Thoughts on an amazing F1 season

The 2012 season for Formula One finished last weekend at the Interlagos circuit in Sao Paolo. After a nail biting race (at least as far as how the overall World Driver’s Championship would turn out), we've finally reached the season’s finish line and can collectively take a few deep breaths and gather up our reserves for the first race of the 2013 season in Melbourne in a little over three months.

This has been a very special season for me – certainly my best ever because after being a fan of open wheel racing in general, and F1 in particular, I was finally able to attend my first Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas, near Austin, Texas. It was a wonderful experience, and I’m already looking forward to attending as many more GPs as I am able to in the future.

During this year, I've been privileged to meet quite a few professionals who are part of what's euphemistically called the "F1 Circus" . I won’t name them here, but I’ve met racing journalists working in the US and abroad in both print and broadcasting media. These pros spend between 9 and 10 months each year on the road as the F1 series travels around the globe from continent to continent, from Australia to England, from Shanghai to Sao Paolo, only to start over again in Melbourne in just over three short months. I’m not kidding when I say that I wish I could work in their world. I know it’s not always fun and exciting. The hassles of constant travel can wear anyone down, but what a life to live while you can do it.

I’ve been a fan of open wheel racing, including Indy Cars and Formula One racing since I was a teenager. Back in the days before the internet (or even VCRs !) about the only way a kid in the states could even watch an F1 race was via tape delay and that was reserved for the biggest race of all, Monaco. Needless to say, most of my F1 knowledge and insight back then came from magazines. It was much easier to follow Indy cars since the races took place in the states, and at least the Indy 500 was always front and center on ABC's Wide World of Sports. I remember Mario winning at Indy in 1969 and a few years afterwards, the tragic year of 1973 in which both Art Pollard and Swede Savage were killed. Just three years later, Niki Lauda had his fiery crash at the Nurburgring, and much later the tragic deaths of Ratzenberger and Senna at San Marino finally forced sweeping changes to improve safety in the sport.  In the grand scheme of things, the lows aren't quite balanced by the highs because no number of wins, championship drives, and excitement can undo the death of a race car driver or track marshall, but the as long as safety improvements are made and the sport becomes safer, then one can say that some good has come of their tragic deaths.

Back to this F1 season. During winter testing at Jerez, who would have thought that Scuderia Ferrari would be in contention for the WDC ? Even their full coming out party had to be cancelled due to snow and poor weather. The cars were considered slow and uncompetitive. Ferrari-istas complained about the nose of the F2012 (“snout” may be more like it). Going into the first race at Melbourne, the Scuderia's cars for 2012 seemed destined for lackluster performance at best when compared to arch rivals McLaren and Red Bull, but once piloted by the best driver in Formula One today - Fernando Alonso - the car came alive and he finished 5th in Melbourne and then won the very next race at Sepang. Had Alonso not been crashed out in the first lap at Spa after Grosjean’s blunder at the start, it’s quite likely that he would have collected his 3rd WDC rather than Vettel.

Meanwhile, his teammate Felipe Massa seemed to finally return to his old self after that terrible accident at the Hungaroring a few years back. Although he didn’t win any races, Felipe returned to the podium twice this year with numerous 4th and 5th place finishes and finished in the points in 14 out of the 20 races this year. He proved to be more than a worthy partner to the great Alonso.

This year saw the welcome return of Kimi Raikkonen to F1 from his self-imposed exile exploring other forms of motor racing. He brought excitement and winning ways to the “new” Lotus team and proved once again that an iconclast such as he still knows how to win, and on his own terms. Kimi's now famous retort to his engineer in Abu Dhabi, “Leave me alone - I know what to do”, says it all. His teammate, Romain Grosjean showed a lack of maturity in the cockpit, with some disastrous consequences (he may have cost Alonso the title WDC title with his shunt at Spa) but Romain also demonstrated how fast he is by finishing on the podium three times this year in spite of several DNFs.

I’ll be sad to see the departure of Kamui Kobayashi from the Sauber team (and probably F1 completely) and the likely departure of Heikki Kovaleinen from Caterham (same), but especially with Sauber, it’s been wonderful to see how that team has emerged as a contender again ! Although it couldn’t really challenge for the Constructor’s Title, drivers Kobayashi and the young Mexican Sergio Perez are both exciting drivers with the skills to win at this level. Next year they’ll both be gone as Kamui moves out of F1 and Perez switches to McLaren but Peter Sauber and Frank Williams’s eponymous teams have both demonstrated that there is still room for the independents among the more monied and richer teams in the sport. The promotion of Monisha Kaltenborn as team Principal at Sauber, and the increasing number of women in the F1 paddock prove that women have a firm place in Formula One and after a long absence (Leila Lombardi in 1976) we may see another woman in the driver’s seat on one of the teams within the next few seasons.

Finally, we see the passing of the torch from the last, and greatest F1 champion to the next superstar - Sebastian Vettel - a 3 time Champion at the age of 25. At the rate he’s going and with the strength of his Red Bull team, Seb could easily surpass Michael’s 7 WDCs by the end of his career.

