his management ability. That's not true. His campaign's success is a sign of his campaign manager's management ability. Once he hires that person, all he has to do is go out and raise the rabble and look presidential, so in reality it has nothing to do with him and everything to do with the puppeteers pulling the strings as far as management goes. - Vincent Ferrari

Obama is a "hip" guy, McCain hardly knows how to pick up a phone. That's a tough challenge for a campaign office. - Juan Carlo Rodríguez

@Vincent - great managers hire great people (and the greatest managers hire people smarter than themselves in specific areas) ....I will say that I think the one thing Obama should be careful of is not assuming the role of President before the 'people' have actually elected him. It's good to go overseas and show your stuff but bad if there is the potential for the backlash of people who don't want him to assume his victory before the people have even spoken....(and yes that is a Canadians outsider POV) - leigh himel

But the point is he's not managing his campaign right now. - Vincent Ferrari

Then why are they neck and neck and in some polls McCain leading? Just saying. You're right on the campaigns, just saying, why isn't it making a huge difference for Obama? I can't figure it out either. - Jim Kukral

I don't put a lot of stock in the polls, Jim. Truth is, Obama's likely gonna win and that's that. - Vincent Ferrari

McCain is too busy firing people from his campaign to actually manage it. - Jody C

A candidate's campaign and campaign staff is akin to the cabinet and other positions when assuming the presidency. So, by this measure I agree that McCain's campaign has been a scary look at what we could expect from his administration. The relentless gaffe's by McCain show a lack of coordination by his team. If they can't get it together now - what makes us believe they could do it once they were in office? - AJ Kohn

I guess Obama's staff wasn't to blame when someone took recorded his gaffe about Guns and Religion, because, after all, his campaign is 'brilliant'. (sarcasm for those who don't think the original post in this thread was silly). - Andrew Leyden

media mgmt is key but is not the whole story. - jonathan

This is like any brand marketing campaign -- you can't be successful if the product behind the brand is faulty - Brian Sullivan

that wasn't a gaffe, people do cling to guns or religion because their lives suck. - Geoffrey Hamilton via twhirl

Marc Andreessen spent 1.5 hours w/ Obama 1.5 years ago and blogged about it http://tinyurl.com/create.php The best bit is this quote: "[MA] asked him directly, how concerned should we be that you haven't had meaningful experience as an executive -- as a manager and leader of people?" Obama replied, "Watch how I run my campaign -- you'll see my leadership skills in action." - Furqan

@Geoffrey: brilliant deduction. so if I say "people cling to Obama because they're stupid and think socialism is a good idea," that's not just as offensive to your side of the fence? Whether or not every liberal thinks Red Staters are ignorant religious fanatics (and whether or not it's true), if the candidate wants their votes, he'd better not say it. - Mark "Rizzn" Hopkins

Not JUST religious fanatics (whether or not it's true), but the space limitation prevents me from completing the list ;-) - Jody C

It was a gaffe. Losing your job doesn't make you cling to guns or religion. It makes you drink. - Andrew Leyden

@Vincent, is it not important the people you select to run things for you. There's a funny thing called a Presidential Cabinet, and this is exactly what the future President will be doing -- choosing people to run the country. While campaign is certainly not a great comparison, it is a great way to see how a candidate chooses his closest advisors, mentors, and friends -- after all, those same people will run the country for four years. - David Adewumi

I'm not offended by you saying that I'm stupid and I think socialism is a good idea because I like Obama. And you shouldn't be offended by me saying I think you're stupid for believing in God either. - Geoffrey Hamilton via twhirl

@Jim I think Obama hasn't sealed the deal with a clear majority yet primarily because (a) he's a black man and we've never elected an African-American president so that's always going to be a hurdle and is going to cut into his margins, (b) he's young and not nationally known up to recently, so he is still introducing himself to the country, especially those who don't tune in during primaries. - Christian Crumlish

Brilliant campaign? I think not! - Keith Thompson

Fred Wilson commented on a blog post on Disqus

Re: Listening, respect and teamwork (Scripting News)

July 26 at 7:19 pm - Link

siavash, Will DeLuca, David Adewumi and Chris Selland liked this

"who cares if David wants to fund an iPhone app? thousands of iPhone apps, maybe tens of thousands, are being built by developers all over the world right now. venture capital is not a requirement to build an iPhone app. it's not even a requirement to build an amazing company. google could have easily gone without VC investment. craigslist did. the focus on VCs is all wrong. focus on the products. that's where the action is." - Fred Wilson

I'm not sure if Google could really have been in its current position without VC. They had 2 of the most influential & powerful VCs, & they were already running out of money while they were building their infrastructure. - siavash

Paul Buchheit posted a link

More advice for new Y Combinator founders

January 9 at 4:15 am - Link

Nada Amin, Michael Nielsen, Jauder Ho, Mitchell Tsai and 14 other people liked this

