The Future Has Arrived

The Future Has Arrived

Sunday, February 21, 2010

Executive Summary

• The future has arrived.
• The “Broken Windows Theory” explains a lack of media coverage.
• Detroit is falling apart.
• Refugees are leaving urban centers.
• North Dakota’s homeless numbers are increasing.
• Food stamps use rises sharply.
• State of distress – the public vs. private battle intensifies.
• We need to change our stories.

One of the questions I am most frequently asked is, “What will happen when…?”  As in, what will happen:

• When things finally take a turn for the worse?
• When the dollar dives?
• When the government hits a fiscal wall?

Essentially, these are all forms of the basic question, “What will happen when the future finally arrives?”

My work, as I see it, is to help you accept the following statement:  The future has arrived. 

It is already here.

Interestingly, the people who lived through the Great Depression often say that they were not fully aware of it until afterwards.  It can be difficult to appreciate the enormity of events while they are happening.

If you want to know what the future will feel like, all you need to do is find the right stories and connect the dots.  For some reason, the most poignant stories of our time, the ones that paint the real state of affairs, are muted, if not suppressed, in the media.

The Broken Windows Theory

Perhaps there is a good reason why the authorities and our media are not connecting the big dots and why