J. G. Ballard

At the end of every email I send through gmail is a quote from J. G. Ballard. It reads: "I've always suspected that the Soviet Union was the last of the old style authoritarian tyrannies. The totalitarian systems of the future will be obsequious and subservient, plying us with drinks and soft slippers like a hostess on an airliner, adjusting our TV screen for us so that we won't ask exactly where the plane is going, or even whether there is a pilot on board."

A Google search of Ballard quotes turns up a catalog of tasty selections. I encourage you to see for yourself. I also encourage you to find his novels and short stories and read them; he's a fascinating guy.

Here's an essay by Dan Lockton, of Architectures of Control , published on the enlessly edifying Ballardian site.

Howdy!

My friend Hope started a great blog back in the day called Appalachia Alumni Association. That went the way of most blogs...life gets busy and blogs take a back seat to family and friends and work. Hope, gratefully, has started a new blog and I've decided to start one, too. I expect it will consist of little more than links to things I find interesting or 'cool', but it may acquire more content if I can work up the motivation and enthusiasm. Regardless, I hope you find something interesting to link to from here.