"Figure out what the important things are, and spend lots time on those and little on the rest. Lots of startups work very hard, but on the wrong things. They still die an untimely death." - Paul Buchheit

Sam Altman is one smart boi! - Nenad Nikolic

From the comments: "Remember if you're not a Y C founder, be sure to spend all of your time working on patents." - Clare Dibble

Robert Scoble posted a message on Twitter

“@james3neal I have four phones actually: samsung Blackjack II best for email. Nokia N82: best for photos. Nokia N95: best for video. &iPhone”

July 19 at 7:47 pm - Link

Brandon, Dukeswharf, Dom, Andy Breeding and 10 other people liked this

how can you get over having to physically carry 4 devices. that would be really hard for me. i would have to wear two pairs of pants for the extra pockets! - Jeff DiStanlo

I've always thought that was the problem with the wireless industry. Not one carrier has the most efficient service and not one phone is capable of superbly handling a multitude of tasks. Perhaps one day soon things will be more seamless and one phone will do it all? Nice to see no mention of Blackberry amongst your collection. - James

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hehe.. and I thought I carried too many gadgets in my purse. ;) - Daynah

Maybe with one of those european man-bags ;) - Sally Church via fftogo

I expect that if one ever runs into the mythical Scoble he has all of his phones on his utility belt, like Batman - David Thomas

The iPhone is best for...? - Christian Anderson via fftogo

the Internet? - Sally Church via fftogo

What makes the BJ2 such a good email phone? Curious. - Akshay Dodeja

blackberry has its place, too. but the new palm treo with windows mobile that i've been playing with is giving it a serious run. n95 best at being a phone and replacing my pocket camera. iPhone's web browser beauty doesn't counter its weaknesses for me, sadly. and the "mythical" scoble doesn't have a phone, he has a direct connection to friendfeed in his mind. the real one has pockets. - Andrew Feinberg

Actually, the in-the-flesh Scoble is even better than digital Scoble. Nicest guy you'll meet. Friendly, inquisitive, inclusive. When you meet him, you want to hang out with him.-- no visible utility belt. - Christian Anderson via fftogo

Christian: are you happy to see me or is that a vibrating Nokia in your pocket? :-) - Robert Scoble

i was referring to the concept of "scoble" in norse mythology. not really. - Andrew Feinberg

Robert you are treating phones as women ...one is never perfect and men always want more than one - Hakim

Hakim: no comment! :-) - Robert Scoble

Getting the N82 tomorrow can't wait to play with it...Does anyone objectively believe the blackjack 2 can out perform most of the latest BlackBerrys? Is is the best for you Scoble because it is your only phone with a full qwerty keyboard. Just Curious - Tatenda Mbavarira

Robert: lol :) - Christian Anderson via fftogo

I carry 3MP Samsung A707 (AT&T), Verizon LG Voyager (2MP), iPod Touch, VZW USB EVDO, OQO UMPC, and Cradlepoint battery powered wifi router. Plus 13" Macbook and Dell Latitude D630. That's my backpack pretty much. - Brian Daniel Eisenberg

I carry one phone (Nokie E61i) best for calling and taking calls, and SMS and reading e-mails. Also, I carry a Canon PS A530, best for taking photos. - Roland Hesz

see and people think I'm bad, I have 3 phones, iPhone 1st Gen, blackberry worldphone (work, email only), Nokia N95 for video - Wayne Sutton

I carry around a LG Dare for phone calls and Music and a Blackberry Curve for text, email, and web browsing. Kinda of a pain to carry 2 phones but I haven't found the "end all, be all" phone yet. - Andy Breeding

i thought i was bad with an iPhone and a regular phone - David Adewumi

My Motorola StarTAC was da bomb. Seriously. - Kevin C. Tofel

Bring the StsrTAC back! Funny a buddy of mine just was telling me that was his fav phone back in the day. - Jay Martin

The StarTAC was my all time favourite phone too, although the batteries were crappy. Wonderful little gadget with pure sound quality, not some tinny echo you get these days in most mobiles today. - Sally Church

MG Siegler posted a link

Dean’s top ten video games of E3 » VentureBeat

July 20 at 6:20 pm - via Bookmarklet - Link

Cee Bee, David Adewumi, Harvey Simmons and Mark Trapp liked this

Tad - just Tad posted a message

“Watched some of the special on CNN about being Black in America. Maybe it's just awful easy for me to say as a relatively well-off middle-aged white guy, but I'm tired of race. Can't we just move on to all just being humans? I don't want to think in terms of race any more...”

