once upon a time. we were all of us experts. everyone was proficient in something special. something none of the others was able to do. much of it was just for show. self-portrayal. rather pompous peacocking. but at least we earned money doing it. money with which we were able to pay the rent. or to buy a small house. to dress. to give our children an education.
then came the gentlemen of cloud. google and co. they had a wonderful idea. sharing knowledge. so we shared. all of a sudden, everybody was a musician. then everybody was a film producer.
the techniques were called mash up or remix. or else, everybody was an ad writer. the general formula was content, instead of idea. the programmers were those who resisted longest. some of them were given a job by the cloud gentlemen. the others usurped the open source recommendations with their favourite trick.
make it impossible to understand. recommendations became regulations. which meant that even this trick no longer worked for earning money. initially, the lawyers and econmomists were the ones who had no problem. it had always been their job to standardize life with case studies. the only innovation was: now they were no longer paid for it. google and co had invented a great matching programm for everyone. with it, every jack and john was able to solve all possible scenarios of life himself. the last ones to give up their expert status were the financial experts. the credit specialists were replaced by credit auctions. the investment bankers merged into google-casino.
cut.
the evening sun casts long shadows. half-timber buildings next to igloos. peaked gables next to rustic cabins. everywhere, you see happy people. they eat and drink. they actually live. it is a delight to watch.
now, everything is well. the cloud gentlemen pay. the rent. food. beverages. clothes. the education for our children and with a little persuasion they even the price of a totally unloved view.
but we knowledge sharers. who now know everything. who used to live the utopia of absolute equality on a daily basis. some way or other, we still want to be experts.
and be it as the only persons living in an igloo.
SIX
(Translated by EG)
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