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Chicago is a land of superstition when it comes to sports teams. The goat
curse of the Cubs, the Black Sox scandal, the Bears quarterback rotation (or
rotator cuff during the McMahon reign ala Charles Martin) all add up to trouble
and soap operas. Can the White Sox win quietly and calmly? Just win the
next 11 games in a row, no soap operas, no tantrums, no shenanigans. That’s
the way I’d like to see it done. So the new slogan for the Sox could be “Walk
softly and carry a big bat”.
Posted October 4, 2005 ~ Not a bad way to begin - updated 10/5/05.
How May Roads?
Bob Dylan wrote and sang the question for everyone in the early '60's that was
probably the start of many questions that led us out of the tranquilizing 1950's.
Once again despite the Big Business of the music business, an artistic and
political message got through. The messages weren't coming in as fast then
as they are now. We're overloaded right now and it's difficult to ease off. Too
many distribution methods are available. But the clarity of the question is still
there, "how many roads?" Too many, we're still pretty screwed up. I caught a
glimpse of the Dylan special on PBS last night, hopefully I'll catch more of it
over the coming weeks. No other songwriter defined the 60's culture more than
Bobbie, and we've still got the words and music to keep things defined in an
over-saturated world of dribble.
Posted September 27, 2005
Troubles Close to Home
With the recent Katrina catastrophe more focus has been put on the poor. As
Jesus said, “There will always be poor,” but will there will always be so many of
them? Well, closer to my home than New Orleans and Southern Mississippi is
Hesed House, a home to five (or more) charities. It’s the former city of Aurora
(Illinois) incinerator plant that was converted to a soup kitchen, pantry and
homeless shelter. Last Saturday was the Hike for Hesed House and I was
thrilled to participate. I’ve helped out a few nights about a month ago with the
PADS program that provides overnight shelter to families and men and
women. One night I worked there, they took in 182 people – this was Summer,
no rain, no cold, so come Winter I think that they’ll be overloaded. They had a
good turnout for the walk and we’re able to raise $28,000 dollars. I’m not sure
how much of that can cover operating expenses and the like, but every bit
helps. If you’d like to read more about Hesed House, a tremendous program
that helps transition adults from homelessness, please visit the Hesed House
Website. And help out in your area, because there will always be poor and
they’re all around us.
Posted September 22, 2005
What the Blawg Is This All About Humble Harry?
Humility, yes, this has been my year of humility, however, I think I’m only in my
infant season. Is it because I’m getting older and realize what goofs we men
generally are (me included of course)? I think even my teenage daughters
have a few things on me – outside of the usual astute female manipulation
techniques. Oh Lord it’s hard to be humble when you’re a real schmuck. So,
what do I do? I’m going to try to head for humble and run from righteousness.
How do I do that? Lay low baby. “Well, you’re blawging about all this aren’t
you?” you ask. Egos are crippling when humility comes flying around the
corner. According to the “Tao of Leadership” by John Heider, “Any form of
egocentricity, of selfishness, obscures your deeper self and blinds you to how
things happen.” Humility - bring it on baby!
Posted September 13, 2005
Katrina Is Just the Tip of the Iceberg
Katrina is helping to expose an underclass in this country that's in terrible
shape. From many standpoints, i.e., poverty, lack of education, lack of
leadership. Sending the national guard to protect material goods while
people need rescuing is an example of how inadequate our response is to
these problems. Why go to Iraq when we have our own permanent ground
zeros at home, poor neighborhoods riddled with drugs and violence and even
poorer rural areas. According to the latest census reports the poverty level is
going up in this country. Unlike the looters that the media tends to embrace
for a good story, most of these folks are good people who need help.
Building casinos in the poorer communities is not a long term answer to boost
a local economy. Throwing welfare dollars at folks in lieu of providing
transitional programs is not an answer for a child's future. Enabling transition
to encourage work, healthy eating, and a place to live in a safe and drug free
area is the key to helping these folks contribute to society.
