Four Voices IV: Fucked

video for “Image of God”

Image of God

Dad’s grave erupted from fiber
glass drops and the looming
shadows of a wooden shell.

The trawler’s nets caught
nightmares, and the missing
green paper tore at pride

not once before infected.
But the poison of Wall’s
greed trapped his pepper

white and gray beard,
as denim tuxes hung
like undertaker wraps,

sackcloth, and the black
robes that haunt cracks
in leather hands. Teeth

went first as his wide
god-man shoulders
haunted gray windows

and even grayer doors.
The brown rot ate
and chewed upon cheeks.

During Jeopardy, Dad sat
hunched, sipping Campells
cream of chicken in low

wet rasps as warmth
laced the wounds seeping
toxins into failing blood.

The mind had no time
to crumble. He climbed
into the white Chevy

and drove off Milledge
bend to find a place
to dream

of new wood molds
and the sharp sweet

sting of resins lurking
hiding

tearing apart the silk
of lungs.

Why Apple Will Lose the Innovation War…AGAIN!!

Okay, a lot of talk has been fermenting about Apple’s recent aggressive moves to shape the developing web market. To be fair, Steve Jobs has been behind many grand devices, and his war to take control of web and communication innovation seems to be going very well. Apple has locked horns with web Titan Google by infringing upon their ad domain. Apple alsolooks to potentially banish one of the web’s most important gate keeper’s Adobe.

By all means, king Steve looks to truly take control and finally reclaim the throne usurped by Microsoft so many years ago. At least according to many bloggers and web publicaitons.

I say not a chance in Hell. Here’s why.

Take a quick look at this post I ran into on Google Buzz a while ago. Its from Zdnet and criticizes Jobs for his lack of corporate manners.

http://blogs.zdnet.com/Apple/?p=6697

There is a lot more going on here than a lack of manners. This article outlines a potentially deadly flaw in Apple’s strategy: one that could banish apple to the fringe of tech and web development once again.

To put it simply, Apple needs to stop making such powerful enemies. Jobs has alienated so many companies in quick succession that his ambition and hubris is obvious. To the masses, this appears to be a demonstration of power, illustrating Apple’s unbeatable strategy.

What I see is different. By alienating Google AND Adobe at the same time, Jobs has potentially created a close relationship between the two. I am also willing to bet that Apple is not finished giving the finger to well established internet forces as well.

Alone Adobe would likely wither away, a company loathed by many savy web lurkers. But Jobs has not simply thrown them out by their loan some. Google lurks in the shadows, and I don’t care what anyone says, Google is one hell of a threat.

Jobs may not want to work with adobe and tarnish his beautifully closed products, but Google probably does. If anyone could help solve adobe’s woes and convert them into a leaner, more affective force, Google can, and likely will.

I am no futurist, and I don’t claim to be. But I know Jobs is sowing some ugly alliances against him here. Google and Adobe could potentially rescue the open source platform so treasured by writers like Zittrain and Lessig. The words of Machiavelli have never rang clearer.

Its better to be feared than loved, but far worse to be hated. Apple is garnering a lot of hate right now, and it is only a matter of time before it rises against them.

Over Coffee: For My Wife On Her Birthday

I ask her a question so dumb
That I immediately laugh to myself:

“What do you dream about?”
She answers with a light laugh,

A smile bright as all spring’s
Proud Azaelas: “To work

With flowers.” A simple
Dream maybe, but with

Words light and wet
As morning dew on pink

Petals, she reminds me
Once again of why I fell

So Hard for her. I kiss
Her lips and hold her

Close to my heart.
All black earth’s gems

darken at the fleeting
Light’s rays and colors

Of her dreams shop.
I could live there with her.

Ning and Vultures

My hopes that Google would acquire Ning and reform it into one of their own awesome services has been a bit dashed. I should have seen this coming, but it is a wonder to know just how quickly Ning’s body will be consumed should the paywall launch.

I have already been approached by several Ning substitutes on twitter, including @edmodo and @mixxt.  I have not tried any of these platforms yet and they both look a bit fishy.

