In one form or another every culture and society has a social contract and the changing from the old year to the next is seen as a time of starting afresh by putting the troubles of the year gone by in the dust bin and embracing the hope that the year to be will be better. The sun has set on 2022 and 2023 came in purportedly bringing in bright and shinny thoughts for the New Year for many, so we are told. I question the purpose and resolve of those people who present themselves at Time's Square for the dropping of 'The Ball'.
The classic New Years song "Auld Lang Syne" provides a message that this author worries has been forgotten. The words "Auld Lang Syne" when translated from the language of the Scots, translates to 'days gone by'. The song goes on to provide two basic messages, one is a statement and the other a question; the statement suggests that regardless of the days gone past still reach for kindness though it will cost you, and the question is, should we forget those who are no longer in our lives?
The difficult word in the song is 'should'. The verb 'should' has two basic meanings; a) an obligation, duty, or correct course of action, and b) probability, chance or happenstance. Every reasonable person knows that there is no option, in one direction or the other, when it comes to remembering old acquaintances. The folly of trying to forget someone equals the folly of trying to ignore someone at a party; the harder one works to forget a person the more that person remains in mind.
In days gone by it was said "In the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes." Andy Warhol probably underestimated just how many people would so strongly embrace his prophetic message. Of course while there are some people who seek fame, there are others who have fame thrust upon them. The public Internet coupled with ubiquity of in cellphone cameras is thrusting more and more people into the spotlight of fame.
A New Years prediction: 2023 will see the cranking up of 'fame', welcomed or not.
The term 'Internet Influencer' has been around for a few years now. An influencer, in the world of Marketing, is a person who can add credibility to product. This can be easily noted with celebrity endorsements in advertisements and product placements in movies; celebrities and companies chase these situations because at the end of the day the influence adds to the bottom line. On the Internet, things seem to work inversely to the classic model; someone gains followers and then the marketers come a knocking. It has been said that 'the medium is the message', and for this author idea of 'the medium' is a layer cake, where the different layers carry different weights, which can now be manipulated way to easily.
A New Years prediction: The current energy crises throughout the Western world will hobble the gas -lighting efforts of those who claim that they know what is the best for the rest of us.
May everyone have the best 2023 possible.
Good night and good luck...
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