Last week Google released its annual “Zeitgeist List” for
2013-- a snapshot of what Americans searched for over the last 12 months in our gadget lust for
more information. You can discover what our inquiring minds were eagerly slouching toward here:
After a year of feeding our collective mind a diet of death,
devices, and celebrity, I’m afraid we are headed for the equivalent of a body
plagued by heart attacks, weight gain, and erectile dysfunction. Google’s
Zeitgeist List may very well be one of the clearest insights into the American 21st
century mind—driven, drawn, and dulled into a vacuum of fantasy, escape, entertainment.
What we need, dear reader, is not simply more information,
but real knowledge that comes from hard thinking applied to the real issues of
the day. Few of us lead lives that allow such reflection and learning-- where
we seek common ground through uncommon debate. Historically a public square was
one such space that fostered the exchange of ideas and conversation within a
public context and helped raise the level of public discourse in society. But despite our increasing connectivity through social media, form did not follow function. We
are scarce able today to find a public square in which to dialogue for reflection
and growth.
It is my hope that we can start here, start now, and
resurrect a virtual public square of hard thinkers. And while our itchy trigger
fingers continue to Google for meaning, let us answer the high call to develop
a collective intellectual life by speaking out loud into the cultural wasteland.
Why not strive to forge a vibrant community, to gain knowledge, not mere
information, and help our world regain her beautiful mind? Happy New Year, everyone—let’s celebrate in the public square.