It’s a year of transition and changes in 2012-2013. F1 returns to the United States at the beautiful Circuit of the Americas with accolades all around. Lewis Hamilton leaves McLaren, the only team he’s ever known, for Mercedes. Perez leaves Sauber to take Lewis’ spot alongside Jenson Button. Michael Schumacher retires for the second, and final time. Some long time F1 journalists leave the field to find other professional avenues to report on and others and it looks like the HRT team may fold after only three years of competition. F1 is a an expensive ticket for everyone, but Bernie always gets his money up front.

Bring on Jerez and Melbourne. We’re already waiting.

What Defines a Global Individual ?

What defines a Global Individual? Is it reading The Economist or Spiegel ? Watching Deutsche Welle? Vacationing overseas ? Is it being an ex-pat or on a global assignment for one's firm? Not necessarily.

Being a true global individual comes not from travel or reading, but from having an understanding of, and respect for, other peoples and cultures, and as much as possible, having a sense of empathy for their history, ethnicities, languages, geography - and wanting to understand more. It's grasping the realization that the country in which one calls 'home' is just one of many countries and remembering that geopolitics aside, you're not alone out there. The ability to travel helps, but the tremendous cost of international travel prevents many from seeing these other lands first hand, but doesn't prevent one from being (or becoming) a global individual.

I've also read that some firms are finding it difficult to find employees willing to accept an assignment abroad. It seems that employees are worried about the hardships that would be faced by their families in a strange land or they have a perception that by being so far away, they may seem 'invisible' to the executives back home and could miss out on possible opportunities for career advancement.

As to the first item, that's a perfectly understandable issue, but it can be addressed by good research up front, tapping the large network of expats who have gone before, using the resources offered by the sponsoring firm, and finally using the internet to really learn about the community to which you could be joining. The second item just doesn't make sense to me at all. In this era of globalism and multiculturalism, what would-be executive wouldn't want to grab at a chance to add some true international experience to one's resume?

There's got to be a reason I keep practicing my German and French on an almost daily basis. Is anyone out there listening?

Odds and Ends. Formula 1, smart phone apps, Twitter data mining...

Formula 1 – Bahrain GP Unif1ed ?

There seems to be a different ‘feel’ and perhaps even a sense of foreboding ahead of this year’s race next Sunday. Some journalists are in Bahrain now, more will be there soon, and the teams themselves will begin arriving shortly. Practice sessions begin Friday with qualifying and the race itself falling on Saturday and Sunday. Last year’s race was cancelled due to unrest following the ‘Arab Spring’ which began in Tunisia and quickly spread to Egypt and other parts of the Middle East. However this year, even as the unrest continues, and seems to be escalating, the FIA and Bernie Ecclestone (along with Jean Todt) have declared that this year’s race will continue as planned. The FIA’s announcement on 13 April indicated that officials from FIA have been meeting with government leaders and security officials from Bahrain and concluded that “the proper security measures are in place for the running of a Formula One World Championship event in Bahrain”.

The problem is that (according to the press release) Todt’s trip to Bahrain was back approximately five months ago (November 2011) and since then, unrest has only grown as the date of the race grows ever closer. According to one foreign correspondent I follow on Twitter (Byron Young of the Mirror (@byronF1), protesters are planning two ‘Days of Rage’ during the GP on Saturday and Sunday. No one wants any trouble at the GP, but if the citizens are determined to have their voices hears, there is likely no better time when much of the sporting world will have its attention focused on their tiny island in the Gulf.

***

I’ve recently become particularly intrigued by two small companies – Insightpool, and Placeme. They have nothing in common with each other except that each of these is thinking ‘outside the box’ and have come up with solutions to problems that didn’t even exist. I don’t mean that in a sarcastic manner. After all – Apple’s success was at least partially predicated on coming up with consumer products that didn’t exist and all of a sudden everyone had to have an iPod, an iPhone, and now an iPad. Insightpool has become adept at data mining and farming Twitter feeds to a deep level in order to provide its clients with very granular data specifically geared to market research. As Twitter grows in popularity and this company’s data mining tools and algorithms become more sophisticated, I believe Insightpool is poised for takeoff (or perhaps acquisition) as the company gains customers and word of mouth. The founders are skilled at social media and are well connected with the Atlanta technology scene. Insightpool could use a lot more depth on its website (all it has now is a landing page). Insightpool’s tagline is ‘Converting your competitors’ customers’ – something all companies would like to do. Whatever the future holds for this company, I’m sure it’s be bright and I’ll be watching intently.