July 19 at 11:04 pm - Link

Sean McBride, Gregory R, David Adewumi, Heather and 7 other people liked this

Just another reason why I hate living south of the Mason Dixon line. It's really sad how many people are still racist / prejudiced / homophobic. It's quite disgusting. Hell, I get discriminated against because I'm a northerner. - ::Kristen::

It would be nice to get past all this stuff, but then...what would comedians talk about? - Rahsheen(isSoAwesome)

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Well, I'm certainly not ready to past this whole "gender" thing. Maybe after the Singularity... - Tad - just Tad

I'm not quite ready to condemn the South just yet. On Saturday morning I was watching a PBS show about the years leading up to the Civil War; it pointed out that Oregon's "solution" to the issue was not only to ban slavery in the territory, but also to ban free blacks. And things weren't exactly peaceful when the integration movement left the South and moved toward places like Boston in the 1960s and the 1970s. - Ontario Emperor

I didn't see the CNN story, but I did see Eddie Murphy's "White Like Me" - http://halfricanrevolution.blo... - Ontario Emperor

A-MEN - Mona N.

Hate is the problem. Race is an excuse. - Ňicķ

I disagree.. It's more lack of exposure and education. People don't 'hate' for no reason... - Mona N.

Well said, Nick. - Andrew Dobrow

A-MEN and can we be judged just be based of ability and not some arbitrary BS - Cecil Sandus

@Ontario Emperor--thank you. - Anna Haro

Yeah, I really don't think it's a North South thing. The issues are the same from Brooklyn to Atlanta for me. - Rahsheen(isSoAwesome)

It takes a LOT of work to get little kids to hate people just because they're a different color. I don't think little bitty kids even notice. - Tad - just Tad

@rahsheen ROTFL! you're so right. i don't know what we'd do if jeff foxworthy could no longer do his 'you might be a redneck' bit anymore! i say, let's keep RACE around, double, no, triple it... because the world needs more punchlines! - .LAGizmoto

The talk will end when equality of races is reached and there is no majority or minority. Then there will be no basis for racial discrimination. - Shey

We'll just do that by default over the next few generation anyways. Maybe mature Nanotech will arrive and we'll be able to adjust our skin pigmentation at will. Then someone can hate me because I'm not the same pattern plaid they are. - Tad - just Tad

But racial discrimination exists today in the US largely due to the fact that people keep talking about it and making a big deal of it. Unfortunately, there are a few people in 'leadership' positions who have a vested interest in keeping the flames high so that they can keep getting lucrative speaking engagements and contributions to their 'causes'. - Chad Myers

Mona, I think the reasons could be anything... anything in life that doesn't go a person's way... anger, animosity, frustration. Whatever the root of hate is, humans look for places to lay blame. And sadly exposure can work the opposite sometimes. Just look at the south: the proximity of the races has always been closer in the south than the north, but racism pervades, regardless. - Ňicķ

.LAG, I used to own (or maybe even still own) Foxworthy's paperback of the first Redneck book. In the preface, Foxworthy pointed out that rednecks are not confined to the south. - Ontario Emperor

@Tad I wish I didn't have to think about race either... but as a Black woman in my lifetime I'll unfortunately never have that luxury. - Jasmin Smith

3 comments from a Canadian: 1. what is the Mason-Dixon line? I'm guessing the line betw/ the North and South in your Civil War? 2. Ontario Emperor, do you live in the U.S., and if so, are your stripes really Canadian? 3. These issues are as much a problem in other countries besides the U.S., even countries that don't have as obvious a racist history as the U.S. - Trent Olson

Tad, it is awfully easy for you to say that you are tired of talking about the race. When it becomes awfully easy for minorities to say the same thing, then we can actually stop talking about the race. Till then, we have to live in a world where the racial issues of the past and present are discussed in public domain. - Krishnan Hussein Subraman

I feel what you're saying, Tad. The whole race thing is like an anchor on our society. Everbody keeps talking about removing it. Some people like it right where it is. But in all cases, it's still just holding us down. - Rahsheen(isSoAwesome)

Trent, the racism problem exists everywhere, but manifests itself differently - Prolific Programmer

@Prolific: 100% agree with you. - Trent Olson

Where I've worked for close to a decade, I'm usually the only female and/or Black in my group. I've had at least two co-workers (who were neither) tell me that I could have management in the palm of my hand just by playing the race card. Each time I wondered where in the sanguinely providence that comment came from. I surely didn't provoke that line of thinking and resented the implication that I wouldn't want to make my way the same way anyone else there did. Who can't forget? - MiniMage

Yeah - that's a pretty silly thing for someone to tell you. It certainly doesn't sound like a compliment. It's like saying, "You suck, but since you're black you could be our manager." - Tad - just Tad

I's real easy for members of the advantaged group to say can we just stop all this jabbering and squabbling about race. - Michael Markman

