tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27554065.post2844495618342110750..comments2024-03-27T17:52:09.889-04:00Comments on You Might Notice a Trend: In The Year 2021, Will a Just and Shining Future Finally Be WonPaul Whttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13092023794397583036noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27554065.post-5763694024597399762021-01-01T17:28:38.760-05:002021-01-01T17:28:38.760-05:00I found this article in Paul Krugman's Twitter... I found this article in Paul Krugman's Twitter feed last night, and it was just the kind of boost my mental state needed going into the new year:<br /><br />https://noahpinion.substack.com/p/techno-optimism-for-the-2020s<br /><br /> Apparently the thinking is that when the vaccines restore the confidence back to the American people enough to go out and do things together again, the economy will come roaring back, as it wasn't in such bad shape to begin with (as opposed to, say, 2008) and thus won't be as dependent on the behavior of say, congressional Republicans as it was back then. They seem to believe that this will unleash movement in technology which has been constrained by the pandemic and the uncertainty of the Fergus administration.<br /> Then there's the direction technology is taking us. They posit that software isn't really the forefront any more, and things like biotech and energy are poised to make real improvements in our daily lives.<br /> They quote the execrable Peter Thiel, while taking note of his execrability, as having said "We were promised flying cars and instead we got 140 characters." to point out the disappointment in the tech sector that was the 2010s, and then wonder whether real advances that aren't sold at the app store will restore some of our confidence that we can still actually do big things, and thus remove some of the built-in stagnation of mind and imagination that has been sitting over us like a dark cloud for a long time.<br /> And this morning I woke up and discovered a new round of apocalypse money in my bank account, so perhaps that is a good omen for the new year?<br /><br /> -Doug in Sugar Pine <br />dinthebeasthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12941071534250216503noreply@blogger.com