Placeme is a startup that was founded by Sam Liang who is one of the super smart ex-Googlers creating the world we live in now. I’d have to thank Robert Scoble for bringing this to my attention. Robert doesn’t know me from Adam, but he posted a video interview with Sam Liang on Google Plus and I was immediately hooked. Sam likes to use the phrase “persistent ambient sensing”. Once invoked, Placeme records the sensor data from one’s smart phone including the GPS, accelerometer, compass, clock, - virtually all motion – “to learn about the mobile user in real time and over time”. Placeme runs on Android and IoS and is from Alohar Mobile which offers an SDK to developers who could then use this data to develop their own location based apps. To paraphrase from Alohar’s site, an app developer interested in creating a ‘healthy living’ app might use the SDK to tell a user something like, “I see you’ve been to McDonalds’s five times this week, but you’ve only been to the gym once”. I’ve only begun using this app, and don’t have much data recorded yet, but my head is spinning when I think of the possibilities. For those worried about privacy concerns the privacy policy is strong and frankly, if you’re worred about stuff like that, no one is forcing you to use it in the first place. Just log out and turn of the app if you don’t want your phone to record your locations and time spent there.

Disclosure – I have no personal connection with either one of these companies except for one small exception: The founders of Insightpool also have a music-related site, gorankem for which my daughter has occasionally helped with social media marketing until the rigors of being a fulltime student took precedence. It was through her work with gorankem that I first learned about the very cool work being done by Insightpool.

A Few Random Things...

Berlin - I've recently come across several online articles about this city becoming the latest hotspot for tech startups - especially in the social networking space. The most recent being Om Malik's nice post from a few days ago. I've only been to Berlin once, about four years ago, but I was very impressed with the city and all it had to offer. It's big, multicultural, has a good transportation system, inexpensive housing, and boasts some world class universities and technical institutions. Throw in the Currywurst stands on every other corner and the assistance offered by the city government and groups such as Berlin Partner, and you have a all the right ingredients for this city to rival anyplace else as a proving ground for new technology.


10 years ago - I lost a job I had been in for only 11 months. Yep. Three days after Christmas. I was pulled me into a conference room with the head of HR and that was that. The place was truly Dickensian (It was the best of times, it was the worst of times...), but mostly, it was the worst of times.

While out walking my dog today, I wished a woman I passed on the street a 'Merry Christmas'. She seemed quite startled that some random stranger would speak to her and offer some sort of random pleasantry. "People don't talk to one another any more", she said. "Well I do", I replied. Her smile afterwards made my day.

Just sayin'

Netflix is not New Coke

The recent dustup over at Netflix regardng the ill-fated Quikster venture has been compared by some to the Coke/New Coke debacle over 25 years ago. Although the situation may appear that way, in reality these are two entirely different corporate screwups.

When the Coca-Cola Company reformulated its primary soft drink to have a sweeter taste, with less ‘bite’, the marketing gurus on North Avenue announced this in typical Coke fashion: full page magazine ads, television commercials, public tastings and billboards trumpeting the new flavor. The outcry from the public was immediate and vocal and the product’s failure has gone into history as one of the most famous corporate blunders of all time. The entire episode has become fodder for countless discussions and is studied in business schools across the country.

I would suggest that the public’s rejection of New Coke was not a failure of the product per se, but rather a failure of the company’s lauded marketing department. Remember the four “P”s of the classic Marketing Mix: Product, Price, Promotion, and Packaging ? In this case, the new Product and Price were fine, but the Promotion and Packaging strategies failed miserably.

There are many suggestions (post mortem, of course) regarding what Coke should have done but there’s little question in my mind that the product could have succeeded if handled differently from a marketing perspective. Even if the newly formulated, sweeter Coke met public resistance, the company could have quietly pulled back after issuing a statement about ‘tweaking our formula to meet changing tastes' or some other bland comment.

In contrast, the Netflix/Quikster disaster can’t even be called a marketing mess. The way the company handled this was so inept from a management perspective that this too will likely become part of future business school curriculums. Netflix, which spearheaded the ‘DVD by mail’ category and had become the de facto go-to company in this space had also created a new distribution outlet (and income stream) in the form of streaming these videos over the internet to its customers’ homes. Obviously the broad adoption of this new service would result in significant cost savings to Netflix in the form of reduced mailing fees, labor, inventory, warehouse space and other carrying costs. However, instead of offering this new distribution model to its customers as another choice for its customers, the company instead announced that it would eventually cease the DVD business and its customers would (one day) be required to watch their movies via the internet only. Although no timeframe was given - the point was clear. Netflix wanted out of the DVD business as soon as possible and its customers would have to adapt to the new business model.

In addition, Netflix announced a new pricing structure in which customers would have to pay separately for the DVD only service and the new web-streaming service. if customers wanted the option for both, they would have to effectively pay double the price they had been paying. After a large initial outcry and ridicule on social media outlets, Netflix announced that the DVD only service would be split off into a new company called ‘Quikster’. Laughably, the bright lights at Netflix failed to secure Twittter account for this name leading to even more ridicule on online news outlets and social media once they learned who currently had this account name. Eventually, to its credit, Netflix admitted that it had made a series of missteps, quickly closed the door on the ill fated Quikster, and announced that at least for now, its customers would still be able to rent DVDs by mail as well as through internet streaming (although the dual-pricing model will remain).