It may be real easy, but I think it's correct. Is there some reason why we should continue creating artificial difference amongst ourselves because of our levels of skin pigmentation? - Tad - just Tad

here is a story: i have money and things. i belong to group who helps me keep them. oh, big group without things coming in door. hey they might take some of mine or my friends things! bad outsiders. bad. unconsciously i think: oh look, they are different than me. skin color, gender. if they were same as me I wouldn/t have to split up the pie any more. no! keep them away! end story. it is always about not wanting to share. stupid humans we. In Memphis in 2004, there was a public grade school of only black kids, that had no air conditioning. all white schools had it. ever tried to function in memphis w/o air conditoning? can't share enough to let little kids have air in school in 2004???? - terra210

why did you feel the need to mention you're a "middle aged white guy?" Not so easy to stop thinking in terms of race, is it? - Jason Kaneshiro

Because, as others have said, it's awful easy for a member of the majority race to say things like that and it's pertinent to the discussion. - Tad - just Tad

kristen--i always liked the south until i lived in memphis. the most interesting people I knew were from the south, so thought I'd like it. i guess that they were "from" not there, was meaningful. really awful place IMHO. hatred on all sides of the lines, for every difference. basically white "mafia", tries to control and keep the money with the whites. Black churches were telling my students to participate in violence against whites. I was called a yankee, in an angry way, in a hip coffee shop, just sitting with my dog, having espresso. these are the extremes, but, OMG. Unless you were born there, i do not see how you could live there. But, I am sure there are exceptions. Just glad I am away. - terra210

@ Michael Markman: well said - Gregory R

This is what we need, a discussion about race. Until we talk about race, racism will always exist. - Gregory R

What I found most appealing about Obama was his trans-racialism -- he wasn't about race. He was about universal human and social issues. And that is why I recoiled in disgust when the Clinton campaign, in collusion with the Murdoch-dominated MSM, insisted on dragging race into the Obama discussion at every opportunity. - Sean McBride

Chris Brogan posted an entry on chrisbrogan.com

Thinking About the Negatives

July 16 at 7:46 pm - Link

Catholic Meme, Phil (scribkin), luca Filigheddu, Harrison Wise and 12 other people liked this

I am often reminded of that often quoted line from WEB DuBois Souls of Black Folk. "The problem of the 20th century is the problem of the color line, the relation of the darker to the lighter races in Asia and Africa, in America and the islands of the sea." ... Perhaps we need to extend DuBois concept into the 21st century. - James

I'm SO not usually talking about this. I'm a lover not a hater. - Chris Brogan

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I find it all downright nasty. Great post Chris, though I feel some people will always go out of their way to create a viscious climate. - Mo Kargas

Racist hate speech is often hidden behind humor and if you don't find it funny you're told to lighten up or that you're against free speech. Good post. - Sandra Williams

Sometimes when you don't know where the line is -- others have to end up drawing it for you. But you're right, there are scarier things out there. - Shey

And hey Shey- I'm FriendFeeding it up like mad lately. - Chris Brogan

Nice to see you around, soak it all in :D - Shey

Chris, that was one fine, fine post. Your best in recent memory, and I'd say your best ever. Lately I've been thinking a lot about how, beneath the trappings of "modern" society, beneath the Velcro and the antioxidants and the EVDO cards, we are no farther along than our distant tribal ancestors. Our rocks just look different, and we throw them in much more sophisticated ways. <sigh> - Linda Mills

Marinating. - Harvey Simmons

for some reason, i thought the end of the post felt like a cliff hanger... - David Adewumi

this is what i heard "Fight racism. Fight hatred." - that nailed it, moving on ;) - mike "glemak" dunn

All I know is what homophobia feels like, and how well-intended straight people can seem befuddled while they do their best to put the issue in context, then don't get excused by gay people from the table of accountability to go out with their friends to play another game of straight. These situations make me wonder if I get it, or if I'm so pre-occupied with my own perspective that I can't identify with another category of humans. That struggle, I'm guessing, is one all humans share. - Brian Rendel

only racists can fight racism …. if you are beyond it, see only the human race, what is there to fight?? and what can anybody do to anybody else, except be stupid? and stupidity has no race. your very story is racist, because it is about race. get over race, these things wont be found. - Gregory Lent

brian: so true, its about open minded tolerance and acceptance on all fronts - the challenge is how to show ones disdain for those who are anywhere from intolerant all the way up to raging haters - that act alone throws us into some pool of intolerance ourselves and creates a dichotomy for all humans - it does for me because i hate haters :) - mike "glemak" dunn

Racism, racists, are terms that are thrown around so lightly and many don't have a clue what it's about. - Shey

I promise I'm not being flippant or whatever, but aren't we ALL racists on a spectrum? I dunno. Guess I have to read the dictionary. - Chris Brogan

No Chris, we all aren't. - Shey

So you have zero prejudice against ANY culture, Shey? - Chris Brogan

yes it is a very complex term given the length of the page alone - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/r... - what i tried to state earlier is that i think it is a constant struggle, no matter the race, and the day when ones "race" is replaced with "human" ubiquitously is still far off but i do think my kids generation is closer than ours - which is a very good sign - mike "glemak" dunn

Chris: Prejudice, Discrimination, and Racism are related but 3 distinctly different things. I have a post coming up that will explain. - Shey

only one race, the human race, get over the shallow differences, please - Gregory Lent

Louis Gray bookmarked a page on delicious

Thinking About the Negatives | chrisbrogan.com

July 16 at 7:52 pm - Link

David Adewumi, AJ Batac and Mike Fruchter liked this

Hutch Carpenter posted a link

Like I said, not very prominent. I'm sorry, I have trouble taking someone seriously who uses a standard blogspot template.

