The New Renaissance
We have indeed found ourselves amidst the first undulating waves of a brand new Renaissance. Last Monday was the first time I’d made any effort to get my words beneath the eyes of anyone other than Daisy. Good communication cannot exist in isolation; it was time to clear my throat and step to the podium.
Now, I imagine that to do this blogging thing well, you have to be at least the teeniest bit geeky.
Check, no problem there.
Throughout the week, I spent a few moments here and there, studying my feedburner numbers, more out of curiosity than anything. I’m still trying to figure out how all this works, and I know I won’t improve if I don’t absorb as much information as well as I can. So, I started looking through the stats. On Monday and Tuesday, I saw pretty much exactly what I expected to see – a bunch of random looking hits from across the United States. By Wednesday, Canada was saying, “Eh.” By Thursday, the United Kingdom was saying, “Cheers.”
By Friday, I was looking at evidence of a new Renaissance.
Feeds from The United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom, along with Australia, Russia, and (I kid you not) Uraguay.
Wow. A new Renaissance indeed.
I don’t want to kick a dead horse in his teeth, but the internet is a spectacular space. In fact, the web runs right by amazing while he’s off staring into the ether, then rockets around the world in an internet instant, so he can sneak up behind amazing and slap him on the back of his head. Saying that, I don’t think most of us even realize how primitive it still really is.
Not since Guttenberg introduced movable type has there been such a quantum leap in communication. Now, anyone can have a voice. Someday, probably, everyone will. When Andy Warhol said that in the future we’d all have our fifteen minutes, he couldn’t have had any idea how right he’d turn out to be or that a new renaissance was waiting right around the corner.
With so many views screaming for attention, one might argue that the odds of having a single voice make the impact of Martin Luther with his 95 Theses, or Thomas Paine with Common Sense are slim.
I strongly disagree.
History works in cycles. Always has. Truth finds its voice, and then power starts to shift. Right now, power is shifting. If someone has something new to say, relevant to moving us all forward, and they articulate it with enough truth and clarity, people will listen.
Art and ideas have never been exchanged so efficiently. We’ve never held so much potential.
About Sean Platt
I love the internet too. And I agree: it’s powerful. And it’s just wonderful that anyone can have a voice now… and may the best woman/ man win (or be heard!).
Stumbled!
Vereds last blog post..Powerful Men, Half-Naked Women (Best Shot Monday)
I love the internet too. And I agree: it’s powerful. And it’s just wonderful that anyone can have a voice now… and may the best woman/ man win (or be heard!).
Stumbled!
Vereds last blog post..Powerful Men, Half-Naked Women (Best Shot Monday)
Very insightful writing — and guess what?
I’m from Indonesia. Half a planet away! Yet after reading this, I feel not too far apart. Or far behind. :D
Marisas last blog post..Björk and Declaring for Independence
Very insightful writing — and guess what?
I’m from Indonesia. Half a planet away! Yet after reading this, I feel not too far apart. Or far behind. :D
Marisas last blog post..Björk and Declaring for Independence
Hi Sean,
I agree. The internet is pretty amazing. I have already made friendships with people the world over. Interesting to see who found and commented on your blog when it was young. :-)
Cheers,
Jeremy
Jeremy Days last blog post..Make Your To Do List of 20 Things You Love to Do
Hi Sean,
I agree. The internet is pretty amazing. I have already made friendships with people the world over. Interesting to see who found and commented on your blog when it was young. :-)
Cheers,
Jeremy
Jeremy Days last blog post..Make Your To Do List of 20 Things You Love to Do