I've been on a lot of airplanes recently. Flying isn't much fun, but I like being in other places. So in the process of travel I tend to see those around me as either obstacles to my getting where I need to go, or neutral (other passengers) or helpful (hopefully, airline personnel).Airlines have been having a bad year, and they've cut back flights and amenities, so traveling this summer has been more difficult. But there's something else that's made it worse. One gets the feeling that some airlines are working against their passengers having a … [Read more...]
Great Expectations (Except When They’re Not)
August 2, 2009 By 1 Comment
Ken Brecher tells this story about Alexander Graham Bell. The inventor of the telephone apparently spent the last part of his life railing against the way people were using his invention. When greeting someone on the phone, he insisted, the proper protocol was to exclaim "ahoy!" Saying "hello" was a misuse of his work.You can't predict how people will use things, and you can't force people to use them in the ways in which you've conceived of them, even if you're the inventor. Actually, you can force them. But you forfeit the potential that what … [Read more...]
Our culture is undergoing profound changes. Our expectations for what culture can (or should) do for us are changing. Relationships between those who make and distribute culture and those who consume it are changing. And our definitions of what artists are, how they work, and how we access them and their work are changing. So... 
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Mark Gerth on The Party of Can’t And Won’t (So Let’s Change The Conversation)
And before we get to far off into the weeds targeting "the party of can't and won't". It was in...Katrina S. Axelrod on The Party of Can’t And Won’t (So Let’s Change The Conversation)
Got 'em all done-even the candidates for office. KSAKatrina S. Axelrod on The Party of Can’t And Won’t (So Let’s Change The Conversation)
And here is my first letter: January 12, 2012 Dear Congressman Murphy, I hope all is well with you, congratulations to...Katrina S. Axelrod on The Party of Can’t And Won’t (So Let’s Change The Conversation)
Great idea- I'm going to contact my legislators and ask them what cultural institutions they have visited in the past...Margy Waller on The Party of Can’t And Won’t (So Let’s Change The Conversation)
Starting a New Conversation to Build Broad, Shared Support for the Arts - The Ripple Effects Report Doug is right! We...John Perreault on The Party of Can’t And Won’t (So Let’s Change The Conversation)
The arts make our lives better, a little less mean and nasty. The arts are pursued for human development ---...Suzanne Ishee on The Party of Can’t And Won’t (So Let’s Change The Conversation)
Great article, Doug, and further valid argument for changing the conversation. This is, I believe, exactly what Chairman Landesman...Steven Miller on The Party of Can’t And Won’t (So Let’s Change The Conversation)
Doug has written and easy piece - what's his suggestion to change the stupid argument from the right against the...william osborneq on The Party of Can’t And Won’t (So Let’s Change The Conversation)
Wrong box. I meant the link Mark Gerth gave.william osborneq on The Party of Can’t And Won’t (So Let’s Change The Conversation)
The link is about the financial troubles of the San Francisco Opera. A few comparisons help contextualize the situation....