The long tail

Let's face it, Americans are highly competitive, almost ... no, to a fault. There are only winners and losers. If you don't win, you lose. Ties are like kissing your sister and the silver medal is just the one who lost gold. Too bad. I don't think most of them know how much they are missing because of this one, small quirk of thought.

A world that only has winners and losers is just another type of monoculture, that ... well, American agriculture appears to love so much as well. No, dear friends, sustainability only comes through diversity, as tough as it is to accept. It's not all about who wins, it's about who has something to contribute. And that's one of the only reasons I like modern technology.

Huh? Wha'? Whazzat? Yeah, technology. For all the evils of the Internet that too many governments think they have to get under control, the widespread, cheap access to technology has allowed us to find all the losers who aren't. Yep. For you business freaks, it's called the long tail.

Being there may be more important than being promoted. Oh sure, I suppose there are enough talented artists ... especially musicians ... who big labels pick up and squeeze dry. But, truth be told, they have never really interested me all that much. While most of my friends were hip on the Beatles and the rebels were pushing the Stones, I was a Kinks man. Go figure.

I'm not going on a promotional tour here ... don't get excited, but there's a lot more exciting stuff off the beaten track than there is out there in the mainstream. You have to want to look. You have to want to go through some dry spells, but swimming in the hidden swimming hole was always more fun than being out there with everybody else in the lake.