Don't just donate to the Red Cross, it's time for some creative action - and just
some action period. Volunteer at your local soup kitchen or homeless shelter
and see what's going on out there. Unlike the looters that the media tends to
embrace for a good story, most of these folks are good people who need help.
Posted September 2, 2005
Inventing and Manufacturing from Your Own PC
OK, so this is one of the coolest things I've seen in a while. You can now
design a product on your desktop and email the plans to a manufacturer to
produce your product. Read the article entitled "The Dream Factory" from
Wired Magazine. The author creates a brand new guitar on his PC that's
manufactured and ready to plug in and play in a couple of days.
Posted September 1, 2005
Content Is Still King, But Not for Long?
Content is still King, but customer experience is the Jack of Hearts and closing
in on content. This is according to Shahid Khan, a Managing Director with
BearingPoint, who joined the Entertainment Technology Alliance Expo panel,
"Digital Media: Can Content Remain King," June 30, at the Javits Convention
Center in New York City. “But who owns the content?” is my question. These
days with RSS and other aggregators, does anyone truly know the source of the
content? I personally subscribe to Yahoo News that pulls from about 12
different media sources including newsfeeds from AP and Reuters. The
content sources are getting blurred in the digital world.
But is the content that different? That question comes to mind when I read
and compare the two headline blasts from the big Chicago papers – The Sun-
Times and Tribune. On the surface the content is almost identical, only the
editorial pages differ and once in a while a special feature may define the
difference. This isn’t to say that there aren’t editorial nuances between the two
megapapers.
The next item that Khan points to is the customer experience. OK, isn’t it up
to the portal I use? If it’s Yahoo, or Google, or the ugh, Drudge Report? What
about the new digital music services? Investigate the parents, isn’t Launch
feeding both Yahoo and MusicMatch? These sites and applications are
almost identical just priced a little differently.
I believe filtering will be the decisive factor for digital content – who serves my
tastes better? I like independent musical artists more than pop. My political
leanings are a bit left of W’s, but I always want to know how the other side
lives. My distaste for local ‘killing’ news limits my interest in the beat
coverage. I’m interested in innovation and invention. So how do I get there?
How do I get to see King Content everyday and not be bombarded? How long
can everything remain free on the Web? Can advertising revenues keep
content afloat? Otherwise free is killing the King.
Localizing may turn the World Wide Web back into the small town. Put in your
zip code, your tastes, your wishes and how you want it delivered (Web, Palm,
Blackberry, mobile phone) and the new product will unfold. “Where’s your King
now Moses?” “Uh back here buddy. You did want to actually read something
didn’t you?” Remember, the King is still alive, right Elvis?
Posted July 5, 2005
Consumer as Competition - Say Hello to Generation C
Yes, it's true. The consumer is now your competition, especially if you're in
the content business. Generation C ('C' Stands for content) is responsible for
generating billions of bytes of content each day. Digital photos, text in the
form of consumer reviews, blogs, posted emails and personal Websites now
compete with the NY Times, the Chicago Tribune and other established
publications. Folks Google for information all day and find the most bizarre
stuff. Streams of consciousness that can be far more interesting then the latest
dry interpretation of the news. Hell, I'm guilty of being a member of
Generation C, although I've been spewing content for good or bad long before
the Internet. You can now download my music (Empty Can Band) from
virtually every music service out there. Mass distribution of consumer content
is here. And how 'bout those TwinSumers that review everything for you as
sociological clones of your latest tastes in music, books, etc.. You can read all
about Generation C and TwinSumers at TrendsWatching.com.
Posted June 15, 2005
Understanding the Organic Nature of Business
Years ago (not that many) companies established products and services and
once in a while would dress them up a little differently, but for the most part, if
it was a good product, would just collect bags of money and do little else.
The days of the static business are over. Welcome to the organic era of
business. You must evolve and react. You must be like the Salamander who
grows another tail when it gets cut-off, or grow a different body part instead.
