I For One Welcome Our New Corporate Overlords!

So, the Supreme Court ruled that corporations can spend as much money as they want to buy political ads. I'm not terribly happy about that rule, although I think Keith Olbermann is wetting the bed just a little. I'm also not sure that if we make corporations disclose their donations in detail we could dispell some of the astroturfing that plagues American politics.

Of course, The Usual Suspects are celebrating the "blow struck for freedom." When I pointed out to one of them that size and scale matters, he replied "why shouldn't Bill Gates get to spend his money however he wants to?"

I don't worry about Bill Gates. I worry about John Chambers and Constance H. Lau. Who, you say? John Chambers is CEO of Cisco Systems, and he controls point zero six percent (0.06%) of Cisco stock. Ms. Lau is CEO of Hawaiian Electric, and she controls point two one percent (0.21%) of the stock of her company. Now, both of those people get to use "their" companies to play like Bill Gates does.

I own Hawaiian Electric stock, so technically Lau works for me. But here's what really happens - I get a packet in the mail with a slate of directors (who I never heard of) and official biographies, and I get to vote yes, no or abstain. I have no idea how these people got to be on the board, or what they plan to do while on it. I probably own Cisco stock, or more correctly own a mutual fund that owns stock. But I don't even get to vote that stock - some fund manager (who I didn't elect and don't know) votes it.

If you get the idea that the average American corporation is ran by somebody elected with all the transparency and democracy of Pope Benedict XVI, you'd not be far off. Given that, I'm not sure how much power I want to give these folks.

Capricon Schedule

My tenative programming schedule for Capricon, Chicago February 11-14.

E-Readers: The Greening of Books
Friday, 02-12-2010 - 2:30 pm to 4:00 pm - Willow B
Discussion and Demos - bring your reader to show it off!
Walt Boyes
Chris Gerrib
Kathryn Sullivan
Curtis Taitel

Evil vs. Good: What Makes a Better Story? Evil or Good Winning the Day?
Friday, 02-12-2010 - 4:00 pm to 5:30 pm - Willow A
At its most basic, a conflict has a good side (our side) and an evil side (their side). Traditionally, story-telling has the good side come out on top, but is that all their is? Can the evil side win and still provide a story that speaks to the reader? What are the strengths and weaknesses of letting the evil side win? What are some of the classics that focus on Evil Victorious?
Rachel Cohan
Chris Gerrib
Paul McComas
Kevin Spencer
Joy Ward

Chicago of Tomorrow
Saturday, 02-13-2010 - 10:00 am to 11:30 am - Birch A
In this interactive panel event, the panelists and audience discuss the changes they would like to see in Chicago (both realistic and pie in the sky) over the next twenty years. The panelists will address the various suggestions and look at their feasibility.
Walt Boyes
Richard Chwedyk
Phyllis Eisenstein
Chris Gerrib

On the Internet No One Knows You're a Dog!
Saturday, 02-13-2010 - 5:30 pm to 7:00 pm - Willow B
The internet offers an unprecedented level of anonymity. While many users revel in the ability to be whomever they want at different times, others feel that people hiding behind anonymity is one of the problems with the internet. Is there, should there, be a compromise between the forces of anonymity and those who want users to take reponsibility for their posts?
Chris Gerrib
Trista Gunderman
Jer Lance
Becky Thomson