We, the enormous and growing collective of virtual community-forming individuals, have been named Time Magazine's Person of the Year for 2006, and this is how it's being reported by Kazinform, Kazakhstan:
The magazine said naming a collectivity rather than an individual reflected the way the internet was shifting the balance of power within the media through blogs, videos and social networks.
Time cited websites such as YouTube, Facebook, MySpace and Wikipedia, which allow users to interact with the web, by uploading and publishing their own comments, videos, pictures and links.
"It's about the many wresting power from the few and helping one another for nothing and how that will not only change the world, but also change the way the world changes," Time magazine's Lev Grossman writes.
Time praised the tool that made such broad collaboration possible - the web.
"It's a tool for bringing together the small contributions of millions of people and making them matter," Mr Grossman said.
Congratulations to Us for being a part of the Information Revolution, the first virtual and first global transformation, taking place without the traditional boundaries of age and culture and geography, in which community is based on access to technology, common ideas, and a commitment thereto. They got it right.
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In this morning's Raleigh News & Observer there is a stark article that outlines with greater detail than has previously been reported, the events that took place in Wilmington, NC on December 1st, which led to the death of Cape Fear Community College student and Durham native, Peyton Strickland. I found this article searching with Google, after being unable to find anything about the ongoing investigation in today's Wilmington's StarNewsOnline. We, the people, elect and hire our network of law enforcement to protect us, all of us, even when we're suspected of commiting a crime. Without providing them adequate compensation for their dagnerous work, it is still with great trust that we train them and arm them to keep us safe. When that fails, as so tragically happened here, the truth needs telling, and the Raleigh paper got it right.
What happens next remains unclear, as New Hanover County DA, Ben David, and his staff continue to evaluate the events and determine whether or not to seek an indictment against Christopher Long, the Sheriff's Deputy who fired at the unarmed student through the door of his rented home, killing him. It rests with them to restore the process to which all involved in this are due. It is my hope and prayer that Ben David's office gets it right.
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While the holidays, for which I am characteristically unprepared, loom delightfully before us, my little family has been engaging in what we call "Winter Conditioning" (others refer to it as "basketball season"). After starting their season with a short string of losses, The Youngest's basketball team will head into the holidays with two wins this weekend. The Youngest had a great game last night, including five instances of taking flight out of bounds. The first was under our opponents' basket, in which he heaved the ball backwards over his head hard to his point guard who flashed across the court in an equally amazing act of athletecism, to complete the turnover. The next three were saves, in which, while flying out of bounds backwards, he fired perfect passes directly to teammates. He completed the show with an Iverson-like hook layup from behind the backboard, again while leaving the court of play in the air. He sure has great ups for a big-boned baseball-playing white boy. Last night, while everyone else we knew was at one holiday party or another, we were at a high school basketball game, watching The Youngest and his little team, getting it right.
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It won't feel like the holidays until the other two boys are home. No one likes being poor at Christmas, and everything is relative, but for me it provides a wonderful opportunity for the counting of blessings. I will get a tree up, but probably not until the end of the week (I found a 6' tree last year on the 23rd for $9.99). Middle Son remains in New Orleans to work after classes have ended, and The Oldest is in North Carolina trying to put to bed the next issue of his magazine. We will have few and modest gifts, but my boys are big enough to understand that their educations are their gifts. God willing, we will be together, among a loving extended family, with cheer and good food, celebrating with gratitude for all that we have and remembering those who are experiencing loss and sacrifice greater than we can imagine. Albeit, with limited resources, but armed with a wealth of love and family, my commitment is to getting up every day, looking hard at what I do wrong, and trying with all my might to get it right.
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May your travel be safe and your holidays be blessed. Peace, out, ya'll.
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Edit/Update: Ozzy was the Best Survivor Ever. I can't believe Yul won. *sigh*
Another Edit/Update: Ray in New Orleans also posted about the magnificent rendition of "O Holy Night" that was performed by the New Orleans jazz musicians that I listed in a recent post titled Cold Moon, Good Causes, Sad Stories. Ray pointed out that the audio and video versions of this amazing piece are now available for download on the Studio 60 site. The link on the right is to the video which has added heart-tugging components as well as story-related dialogue. We've just listened and watched in the office and there isn't a dry eye in the house (okay, the guys are all out so it's just the two females here at the KSDCo right now, but, still...). Click, listen, watch. You won't regret it. Thanks, Ray.
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