17 Jul 2009, Posted by Matthew Reinbold in New Work Ways,Thought & Theory, 0 Comments

Colbert, Rushkoff on Life, Inc.

I’ve long been a fan of Douglas Rushkoff (previously mentioned in discussion on virtual currencies [here and here], speculative economies, and media viruses). Honestly, how many other hardcore media theorists also have written a fairly successful line of comics? And while implementing his more profound ideas remains puzzling (at least for me) the overarching themes are incredibly seductive.

His latest book, a successor to ‘Get Back in the Box‘, is Life, Inc. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen such succinct, forceful answers result in stunned silence on the Stephen Colbert show (you could hear a pin drop after his line that “It would be best for GDP (gross domestic product) if everybody in the audience would get cancer). Video embedded below.

Thought provoking stuff. I love this kind of analysis. It’s that along with the business ideals discussed at events like Small and Special that make me hopeful that mutually beneficial, niche ecosystems of like-minded, small teams have a place.