Go for a walk with Open Source

Brown University's Watson Institute for International Studies has a podcast called Open Source. This podcast claims to be not a podcast with a web community, but rather a web community that produces a podcast. After listening to two issues, I have yet to feel the community, but in any case there is a good quality podcast. I have to thank the blog Open Culture, for guiding me to Open Source.

Open Culture directed me to listen to the second part of the three installments long conversation with Harold Bloom. In this part Bloom eloquently laments the demise of literature and its study. "They are teaching Harry Potter these days," he cries out. And what is wrong with Harry Potter he underlines with declaring that he has read in one of the books Harry 'stretches his legs' and explaining that this cannot replace 'goes for a walk' - J. K. Rowling therefore cannot write. She is one of many, so it is in his eyes.

Before that I listened to the last show containing a conversation with Anthony Barnett about 2008. Barnett is chosen on account of his, by Open Source admired, e-zine openDemocracy. A historical perspective is taken on 2008 and Barnett explains what the world's situation is today and where we are heading. In his mind we are living in changing times, where most notably the US are losing their supremacy and will have to start sharing the world's leadership with Europe and China, possibly also India. The decline of the US's power is entirely blamed on the failed policies of George Bush.