So even though some observers today may equate the Netflix problems of 2011 with the New Coke rollout of 1985, they have little in common except for a lot of corporate ‘woulda-shoulda-coulda’s that are even clearer in hindsight.

Moving to the Cloud ? (Part 2)

This is a continuation of my high level discussion about some of the important things to consider when creating a cloud based business. Part 1 noted a few business items that need to be addressed. Part 2 discusses some of the user experience, content, and architecture to think about while you’re in your planning and early startup stages.


Content related –

Does your logo and overall ‘look and feel’ and graphic scheme appear professionally done? Are you relying on free clip art or other public domain sources for your graphics ? That may be ok for a short while, but eventually you’ll need to come up with something unique and memorable with snappy colors, attractive visuals and enough content to entice your first time visitors to stick around a while. How sticky is your site? What's the average length of your visitors stay at the site? Have you tested the UX (really tested it) from an outsider's perspective (and not with a direct hard wired connection to your web server).


How many users can be online to your site at once ? Are the drags on performance? What about your database read/writes ? How scaleable is your architecture as your userbase grows ? Have you planned for additional capacity/throughput and what it would take to ramp up to the next level.


Is your content dependent upon a ‘Web 2.0’ or crowdsourcing philosophy? Do you accept submissions of original content, writings, essays, articles, artwork, photography, etc. from your visitors ?


If so

How are submissions made to your site?
Who reviews/approves submissions for appropriateness?
How often is 'old' content removed ?
Is old content archived and searchable ?
Do contributors retain copyrights to their work or do submissions become your property ?
How easily/quickly can an authorized user edit/add/remove content ? Does the webmaster need to be involved, or is this a simple task for others ? Who *are* the authorized users for things like this ?


Language :

In which language are you presenting your site? Have you given thought to offering a multilingual site? Remember the internet is global, and people will be able to access your site from anywhere in the world. Is sure your baseline code architecture prepared for the possibility of multilingual pages ? Even if you don’t anticipate clients or web visitors from other countries, do you want to make them feel ‘welcome’ by your presentation ?

Finally….

This leads to an entirely different discussion related to banking and accounting issues which I won’t even begin to discuss here.

You may have the one perfect vision and be the expert at making your vision a reality, but if you miss the ball on some of these critical details that need to be in place behind the scenes, you may end up being one of the many thousands of great start ups that failed due to less than perfect execution.

So you're moving to the Cloud...

Moving to the Cloud ? (Part 1)

From time to time I’m asked to review or provide an unbiased critique of a web-based site or online startup. Occasionally this request stems from someone I know who has been potentially tapped to assume a significant role in the leadership of the site. Other times, the site is in its conceptual stages and needs someone to throw a few darts at the concept to make sure things are well thought out and to avoid ‘gotchas’ later.

So here are a few items to take under consideration you begin the path down this road to web stardom. These questions and discussion points below are in a kind of free-ranging style, but you get the idea of some of the important things that need to be ironed out and discussed among the principals. Remember, it’s far better to do this legwork up front rather than run into the gamut of woulda/coulda/shouldas later.

If you’re just in the ‘proof of concept’ or ‘blue sky’ stage, that’s one thing, but once you make the decision to go to the next step and map out your real business plan, the way you maneuver through these items (and potential roadblocks) will be critical to your success.


Business related –

Has your business model been conceptualized from the beginning as a (hopefully) for profit company ? Did it begin as a ‘fun’ or ‘cool’ website that now you think you would like to monetize? If it began as the latter, are the principals ready to make the leap and truly commit the time and resources to make it happen?
Who has an equity stake in the business? Has this been formalized in writing with documents and attorneys and all those necessary details, or are you just ‘winging’ it for now ? Do you have a business license ? Do you even need one ? Articles of incorporation? Do you have a clearly defined corporate hierarchy and officers (even if it’s just a few people) ? What about a board of directors or advisors?

Who owns the domain ? How long is it ‘locked in’ ? Have you also acquired the *.net and other variations ?

Do you have any NDAs ? Are there any in place? Were they drafted by an attorney knowledgeable in IP law ?

Do you have a clearly written, unambiguous privacy policy that’s available for all to see ?
What is your revenue model? You can't expect to keep site running forever by relying on your own bankroll or even donations. Will you sell advertising ? offer Subscriptions? Ask users to pay for premium content? If you end up with a lot of highly defined, qualified users, then even without a lot of revenue, you now have a very valuable asset. Find a way to use this to your advantage, but be careful with user privacy rights.

Where is the site hosted ? Does the hosting company offer you a competitive SLA that meets your needs ? When / how often/ is their maintenance window ? Do you run the risk of being offline during these times ? Would you be able to change to a different ISP/hosting company without too much difficulty ?

Who is your chief webmaster and top software architect/coder(s), What about your DBA(s) ? Who are these people? Are they employees or contractors ? Do you as the principal have access to all code? Who else has access to the code/logins/etc. ? What if the main technical person leaves or quits - what would it take to have someone else step in and take over? What type of agreement is in place for updates, code maintenance, database work ? Have you implemented best practices for code design and checkin/checkout procedures ?