July 10 at 1:48 pm - via Bookmarklet - Link

Dobromir Hadzhiev, Charlie Anzman, Jeremiah Owyang, Kerem Ozkan and 18 other people liked this

Who's keeping track of the dumbest comments of 2008? This one needs to get on the list. - Hutch Carpenter via Bookmarklet

I saw that yesterday and I found it very surprising (the whole conversation, not just the hypocrisy where his own personal blog is very standard template). I'd be interested to see what Cyndy thinks about this guy since she does some writing for the Industry Standard - Robert Seidman

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Excellent riposte in the next comment: "Isn't there a thunderstorm you should be chasing somewhere?" - Andy Murdoch

He uses the same template in his cheese and crackers blog. http://jlgolson.blogspot.com/ - Heidi Jeffers Thibodeau

Now now people, I don't think we should be stereotyping those of us who use standard blogspot templates. :) - leigh himel

Heidi - good find! - Hutch Carpenter

If you use a standard blogger template, maybe you were putting more time into writing great content than making it all pretty and stuff - Rahsheen(isSoAwesome)

@rahsheen you are very wise - leigh himel

Sure, I use that template on a blog... that I haven't updated in 2 years. My point still stands -- he isn't a "prominent" person in tech. He isn't Scoble, he isn't Calacanis. Blacks are underrepresented in tech. I didn't say I WAS prominent -- just that he wasn't. Blogging for AlleyInsider doesn't exactly make you prominent. Neither does writing for Valleywag or Industry Standard. But having 40,000 followers on Twitter? I'd say that gives you prominence. But, you know -- attack away if it makes ya feel good - Jordan Golson

I don't see any problems with using any standard templates. I just was surprised that he used the same one! I don't usually throw stones in my own glass house! - Heidi Jeffers Thibodeau

Who is this Jordan Golson. He is not very prominent. - Elliott Ng

Maybe this is his change to change that? - Rahsheen(isSoAwesome)

Matt Drudge continues to "rule the political world" with the ugliest, lamest Web design of all time. http://blog.washingtonpost.com... - James Joyner

Jordan, prominence is on a sliding scale. Would you agree that Arrington, Calacanis, Kara Swisher et al gave him *more* prominence? I don't think his prominence is at issue here with your post but rather your suggestion that anyone offended by the year old video is "self-righteous". - Robert Seidman

Jordan - there's a good debate there about 'prominent' in the context of the larger conversation. But to define prominence by the use of a certain blogging platform does little to advance that debate. - Hutch Carpenter

Looks like Jordan is no stranger to controversy http://www.techcrunch.com/2008... - Mike Doeff

I never said I was prominent. That's missing the point. My point was that anyone offended enough to threaten a boycott against Verizon or to actively try to torpedo someone else's livelihood because of something they said a year ago is self-righteous. As for a prominence goes, I said that I have trouble taking someone seriously who uses a standard blog template -- just like I would have trouble taking a presidential candidate seriously who showed up to a debate in a track suit. - Jordan Golson

Jordan, sorry that I got your name wrong. I fixed it. - Mike Doeff

Jordan, reasonable people can debate whether the video was offensive. But is it reasonable to assume that just because it wasn't offensive to you and almost a year old that makes someone like Corvida self-righteous for being offended enough to protest against Verizon? - Robert Seidman

That seems the major point of contention. Using a "standard blogger template" takes very little away from whatever point you are trying to make. Whether you agree with that point or not is another question entirely. It's just irrelevant. - Steve Spalding

Robert, I think whether someone is self-righteous or not is a matter of opinion -- and reasonable people can disagree on that too. I think she was. You may not. It's not a judgement on them as a person, just saying that I personally think they're making more of it than is necessary. People are going to be jerks on the Internet. Best to just ignore it. - Jordan Golson

It goes without saying but some of the best speeches I've ever read were never typed. I'd like to believe that it's always about the content and not the container. - Christopher Harley

Been debating how to reply. I saw Jordan's piece when it went live. I hadn't seen the comments until Hutch posted. I disagree with Jordan's premise, but I respect him as a writer and a person. I don't believe for a second he's a racist. I also know Hank's work very well, but also realize that not everyone reads the same blogs. There are people out there who don't know who Arrington is. And I think we all agree that this space is dominated by white men. Period. I saw the "50 most prominent women bloggers"... - Cyndy