Why? Because the other business down the street is organic and has plenty of
food to grow. Someone told me the other day (and this is a top level
professional at one of leading media companies) that there weren't any more
new ideas. OK Bubba, I hate to break it to you, but some other guy said the
same thing back in the late 1800's before airplanes and television sets. The sky
is still the limit as there are more patents filed each second than there are
births (all right, I'm exaggerating a little). Let's not get bogged down with
protecting the business, overrun by the technology, disturbed by the
competition - clear your head and come up with the next great idea. It's in the
stratosphere, you just need to grasp it.
Posted June 9, 2005
Hyde Park and Kenwood in Chicago
I had the pleasure of attending the 57th Street Art Fair in Chicago on
Saturday. Aside from the high quality of artists - this is a juried show that
usually only introduces few new artists each year - the neighborhood is
beautiful. In fact the cottonwoods are so mature in that neighborhood that it
seemed to be snowing most of the time. We were very fortunate that my good
friend Kevin showed us around Hyde Park and Kenwood and pointed out the
various mansions and who they belonged to, i.e. the Swifts, the Goodmans, the
Brunswicks. I had just finished reading Devil in the White City by Eric Larsen
so I had a renewed interest in the history of Chicago's Southside. I highly
recommend a trip down to Hyde Park and Kenwood and a tour of the Lakefront
where the Columbian Exposition was held in 1893. I was overcome with pride
and a great sense of accomplishment on behalf of Chicago. On Sunday my
mother informed me that my grandmother and her sisters had worked in those
mansions as housekeepers in the 1920's. I also recently learned that my
grandfather was a laborer on the Field Building (135 S. LaSalle St.), the last
building completed before the Great Depression. It's a beautiful art deco
building in Chicago that thankfully wasn't destroyed by a recent fire.
Sadly, we went by the mansion of an old friend of mine which was boarded up
and in poor condition. My friend's mother had put the house up for sale after
his father died. He was a family doctor in Hyde Park for many years and three
of his sons have followed in the same career path. The family is Filipino and a
very loving and caring family. My friends and I spent a lot of hours roaming the
house during our high school years. If I had the money, I would buy the old
place and restore it. It had a chapel in the house and they held Catholic mass
there a few times a year.
Also in bad condition was Muddy Waters' Chicago home near 47th, but the
Sutherland Hotel at 47th and Drexel Boulevard which was home to Louie
Armstrong, Billy Holiday, Miles, Rollins, Silver, Ornette, Stitt, Ammons,
Hubbard, Trane, Maynard Ferguson, Monk, Wayne Shorter, Shirley Scott and
many other jazz greats was restored about eight years ago. Rumors abound
that they're going to reopen the lounge for live jazz.
Great memories and history on Chicago's Southside.
(Links are to Encyclopedia Chicago of the Chicago Historical Society,
Northwestern University and the Newberry Library. The Field Building links to
the City of Chicago's landmark Website. The Sutherland Hotel article links to a
story by jazz musician Charles Walton, the Filipino link is to an article by Jay
Mulberry , both articles are reprinted from the Hyde Park Herald.)
Posted June 6, 2005
You Say It's Your Birthday
Yes, today is my birthday and I'm 46 years young. Funny, but I don't feel much
older than 21 which is quite a blessing. I imagine my maturity level is a little
higher than that. I seem to make more adult decisions these days. I don't go
out with boys much anymore and I'm pretty much thinking about the homefront
during the waking hours. Too old to rock 'n roll you ask? Never. Look at the
geriatric Rolling Stones and even the members of U2 are in their 40's now. I'm
at least past my midlife crisis for the most part. The key to staying young is
thinking young and challenging yourself every day. Since it's summer I'm now
challenging myself not to eat fried foods. However, today I'll take a break and
enjoy Billy Goat for a birthday lunch - no beers though as those days are over
for everyone in the business world. In the old days folks smoked, drank and
chased each other around the office - I kind of miss it but I'm adult enough to
know it led to a lot of trouble. Well, happy birthday to me.