Have you considered an exit strategy? This should be part of your contingency planning for unexpected events. Always consider your options at both a macro and micro level. Things change, competitors arise from nowhere. Be prepared and respect your competition. They have smart people working for them, too.

Later, in the next part, I’ll discuss some of the high level content, programming, and user experience things to remember as you embark down this path to working in the cloud…

What's Your Global IQ ?

I have read that in this age of global business, it's difficult to find employees who are willing to work internationally (not relocate - just travel abroad as needed) and are also 'internationally savvy', i.e., they are culturally sophisticated, know how to build and maintain excellent relationships with global partners and have a good sense of the social and economic world in which our partners live. They read the Economist and the IHT as well as technical journals, speak at least a modicum of languages besides English, and know the ins and outs of global travel, i.e., how to get around from Barcelona to Berlin, deal with currency issues - whatever. When working in Germany, they can name at least a few of the German states, and in France, a couple of the Departments. Bonus points awarded for having some knowledge of the local politics and geography.

Is this an accurate assessment? Is it really that hard to find Relationship Managers, Client Service professionals, Project Managers, or Account Executives who possess the qualities to tread comfortably in a foreign locale, and professionally represent one's company in an international setting ? When I've worked abroad with colleagues from Germany, Finland, or Italy for example, beyond English and their native language, they often speak a 3rd (or even fourth !) language quite well, and even beyond that, they have a good understanding of US news, politics, or even sports.

Do the Dutch, Germans, and Swedes have a corner on this ability to maintain intercultural competency in a business setting? Is there hope for US business to compete on a global setting and be respected by our business partners on a cultural level ? Can we raise our global IQ to compete on their level ?

Um,,,What's that word again ?

The recent post in The Economist by their columnist using the psuedonym, "Johnson' brought a chuckle. The author relates an amusing anecdote in which she, as a native of Ireland now living in Brazil, has learned to speak Portuguese with a decidedly unique accent to the native Cariocas. Her visit to a school in Sao Paolo prompts amusement by the students who have difficulty understanding her pronunciation of their language.

She concludes the article by asking her readers for their own 'depressing moments' on their own road of language study. Although I didn't reply on the article itself, I immediately recalled one embarrasing moment from a trip to Berlin I undertook a few years ago. I had just left one of that city's fabulous museums, and was riding the Strassenbahn on a cold January afternoon when I suddenly realized that I couldn't find the scarf I had earlier in the day. "Mein Schaf...", I muttered to myself,under my breath, but loud enough to be heard by other riders. "Wo ist mein Schaf ?" I quickly became aware of some snickering by the riders within earshot. I couldn't figure out what was so funny, but it wasn't hard to determine that it was me at whom they were laughing. Finally, a woman across the aisle leaned over to me and said in English, "Did you lose something?" "Yes, my scarf", I replied. "Oh, she said. That's unfortunate, because it'll be much harder to find that than the sheep you said you couldn't find". Yes folks. Schaf = sheep. Schal = scarf. Lesson learned.

G+ - Where's the Buzz ?

Am I the only one that is beginning to feel that FB has reached its apogee in the social media space and is now at a stage where it’s simply going to hover for a while? How long can it expect to continue to add wave after wave of new users? It reached a point of critical mass long ago, but anyone who really wanted to join the site has already done so and those who haven't done so yet can't be expected to become avid, active users even if they eventually do so.

I am not at all suggesting that FB will crash and burn. No way. But time after time I’ve seen or heard people make comments like “I wouldn’t miss it that much” or “not such a valuable tool” or even “a waste of time”. Granted, the site has something like 700 million+ users, so there’s a ton of virtual inertia there, but except for enabling users to post lightweight, frequently superficial ‘updates’ and uploading photos, many of these same users don’t see the huge value proposition that FB would have you believe it offers.

One big caveat is that these same comments I noted above were taken from a BusinessInsider.com article the other day. Obviously the ‘audience’ for this online news outlet is somewhat more upscale, professionally employed, technologically astute, well educated, and skewed to the slight older side of the average FB user. Facebook’s own statistics show that only about 15% of its users are age 35 or above and fully well over 50% are between 18 and 34. These are highly prized demographics for advertisers of course – the most valuable group – but will we see that same 50% continue with FB once they reach their middle years and are themselves busy with their families, careers, mortgages, and daycare ? It’s unlikely that many will actually close their accounts, but the rapid growth of new FB accounts and the associated new postings I believe is unsustainable.

I think that what we’ll see is that as this 50% demographic ages, the users will use FB less and less frequently, and eventually gravitate more to G+ which (at least in its infancy) offers a cleaner interface and a simpler user experience – for now. I like G+ quite a bit and I certainly hope that those folks in the Googleplex hold true to their ‘Don’t be evil’ pledge, but it will be interesting to see what happens once G+ opens the doors to advertising and businesses try to entice users with assorted promotions, coupons, or discounts. At this time though, there’s not much content and current users aren't much of their own yet either (at least in my own G+ network). What I would be worried about if I were the G+ braintrust is that there seems to be no 'Buzz' about G+ anywhere (pun intended). At least, G+ isn't being funded by a start up and Google can certainly afford to give it plenty of time to succeed.