... and *I* didn't know who 2/3 of them were. And I do understand that at the foundation of The Video was a truth that could have been applied to any group other than white men. It could have been women, Asians, Hispanics... what I'm not understanding, though, is the misdirected anger. I respect those who protested. I understand those who disagree. But why the anger at the protestors instead of Verizon? - Cyndy

what an ass. - Adrienne Van Houten

Oh. My. God. Jordan. Do your fucking homework. All the way around. Cyndy I don't think anyone called Jordan a racist. I did call him an idiot though. I stand by that. - jeneane is in the house

Can we add the post to the dumbest of 2008 list as well? - Shey

why are people debating anything with someone who says they are a big fan of Don Imus? "appreciating his ability to call out hypocrisy" is one thing, but "a big fan?!" conversation's over as far as I'm concerned. - Marshall Kirkpatrick

lol@Marshall good point - Shey

"People are going to be jerks on the Internet. Best to just ignore it. - Jordan Golson" - jeneane is in the house

Now I have an excuse not to take MYSELF seriously... - Ontario Emperor via fftogo

But OE, YOU were in the screencap on Valleywag of the NEW 250. You are very prominent. ;) - Cyndy

“I think the most important thing is in fact not to distinguish by skin color, gender, eye color, or any other physical characteristic. Om Malik is a well-known blogger. Is he a well-known Indian (guessing) blogger, or is he just a well-known blogger. Mike Arrington is a well-known blogger. Not a well-known WHITE blogger, but just a well-known blogger and entrepreneur. Is Will Smith a well-known actor, or a well-known black actor? Judging by the success of all his movies (he has the $100 million golden touch) I would say he is a well-known actor, regardless of his skin color. The more you focus on any physical or genetic distinction, the more you miss the big picture. America is about equal opportunity. Not just on websites and employer contracts, but that for many from all over the world of whatever background, America levels the playing field. Is it perfectly level? Of course not. Never in history has everyone been born into an equal situation, even in all-white societies, all-red societies, - David Adewumi

http://davidadewumi.com/2008/0... my reaction to the Feldman issue - David Adewumi

Jeremiah Owyang posted a message on Twitter

“Anyone here do Paintball? I just went again, have quite a few war wounds (welts) was good fun.”

July 13 at 6:54 pm - Link

Baard Overgaard Hansen, David Adewumi and Lucretia Pruitt liked this

I just went 2 weeks ago, with all the folks from Wego.com, as part of our company bonding/retreat. Great fun! - Winston Teo

I used to play slot when I was in high school. Need to get back out there - Alex C. Williams

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My last time was in the Arizona desert in 1988. Has it changed much? ;-) - Ken Sheppardson

Played a lot when I was in high school and college. Not so much in Shanghai, though I know there are places where it can be played. - John Biesnecker

Used to play every weekend. Even went to one of those 48-hour scenario games. Expensive sport. Wicked adrenaline rush. Stock class paintball FTW. Go go go! - Hao Chen

@Ken think...30 bps is the average rate of fire now LOL - Hao Chen

Jeez... we had these guns that couldn't hit a 1ft target at more than 20 yards, would jam or misfire every third shot, no protective gear other than safety glasses... out in AZ on what might as well have been a John Ford set. But it was a blast. - Ken Sheppardson

I use to play on the NPPL circuit, talk about welts - Justin Gibbs

Paintball is awesome. Haven't been in a long time, but it's great fun. I suck at it -- very very badly suck. But it's still fun. - Robert Fischer

I used to love paintball!! There's a place down in Colo Spgs where a guy has dugg up acres and acres of different paintball 'arenas' on his property - including giant dirt hills and tunnels. Used to run into a lot of guys from the AF base playing there too :) I miss that place! - Lucretia Pruitt

Oooh! It's still there! You ever make it out here, we'll go here: http://tinyurl.com/69b4tn - Lucretia Pruitt

Mm...Angel A4 fly ::drool:: - Hao Chen

The one tip I can pass along from my single paint ball experience: Don't hide in a tree. (Long story.) - Ken Sheppardson

Robert Scoble posted a message

“How do you know someone is smart? I've been thinking about that this morning and looking back at all the conversations I've had and one common theme is smart people talk to you about ideas, not about celebrities.”

