Category: society

  • It’s (mostly) okay that everyone is everywhere all at once

    It’s (mostly) okay that everyone is everywhere all at once

    We’re increasingly fractured across multiple online services… and — for the most part — that’s actually okay!

  • So THIS is a *tiny* glimpse into being a minority…

    So THIS is a *tiny* glimpse into being a minority…

    She walked into the class and noticed right away that no other students looked like her. All men.  Many seemed to already be acquainted, or in a few cases, fast friends.  Clearly they’d been through similar classes before. And halfway through the class, her fears were realized; everyone was more experienced than she was.  More skilled.…

  • Relishing those juicy leaked memos?  Bad idea.

    Relishing those juicy leaked memos? Bad idea.

    The leaking of corporate memos might seem either innocuous, societally useful, or both. In reality, it is typically neither.

  • Thrice-weekly postal deliveries: Pound wise or pound foolish?

    I was reading a fascinating article in The Economist about the U.S. Postal Service, and a few things came to mind: Hmm, the comments are delightfully civil and informative! Can I count on one hand the number of postal items I receive quarterly — perhaps even yearly — that I actually want?  Why, yes, I…

  • How employment at prominent tech firms stymies open communication

    Let me first get the disclaimers out of the way: I have worked at Google since March, 2006. I do not speak on behalf of Google in this blog, nor do my views necessarily dovetail with those of other Googlers; I’ve historically held more of a public-facing role than most Googlers, so I have heightened…

  • Fashion vs. fit

    A friend of mine recently posted a note (sorry, not publicly accessible) asking people what they thought about fashion.  She’s quite the fashionista… and sadly, I am not.  Here, for your reading pleasure, is the comment I wrote in response to her note: *  *  * Sorry, but I pretty much think negatively of “fashion.”…

  • Where is the artistic passion? Thoughts on passion in society

    On my blog post yesterday, my friend Righini had commented in part: […] i notice how much love you put in everything you do from writings to music, and i’m amazed and my heart feels warmed! What’s your secret root? Where do you take all this strength? I started to write a really, really long…

  • Games, sex, funerals just taking too long nowadays

    This is an oldie-but-goodie and previously unpublished AdamRant that I drafted, oh, about five years ago.  Neither the trends described nor my indignant stances on the matter seem to have changed all that much, though 🙂 *  *  * […] “A lot of people are strapped for time, and they don’t want to pull out…

  • Photos and the physical, nostalgia, and the why

    I’m getting ready to move. Hmm, that sounded more philosophical / metaphysical than I may have intended. I’m getting ready to move bodies to a new apartment.  Not exactly sure when or where, but already I’m inventory’ing my things, realizing just how little I own (no furniture aside from a bed, dresser, desk, and some…

  • Fall from grace – inevitable?

    We create, we destroy.  We build up, we tear town. People, companies, and relationships amongst them all. Perhaps on a small and personal scale, it may be possible to maintain strength and joy.  I believe it is.  But can this work on a bigger, louder canvas?  I am not so sure. How many greats have…