Hi I just dropped in. Great review of the book.
I've added your blog to my regular blogroll.
An entrepreneur-based society is a great idea, but there's a problem - nothing is produced via things such as EBay and Amazon (in it's EBay-like mode). It's merely an exchange of value without the creation of value; therefore, it's stagnant. Amazon obviously sells things that have been produced - it's just another storefront that is arguably more accessible (though one still has to do certain things prior to purchasing something from Amazon).
I have nothing against an entrepreneur society. Quite the opposite - it was, afterall, entrepreneurship that lead to the monolith. I'm not necessarily in favor of the monolith either. That which cannot change and adapt will inevitably fade away. But merely exchanging value without creating value is a dead economy and is, in fact, a zero-sum game.
I haven't read Reynolds' book, but I don't think the equation for success in the next 25-50 years is any different from what it was 25-100 years ago. That is, do what you love to do - turn a hobby into a career - damn the torpedos - and so on. I can't see that formula ever being redone no matter what technological marvels we may create.
Of course, no one from the decadent pessimist to the raving optimist can predict what technological marvels we may come up with. Nanotechnology, power from fusion, what may come about from a better understanding of physics, etc. may lead to destinations previously undreamt. Or they may not. But, in either case, they won't be possible without some sort of foundation - this monolith, this structure capable of being a powerhouse of production. It is the ability to produce that drives an economy upwards, and allows for greater advacements. That obviously takes entrepreneurs - people willing to risk alot for something they believe in. In short, I think the monolith and entrepreneurism go hand-in-hand. Imagine what would have happened if David and Goliath had gotten along.
But you forget that a service is a product. Much of the entrepreneur economy is service-based. The monolith must adapt to the individual, something that Reynolds does touch on.
Beth, I'll be adding you in the next day or so. Thanks for the link!
Don't think the monolith isn't adapting, just look at textbook publishers. Since students are buying more and more used textbooks on Amazon or Half, Publishers are releasing new editions every two years or so, rather than the previous five-year cycle. The professors are encouraged to use the newer edition, which may differ only slightly from the previous edition, or the publisher will bundle in software or a single-use web access code so that any used books will be, umm, unusable for lack of a better word.
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