July 13 at 10:32 am - Link

Sonciary Honnoll, John W. Serra, Roy Montero, LPH and 86 other people liked this

Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie would certainly agree! - Tad - just Tad

What about people who share stupid ideas? Like Free Enegery, most conspiracy theories, many political statements, etc etc... - Tad - just Tad

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Robert, I like this and totally agree :) - directeur via NoiseRiver

Tad: even those people are still smarter than people who tell you about what Britney Spears did last night. - Robert Scoble

You could replace "celebrities" in that sentence with "names of people". In other words, it's ideas and concepts that are important, not egos. Even "nobodies" can have egos. Narcissism shuts out the world beyond the self, we can't learn if we are always holding up a mirror, never looking beyond it. - Jason Wehmhoener

My dad once told me that even the dumbest person in the world can teach you something because he probably knows something you don't. - Jason Shultz via twhirl

Smart people listen more than they talk. - Randy Hall

To me the smart people are those that make a well-reasoned argument for and idea and then do two things. 1. Have the guts to put it out there to the world and 2. Have the guts to change their mind if they're wrong (or hold their ground when they know they're right) - Morgan

I think it all depends on the topic you're discussing. I'd say someone is smart if she can engage with you on the discussion and make you think about it from a different angle. - Bruno Pedro

Jason: it's one thing if I tell you "Doug Engelbart had dinner at the Ritz last night." It's a whole nother thing if I tell you "Doug Engelbart told me that xxxx idea is interesting and he's working on making that better." - Robert Scoble

I absolutely agree, Randy. - Jack Carlson

Duncan for example is a smart guy, but still talks about celebrities, so it's possible to do both and still be smart - Dobromir Hadzhiev

Which reminds me I need to talk to you about an 'idea' at blogher. ok. not really...more about which cam to get for the conventions. lol - Erin Kotecki Vest

I agree... This is especially obvious here in LA... although sometimes the celeb mention is the nature of the business -- or at least mention of -- as Calacanis would say -- "webebrities." - Andy Sternberg

Jason: that's true. I have yet to meet someone who is able to communicate (I have a friend with a mentally retarded son who isn't able to communicate, so we'll leave him out of this) who I couldn't learn something from. Randy: exactly. When I fail as an interviewer it isn't because I'm listening, it's probably cause I'm talking. - Robert Scoble

Andy: when you talk to the smartest people in Hollywood they talk to you about ideas. Trends. People's work. They don't talk about "I saw Tom Cruise at dinner last night" or "did you see what they said about Oprah in the tabloids?" - Robert Scoble

Robert: I agree. The point I was trying to make is that we can learn something from almost everybody, even those who we may think know less then us. - Jason Shultz via twhirl

I think one can be smart and still talk about "Weird Al" Yankovic, because he's smart. - MiniMage via NoiseRiver

Dobromir: Duncan's best work is when he talks about ideas. That's why I love Duncan, cause he tells me who has the most interesting ideas, and he's very willing to debate ideas (I've debated a few with him). - Robert Scoble

I think people can be both highly intelligent and pretty stupid at the same time. Robert Anton Wilson said it better than I can, "When dogma enters the brain, all intellectual activity ceases." And that doesn't apply to just religious dogma - any kind including political, scientific, cultural, etc. - Tad - just Tad

Robert Anton Wilson++ - Jason Wehmhoener

this is a cool thread! we need a lightbulb "intelligence meter" on FF - users vote on how smart you are based on your posts... bulb gets brighter with more votes! - Susan Beebe

Susan: fantastic idea! Now that's smart. - Bruno Pedro

I have a theory that being smart is simply a matter of the attention that you give somthing. Granted, Nobel Prize winning physicists dont grow on trees. - Roberto Bonini

smart to me is someone who knows what they know but more importantly knows what they don't know - too many intelligent people who never make it to smart because they are too busy broadcasting what they know - Marco (aureliusmaximus)

That would give credence to the old saying “if smarts was electricity that boy couldn’t light up a 10 watt bulb. “ - Earl E Morningwood

Social media is about inclusion, don't alienate too much with your labels and boxes - Michael W. May via twhirl

I've found smart people treat being smart like fight club: rule number one is you don't talk about being smart. Rule number two is you don't talk about being smart. To Jason Wehmhoener's point, smart people don't spend their time making a point of how they're wrapped up in smart things or "look what a good person I am for talking to x or doing y." - Mark Trapp

Smart people usually start talking by conditioning everything - and the first condition is for them to say they are not an expert ... - LPH

How do you know that someone isn't smart? - Michael J Cohen via twhirl

Smart folks understand questions are important, they are not afraid to admit ignorance and appreciate that learning is a process not an event. - Dave Martin

LPH: hmmm, the ultra smart like Douglas Engelbart (who really is the true visionary I've spent time with) just paint pictures in your mind of how the world will be someday. He never said he was expert at something, just talked about how this new world would work. I could listen to that guy for hours. At 82 he's easily the smartest person I've met. - Robert Scoble

Michael: that's an interesting question. The biggest way I've found? The only skill not smart people have is in ripping down other people's ideas, or, worse, trying to rip down other people altogether. - Robert Scoble