Pete Cashmore of Mashable offers up a great list of what he calls ’10 things Google Plus does better’ than Facebook, and I couldn’t agree more.

Some early thoughts on G+…

I’ve been using Google Plus since very early July after receiving one of the earlier invitations to try it out (Thanks Ray !). After using it for the past few weeks, I have a few observations about what may be the future adoption of this site. I’m not talking about the UI, or the technical aspects, or even about Circles and privacy considerations. Rather what I’m noticing is the (albeit very early) way it’s being used by those I’ve observed online and what I foresee happening in the longer term.

Most of my online acquaintances are heavily invested in Facebook and to a lesser extent, Xing. I even have two friends who still use MySpace. Although I have a few dozen connections and some photos on FB, I was never that much invested in it and I often went days without even taking a glance in its direction.

Even though the pundits are talking about the rapid growth of Google Plus (which is certainly true), what I’m not seeing is the any indication that people are abandoning Facebook in favor of G+. Let’s face it, that’s what Google wants and that’s what they’re going after. They want this to be a zero-sum game.

I happen to like the clean UI and better (to me) privacy settings at G+. I like the fact that it’s not all junked up with games and ads although I’m sure they’re coming. (I do miss being able to poke someone, though – seriously). I also miss the ability to do a true PM, but I can certainly get by with the ‘workaround’ presented (post to one contact only, and disable ‘reshare’).

Not surprisingly, many of users I’ve seen on G+ tend to be professional marketers, SEO types, ‘social media’ groupies, or those who like to be early adopters. What I have yet to see is the adoption of G+ by the high school, college students and twenty somethings who make up so much of the current traffic on FB. It’s going to take a huge catalyst – something, whatever – to get them to do more than take a peek at G+ and actually begin using it.

Remember, I’m not a marketer or SEO guy and my comments here are worth exactly what you’ve paid for them, but what I foresee is a dual social-media world in which both FB and G+ are able to coexist (in spite of Google’s best efforts). I doubt that Gens X and Y will give up Facebook in favor of G+, but what I see is their gradual adoption of G+ as a kind of steppingstone to a more professional (but still fun) social media outlet. Kind of a halfway house between Facebook and LinkedIn. Use of G+ gives everyone a chance to rethink their ‘friends’ list and start off again perhaps a bit more carefully and with more reflection than they may have used with Facebook, given the often willy-nilly, motley collection of ‘friends’ that one really doesn’t know in the least.

Both of my daughters have signed on to G+. One is 18 and the other is 21. They’re both prime candidates for adoption and the perfect target audience that Google Inc. is seeking for this new platform. Neither however, has posted anything even once as of this writing. That’s what I’m waiting to see.

Brother, can you spare (another) €100,000,000,000 ?

Today’s report that France and Germany have reached a tentative agreement – a “common position” as the BBC terms it – is the first good news regarding the Greek debt crisis which also threatens Portugal, Spain, and even Italy if Europe’s central bankers can’t figure out a way to resolve the Eurozone debt crisis. There is still a lot of work to do, but at least the leaders of these countries, two of Europe’s leading economic powerhouses, seem to have reached a mutual agreement to propose to the bankers currently meeting in Brussels. Greece has already implemented a severe austerity program and the citizens certainly are unhappy with the cuts they must face, but if those austerity measures along with the extension and the restructuring of Greece’s debt obligations into longer term payments, ease the crisis and prevent Greece from a full default, then it’s a necessity not only for the European economy, but ours as well.

The proposal calls not only for another 100 bn Euros, but would allow Greece to extend its payment schedules and request/require (?) non-governmental financial institutions to carry some of the additional bailout burden. At present, this is only a proposal, but it’s an indication that all parties recognize how serious this is for everyone.

The second half of this worldwide economic crisis is with the potential for the US to default on its own debt obligations in less than two weeks. Our own US Congress and the President’s economic team must come together and hammer out a compromise solution to enable us to raise our own debt ceiling so we can avoid an embarrassing and economically devastating default of our own. To say these are troubling, worrisome economic times is an extreme understatement. Imagine the scenario if Europe can’t reach an agreement on how to resolve the Eurozone debt crisis at the same time that the US defaults on its own debt obligations because of the refusal of members of Congress to work together. Could the result be another economic maelstrom such as the worldwide depression in the 1930s ? I don’t know – I’m not a macroeconomist or a banker and my comments here are just my own ramblings. But I am a student of history and knowing that the worldwide equity markets loathe uncertainty, I fear the worst unless those politicians and financial decision-makers that we place our trust in do the right thing – for the sake of us all.

