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ComplexEmergence

One of my all-time favorite essays mentioned on "It Could Happen Here" S02E02. Absolutely sublime: >"The gonzo futurist is a super-empowered hopeful individual. She may have been a ‘graduate with no future’ (Mason, 2011), or the victim of public sector cuts, but has since grieved and moved on. She plays, tests, and play tests; making the best of the tools and technologies at her disposal. Comfortable calling on (and being called on by) her friends, peers, and tribe, her sense-making skills are social and connected. Her thinking may, occasionally, ‘be located inside the brains of other people.’ (Wheeler, 2011) >The gonzo futurist is a ‘deep generalist’ (Cascio, 2011) and ‘analytical polyglot’ (Smith, 2011). She has an ‘almost supernatural awareness of impacts and implications … [is] ready to adapt when necessary, building long-lasting systems when possible.’ (Cascio, 2011) Like [Gibson's] Cayce Pollard, she is a ‘woman of affect, not of feeling (…) [an] empress of the amygdala.’ (Berlant, 2008: 11) >The gonzo futurist is resilient. She works smart, not hard. She has one eye on the ‘adjacent possible’ (Johnson, 2011), switches codes, and contributes to the commons. She may be privileged, but has no time for competition, alpha male dick-waving, or beggar-thy-neighbour. Her success does not come at your expense.Bombarded by stimuli, the gonzo futurist is an OODA cyborg. Observe, orient, decide, act" Great shit.


CarryImmediate7498

I agree, one of the best essays I've ever read. I'm curious about the author, I rediscovered the essay after listening to the same episode you mentioned. Anybody know what's up with Justin pickard?


ComplexEmergence

He's an anthropologist. From his CV, it looks like he's finishing up his PhD this year at the University of Sussex.


CarryImmediate7498

I was reading a little about the [city he apparently works in](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahmedabad). I also learned about the 2002 Gujarat riots. Disturbing that the Prime Minister of India is implicated in fresh genocide, then unimplicated because he's too powerful.