Posted June 2, 2005
Accelerated Consuming, Mainstream Consuming
We all know we live in a disposable society in the U.S., but did you also know
that we're consuming much faster? Yes, indeed. We buy things quickly now
before they disappear from the shelves. "'Shrek 2' sold 33.7 million DVD and
VHS copies world-wide in its first eight weeks -- but only 1.3 million in the first
quarter of 2005." according to today's Wall Street Journal. The reason for this
is that once the demand slowed down for "Shrek 2", the stores took most of the
copies off the racks and sent them back to DreamWorks. I've noticed that now
I'm forced to impulse buy in concern that a particular item won't be on the
shelf next week. It use to be a volunteer thing - the impulse buying that is.
With all of the bar coding and consumer monitoring, you are now going to be
forced to buy only mainstream items in the major stores. The specialty stores
are going out of business due to the Walmarts and Targets of the world. Even
the health food stores are a chain now. The record stores are going away too,
so you'll only be able to buy the latest American Idol CD at the Walmart. Every
city and store will look the same - welcome to the generic society.
So to help stop this mainstream shopping world, shop at a local, family-owned
business this week and tell 'em Dave sent ya.
Posted May 31, 2005
Higher Education - At What Cost?
Why has the cost of higher education gone up so much? I have a friend who's
trying to finish a bachelor's degree and is running into too many barriers. She's
now in discussion with her third institution to see who will accept a percentage
of her 93 hours from 20 years ago. She's even having difficulty with the same
institution she attended 20 years ago. This is an established artist who's trying
to complete a BFA to have some credentials and possibly enter graduate
school. These schools would be lucky to have her. However, most of the
administrative office people and the advisors she's dealing with are clueless as
to how to deal with an adult student returning to school. Many don't return
phone calls. Their main goal is to get you to start over again because it
doesn't require thought or effort. The cost of a college education has grown
way past the rate of inflation. Why? Professor Richard Vedder covers the topic
in his book "Going Broke by Degree". I don't necessarily agree with his
solutions, but I agree we have a nationwide problem regarding affordable
college education for the middle class.
Posted May 26, 2005
Podcasts - the Newest Media
The Wall Street Journal reported today that NBC has announced that it will be
delivering Podcasts (iPods) for some of it's MSNBC shows including "White
House Beat," "Techwatch" and "Hardball With Chris Matthews." I knew it was
only a matter of time before we'd be having the talk stuff on the music media.
I'm thrilled as now it will be even easier to sleep on the train while listening to
talking heads - not to be confused with the 80's rock group. Pretty soon you'll
be watching soaps on your wrist watch via Tivo.
Posted May 25, 2005
Zen and the Art of Spider Solitaire
I'm not a Spider Solitaire addict and I only play the game once in a while -
usually after working late and my brain is fried. I find this game to be a good
reflection on life. Why, you ask? Well it's a Zen thing. The "principal" is the
cards and their random placement and then it's up to you to open your mind to
the possibilities of where they can fit. As I mentioned, when I play I'm usually
tired, so I'll sometimes use the hints if I hit a wall in the game. Then I'll follow
the hint and a whole new realm of solutions open up for me. As far as the real
life comparison, I would relate the hints to the mentors who assist you on your
life journey and your intuition that's constantly telling you to do things.
Posted May 24, 2005
Skunk is a Defense Contractor
Yes, it's true, Skunk, Steely Dan and Doobey Bros bassist is now a consultant for
the Department of Defense. What's the world coming to? Maybe it's in good
hands as a results because Skunk is creative and so are terrorists. Here's the
link to Wall Street Journal article.
Posted May 24, 2005
Why do we crash and burn?
I have some strange ideas I want to share with you. Yes indeed. Why in the
world are we still driving around in automobiles and crashing into each other
in the 21st Century? We're using up fossil fuel that makes us almost totally
dependent on the Middle East and South America. We're relying on our
fellow human beings to pay attention all of the time while they're driving. Just
about anyone senior to a teenager can drive a car. OK, so are we out of minds
or what?
Here's where it gets weird: Can't we come up with some tractor beams that can
regulate cars and keep them from crashing into one another? Here's some
interesting research on that angle at Navteq where they're working on some
cool stuff.
Posted May 23, 2005
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