Teaching Young People About Life Abroad

I’ve always been interested in foreign languages and life in other countries. If anyone has ever read any of my other woefully sporadic blog entries, there’s an obvious recurring theme regarding events abroad or international economics or something related to life outside the United States.
One of my biggest regrets is that I never took advantage of a study abroad option while in college. It was there for the taking and I didn’t do it. Don’t ask me why, but I’ve regretted that (non)decision big time. Ever since, I’ve tried to steer my career in an international direction with small bits of success, but just a little. Enough to taste it, but that’s about it. However, I continue to study my languages (German and French) when possible and I’ve built an impressive network of contacts abroad in many facets of professional life. Unfortunately, my actual career goal of living (or at least working) abroad on a regular basis has eluded me, though I’m doing my best not to give up. Suffice to say that raising a family has forced me to put aside certain career goals aside in favor of more important work here.

But now, though I’m living that international experience vicariously through my daughter who at the moment is traveling through various European capitals before heading over to the UK for study at Oxford. I am proud of her - not only because she seems to have absorbed my love of languages and intercultural affairs, but she has managed to actually become quite conversant in French and is now working on learning German. Although I am moderately conversant in German, and can hack around in French, she has seriously surpassed my abilities in that language. She has the dreams I once had of living the expat life in some European capital, and I hope she achieves that goal.

If you are the parent or adult advisor to a young person today. Please do your young person, and the rest of us by extension, a huge favor by encouraging them to study a second (or even third !) language. Encourage them read newspapers from other countries – it’s not hard to find the ‘English’ option on most foreign news outlets and online services. Study economics. Look at the ‘Picture of the Day’ on the BBC or Stern.de websites. See how others live and what they’re doing or celebrating. We’ll all be better the more we each understand about the background and cultures of those who live in other corners of this increasingly smaller world. Encourage them to take every opportunity to live, study, or work abroad – make the opportunity happen, and help them achieve it while they’re young, because once that threshold to adulthood is reached, it becomes much more difficult to see the world as others do.

Santayana revisited

I was never much one to read (or understand) the great writers of philosophy. Try as I might, I just never quite understood what it was they were trying to say, and I always felt out of my league when someone I know is able to intelligently discuss philosophy. Kant, Schopenhauer, Hobbes, Nietzsche - the list goes on, including the ever popular George Santayana, who most people, including me, only know through his famous aphorism, usually paraphrased something like, "Those who do not remember the past are compelled to repeat it". I've never read anything he's written except this, but it never rings truer than it does right now.

It is Santayana whom I think of when I read the news about the return of 'Baby Doc' Duvalier to Haiti. The return of this man to this wretched land is the last thing this poor country needs. Unfortunately, I think he smells an opportunity to step back and reclaim some of the power he once held over this small nation but perhaps more likely a chance to regain some of the riches he once held after he first pillaged the country. It's not hard to note that a a weakened central government, a ruined infrastructure, a citizenry that is desperately poor, and in in the capital city itself, lacking even the most basic necessities - provides an open door for a charismatic leader to step in and attempt to take the reins. Say nothing that Haiti currently has a democratically elected government and president. We've all seen populist uprisings in other nations across the globe. Sometimes nations rise up and democracy reigns afterwords (Poland, and then eventual fall of Soviet domination across Eastern Europe); sometimes the result is even more severe oppression and bloodshed (Myanmar, Iran).

The legacy of pain and suffering that the Duvalier family has foisted upon this nation cannot be ignored or forgotten. He, his father, and their murdurous Ton Ton Macoutes raped and pillaged this country for what little wealth it had. He has no business being anywhere except in a Haitian prison, yet here he is now, returned from an quiet life in Paris, supposedly back in Port au Prince to help with the reconstruction of the country. Does anyone really believe him, and why should they?

Sadly though, with something like half of Haiti's population under 20 years old, will anyone even remember the past?

Closing the chapter on the Great War

This is very interesting. Spiegel reports that Germany is about to make its final payment on the bonds it issued to raise cash in order to pay war reparations to the Allies after the end of WW1. According to the magazine, Germany issued these bonds to raise cash for the reparations and once issued, repaid them per their regular installments (except during the 2nd World War and through 1953 while the country was rebuilding).

By the early 1980s, the debt itself was repaid leaving the accrued interest still due. Now, on October 3, the final installment of that interest will be paid coinciding with the 20th anniversary of German unification following the collapse of die Mauer two years earlier.

