THINQon : On the death of things (for lack of a better title)

The Living Room General On the death of things (for lack of a better title)

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Robin Layter, I qualify as a youth. I have long hair and it...

On the death of things (for lack of a better title)

Latest Post: November 11, 2009 at 3:53 AM

21 followers

So my discussion about the death of the standing ovation got me thinking about other goods/services/institutions/companies that once thrived but are now dwindling in contemporary society. For instance, newspapers, record players, and baseball.

However, in discussing matters of death, thoughts obviously hearken towards the caves of depression, so maybe for everything that is disappearing we can think of one place where it is thriving, or a community that is seeing to its preservation. For instance, as I think Newspapers (and journalism itself ) are dying, I've become even more drawn to PBS, Current, and the Village Voice. I think they still stand for journalistic integrity and each prosper in their own ways and to their own communities.

Or maybe people are seeing things disappear that should have been stricken from existence decades ago. (Whatever happened to pagers? They were so short-lived!)

I think this could be an interesting discussion because each post can be a bit personal as it shows a person's preoccupations, shows what he/she notices, as well as providing a bit of hope via revivals. For instance, I think children television shows have violently evaporated in the years since I was a child, but maybe someone knows of a great one that might still speak to the child in me?

This post is referenced by the following other contributors:

Robin Layter

in "Seeking Solutions to a changing music industry"

(Music Room)

Reply to:

Mark Opal

June 16, 2009 at 1:01 AM

12 followers

Hi Robin.
It's funny you posted this right after (well I guess sometime before but I'm only reading it after) I posted a discussion in the garage section about this new electric car called the roadster. post

A few months ago I saw a documentary called Who Killed the Electric Car? which investigated the rise in interest of the technology in the 1990s and its eventual downfall at the hands of a lot of culprits including car companies, oil companies, consumers, etc. (It's a pretty good documentary though it is very colored as the director owned one of the electric cars only to have it taken back and destroyed with the rest of the supply)

That was all in 1999 a few years before the green movement came to the forefront with the issue of global warming, but now the interest is on the rise again and the electric car has been apparently resurrected from its untimely end.

So I guess this doesn't fit your topic all so perfectly because the electric car was rekindled when its flame reached the butt of the candle, but I think it still speaks to the idea of preservation. I hope the life, death, and blooming life of the electric car might potentially give credence to a preservationist community who droops a little lower from every trampled flower.

Films Discussed

Who Killed the Electric Car?

Reply to: or

Hugh Dupin

June 16, 2009 at 8:20 AM

27 followers

The mechanical wristwatch.
It was almost pronounced dead and resurrected to a point where it is rare to see anybody in their 20s wearing a digital watch. Then the wristwatch was pronounced dead due to cellphones but still seems to be living and ticking.
Of course, you can see it from the other side too. The digital wristwatch is dying...

You ask what one notices Robin. I noticed this because I was seeing some movie from the 80s and saw a grownup wearing a digital watch. I can't remember when was the last time I saw that (besides myself).

Reply to: or

Petra Vargas

June 16, 2009 at 10:46 PM

8 followers

Roller skates, and the high-tops with retractable wheels...unfortunately even rollerblades I think are declining.
I wonder why attempts to put people on wheels in generally pedestrian contexts haven't caught on? Segways, for instance.
Is it so strange to have someone rolling around in the midst of others? Do we feel it is dangerous?
It reminds me of the old story in the opposite direction, that the Aztecs only had wheels on toys, but never developed them for use. Whether or not this is actually true, something like it probably is, there are a lot of very clever toymakers even in our time!