Techcrunch may come to the rescue once again with the following story.

http://techcrunch.com/2010/04/16/grou-ps-and-grouply-welcome-ning-refugees/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Techcrunch+%28TechCrunch%29

That’s a pretty good list of potential Ning stand ins, but like the article said, they may not be able to handle the traffic a full fledged Ning exodus. Lets hope one of the big dogs catches on to the potentially profitability of this service and offers something at least comparable.

A Company to Watch: Prosper Could Start a New War on Banking Industry

I have written quite a bit on the potential of social networking and Web 2.0 technology to shake up the banking industry. Now it looks like Prosper, a peer to peer lending company, has jumped a few regulatory hurdles and secured another round of capital.

As usual, here is the venerable Techcrunch article, reporting the story with emotionless journalistic gusto.

http://techcrunch.com/2010/04/16/prosper-raises-14-7-million-for-peer-to-peer-lending-market/

This is exactly the kind of technological/financial development I have been hoping for, and Prosper is only one member of a growing group of peer to peer lending networks.

It may not seem like much now, and the business model for a community like this will easily be intimidated by the recent collapse of Ning.

http://pushaside.wordpress.com/2010/04/15/in-defense-of-ning/

The secured investment is encouraging to be sure, but for these networks to become a real threat to the established banking titans it will require the efforts of bloggers and promoters, willing to put their time and money behind a radical new financial model.

I am planning to create a list of innovative financial start ups with the potential to create more real capitalism and competition in a rotten banking market. Check in as I expand and grow this list. I will watch Prosper, and the other young companies closely.

What do these companies need to do in order to become financially solvent? How can they change our current financial world?

Of course, here is the link to Prosper.

http://www.prosper.com/

In Defense of Ning

Techcrunch released an article today showcasing the next steps for Ning as a company. Needlessto say, the news is bad. Ning is laying off employees and moving to a pay model, shutting down its free services. For more here is the article by Jason Kincaid.

http://techcrunch.com/2010/04/15/nings-bubble-bursts-no-more-free-networks-cuts-40-of-staff/

Ning has become an amazing resource for me as an educator. The ability to create a social network designed around my composition class has spoiled me quite a bit. I honestly think I would pay to use the service; it is that convenient.

All things considered though, Ning as a company would grow in remarkable ways if it stayed free and marketed itself more as an educational tool. Hell it should take a page from the Google play book and approach educational institutions directly and market itself from there. Many critics have attacked Ning’s business model based on its free nature, but I will happily say that the site has been a dream for me and my fellow instructors at Georgia Southern.

Mr. Rosenthal, you do not have to take this drastic a step because a while untapped market lays at your finger tips. You just haven’t noticed it. I will try to secure grant money to continue using your site, but if you move behind a pay wall, I will be much more inclined to try and make Google groups and Orkut supplement your past services. I really don’t want to blow up my gmail inbox like that, but I don’t make enough money to justify the subscription.

My university does, and has already paid Google handsomely for customized apps. Hell, if you don’t jump on this, Google will probably just buy your company and make the money you were too stupid to earn yourself.

Your company is quite good, but this move will potentially kill everything you have worked for. It is no skin off of my back either, cause someone like Google will just come along and offer something similar (if not better). Do the smart thing and explore the market you are most suited for.

Gout

Bark into your gold
mike and swell like

infection, filled
with rot and pride:

stagnant, green
with blood’s long

absence. But carry

on dead campaigns.
Salute the old rust

and flaked cores
of hollow country,

mourned by Wasps
that sting and kill

as life abandons
their hopes and fear.

The founding fathers
crumbled to dust

hundreds of years
ago. No one told

you did they?
So throw black-

red roses on graves
unmourned, as blood

leaves cake the earth
around swollen feet.

The gout has begun
its advance. Soon

your words will soften,
and the aphid horde

will wander aimlessly,
lost in a despair

so full and deep
their teeth will tear

at all who cross them.
Your dittoheads will

EaT eAch otHer.

Cyber Brain

Cyber Brain

Grey matter could beep
one day.

I fucking swear, we’ll
store data

in the folds of blood
and flesh

brains for others to pick
apart

and crack-snap like
fortune

cookies. You want
to live

that way? Immortal,
cold,

digital? Just keep
Googling.