Diversity through globalization

The fears that some people have regarding the dilution of ‘culture’ aren’t peculiar to the US (although due to our size and socioeconomic footprint that’s all many residents of the states seem to hear or read about). All in all, the angst some people here feel about the growing influence of native Spanish speaking Americans is echoed by similar feelings in other countries. Michael Kimmelman of the New York Times writes (a few weeks ago) about a related sentiment felt by some native Frenchman who are fretting about what they perceive as a growing loss of native French culture (whatever that means). The crucial difference though isn’t really the loss of culture per se, but rather the increasing percentage of French citizens who also speak other languages and who are bringing their own cultural influences in music, art, food, dress to France. Over just a few generations, much of western Europe has itself become a huge melting pot and a naïve (or unread, uneducated) visitor may be surprised to see the numbers of native north African, middle Eastern, or Caribbean residents speaking fluent French while on the way to their mosque or local market. The most interesting comment in the article was the statement by Kimmelman is that “French isn’t declining. It’s thriving like never before” with some 200 million French speakers worldwide. However of that 200 million, only 65 million are native French with the rest from former French colonies or outposts. The most astute comment I read is from Abdou Diouf, the former president of Senegal who leads a francophone organization, International Organization of the Francophonie, who says, (I paraphrase) , that the greater the influence of globalization (particularily spread through the internet) “the more we find common cultural differences and values” – including diversity – and diversity is the real result of globalization.

Mrs. Merkel goes to Washington

For the first time in over 50 years, the sitting German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, has given a speech to the combined houses of the US Congress. The last time this happened was when Konrad Adenauer spoke to Congress way back in 1957.
Speaking first auf Englisch, and then reverting to German, Merkel thanked the US for its role in helping create the political climate which ultimately led to the fall of the wall ("der Mauersturz"). Interestingly enough, and in an obvious nod to another period, she noted that November 9 was also the date of Kristallnacht in 1938 which many feel was the true beginning of the Holocaust.
She noted the American efforts behind the Berlin Airlift and the leadership exhibited by the US as strong allies of Germany. Quite notably, she specifically mentioned the necessity to help maintain Israel's security and prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons. "Wer Israel bedroht, bedroht auch uns" - "What threatens Israel, threatens us all".

I found the headline in die Zeit, "Merkel dankt USA für Wiedervereinigung" a bit interesting. It translates as "Merkel thanks the USA for reunification" and that seems just a bit over the top - especially for a German language article, but maybe that's just a layout editor's journalistic license showing.

It was 20 years ago (not quite) today...

November 1989 was a watershed year in global politics. That was the year in which the Iron Curtain was finally parted - a process which began (at least in the most visible sense) - with Lech Walesa's leadership of the Solidarity party in Poland and ended with the collapse of the Berlin Wall in November 1989. There are lots of articles and reminiscences being published now - many along of the lines of, "Where were you when the Wall fell?" and the like.
But whether you read German or not, almost everyone can learn from this very cool multimedia graphic published in the Berliner Morgenpost.

Je suis, tu es, il est, nous sommes...

The Economist magazine has a blog written by a writer using the pen name, "Charlemagne". I read it when I can, but not often enough. Charlemagne recently wrote this article about the decline of foreign language abilities in the UK. I especially like the comment in the article that "Learning a foreign language teaches you humility, empathy and respect for others. In Europe, it teaches you the ancient links that unite our squabbling continent."
Well said. I've studied languages my whole life. I've been fortunate to visit Europe many times for work as well as pleasure, but to my deep dismay, I've never had the opportunity to live there for an extended period of time. I've strongly encouraged my daughters that in addition to whatever else they take up in their life, a firm grasp of second language would be to their advantage and betterment. I generally an open minded person, but I cannot understand why some people have no interest in learning more about life in other countries. This isn't just about language studies - it's about really trying to be more aware of the cultural influences that affect the way others see us, and we see them. Studies of language (if left unfettered) will naturally lead to study of history, literature, art and ultimately a better understanding of what makes us tick.

I've always enjoyed reading Michael Kimmelman's articles in the NYT, but I think he's missing something here. He questions why so few people visiting museums seem to take the time to really 'look' at the art within and are content with brief glances, a few photos, and then it's on to the next gallery.
Whatever it is - fortune, fate, circumstances, planning - he has been given him the opportunity to live abroad, something I've always wanted, but might never obtain. He can (I suspect) visit the Louvre, the Rijksmuseum, the Pergamon, far more readily than those of us not already in Europe. Someone living there can make repeat visits and maybe afford the time to linger and really 'see' the works of art at a studied pace without having to rush through everything.
Most visitors to the world's great museums are not residents of those cities and have no choice but to hurry along and squeeze in as much as possible in the time allowed. Americans especially are pressed by time and financial constraints more than your average European resident. Few of us can afford to spend even a week in Europe and those that can manage that quickly realize they have an overwhelming task at hand. A week in Paris for a first-time visitor is not enough time to arrive, check into the hotel, orient oneself, figure out the Metro, check the maps, learn where things are, and then try to visit the Louvre, d'Orsay, Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, walk along the Seine, visit the Musee Picasso, Arc de Triomphe, stroll the Champs-Élysées, Luxemburg Gardens, shop, eat, rest, etc. Want to to cram in a side trip to Versailles too? How about Normandy? Forget it.
I've been lucky to visit Europe numerous times, but when I'm travelling for pleasure, I have had no choice but to rise early, plan days with military precision, and try not to rush through these wonderful museums (but truth be told, rush we must). On my last visit to Berlin, I had less than a single day to visit both the Pergamon and the Bode Museum. But that's ok - I'll be back. Many visitors will never get the chance to return.