Robert, put it another way: smart people talk about the world that could be, not that the world that is? - Mark Dykeman

"No one who cannot rejoice in the discovery of his own mistakes deserves to be called a scholar." - Donald Foster - Roberto Bonini

Smart people simply can get the job done faster and pay attention to the hidden details that others would miss. I still don't know how to best test for it, though. - Ben Parr

smart people are visionaries, humble and most likely pious too. Take a look at the peoples who are deemed as being smart. These are some of the comman attributes of these type of people.! - Peter Dawson

I think it can go both ways-Charlie Rose talks about both-ideas are great, but what is with the people behind those ideas - that's very interesting! I also think its a natural human instinct to talk about others - it depends on the context. "I saw Tom Cruise last night" is the lowest common denominator. Inquiring about the dynamic of Shell's latest barrage of public vitriol and the work ethic of others in the Valley are spurned from natural human curiosity that we all share, whether we ask it or not. - james svenson

+1 for Paul - Steven Hodson

Robert: ”Smart” here as different from ”Intelligent” – I have one story that will help us out here to identify a smart person. I had a friend at high school that knew he was not that intelligent, but he was smart: - he used to research old exams to see what the previous year tests would possibly cover on the upcoming exams. He used to collect all class notes from the top “dedicated” colleagues that were willing to share the notes. He would then select the top 10 of about 20 topics that could come up on the exams. This guy passed always and with the minimum needed to advance. What he did in my opinion was that he OPTIMIZED all his capacity to achieve one goal and that as it. He knew his weakness so well that he found ways to overcome them. He went from high school to university and to MBA: he travel to Europe for about a year and returned to get the job he wanted. - Joao

@susanbeebe: I dunno, I'd feel pretty hurt when the system took away my lightbult entirely. - MiniMage via NoiseRiver

@regila: all this for a "bob"? ;-) - directeur via NoiseRiver

I remember my dad once telling me what Eleanor Roosevelt said... "Great minds discuss ideas. Average minds discuss events. Small minds discuss people." - Brian Sloane

the first sign that someone is really smart... they will tell you they're not but they will show you they are. - Scott Lockhart

I'm not saying I'm particularly smart, but I truly find celeb gossip one of the most uninteresting things I can think of. - Ian May

I think that smart people are the people that get things done. Imagine two people that have never heard or met each other and both of them come up with the exact same brilliant idea. One person brings the brilliant idea to a reality, while the other person doesn't. Which person is smarter? - possible248 via NoiseRiver

Plug for the "highfalutin" room: http://friendfeed.com/rooms/hi... if you want to talk about things with depth - Ňicķ

maybe true...but everyone is smart in their own right. you might be a social media whiz but not know anything about putting in kitchen cabinets. I'm a firm believer that everyone has their sweet spots in terms of knowledge. The really smart ones, just take the time to expand that sweet spot so it's more than just a spot and more like an area. - Don Martelli

@donmartelli: Well said... - Michael Narciso via NoiseRiver

I think a smart person can talk about both. That way he/she can converse with all people and not make anyone feel less smart than them. - Adrienne Van Houten

Adrienne: I agree with that. But smart people never start out that way. - Robert Scoble

What an awful generalization. That's how I know when someone is smart. When he doesn't make an implied generalization like "stupid people talk about celebrities". - Jay Cruz

smart people think through questions and give full answers. who talks to you about angelina jolie? i agree anybody asking scoble about that is "not as intelligent," but probably nice people...unless they have no idea who you are....maybe they ask you these questions: "is veronica belmont really cute in person? or is kevin rose really a ladies man?" however, smart people are not always smart in all aspects of their lives... - Pokai

"Smart people talk about ideas. Common people talk about things. Mediocre people talk about people." -Jules Romains - Joe Lencioni

@Jay: You spelled know wrong. - Daniel Smith

For the record, that was a joke ;) - Daniel Smith

Thank's @Daniel Smith - Jay Cruz

You know when someone is smart when they know what they're talking about and they have a good understanding. "Smart" people grasp things better and/or have ideas. - Kevin Porter via twhirl

Smart is not about opinions ("Stupid ideas"). You can be smart and have different beliefs. I'm wondering if they are "smart" conversations or just engaging conversations. I'm much more interested in sharing ideas than sports scores, gossip, or transitory circumstances. - Barb Gonzalez

Ugh. Most of these comments seem to prescribe behavior to those who are "smart" - one of the only commonalities I've ever seen of truly smart people is that they make their own rules. To say they only talk about X not Y or they listen more than they talk or any other behavioral observation misses the mark with me. Smart people don't subscribe to other peoples' ideas of what they should be. - Lucretia Pruitt

Smart people realize how little they know but have no need to try and convince others that they know a lot. - Dossy Shiobara

Scoble, no one is "smart" or an "expert." It doesn't really matter at all. The only thing that matter