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On the entrenched power of telecom companies and their blatant attempts to obstruct any innovation that they cannot exploit financially, Fake Steve Jobs saidbest:

Honestly, this is why Google wants the FCC to free up the wireless spectrum and let customers put any phone on any network. Well, okay, that’s not really why Google wants that. But anyway. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. Cell phone carriers suck. They’re orifices. They’re yet another example of an industry that thrives only by exploiting customers and treating them like shit. Lock-in, two-year contracts, screwing you on every little feature. Damn. Someday, I hope not too long from now, we are going to look back on this era of wireless telecom in horror, not believing we ever had to put up with such bullshit.

In a similar vein, but with respect to the music industry instead, Bob Lefsetz saidbest:

It’s like we’re living in a third world country, ruled by iron-fisted fascists, whose way of dealing with public unrest is through force and violence. Yup, a college student getting sued for file-trading faces violent upheaval in his life. But the copyright bullies don’t care. But those copyright bullies won’t continue to rule. How do I know? Because they’ve been cutting off their nose to spite their face.

I realized some number of years ago that our entire economic and political structure is predicated on protecting the status quo. Sure, the rich and powerful (republicans) talk a good game, droning on and on about the free market, competition, etc., but look beneath the surface: their power derives from an entrenched and incredibly powerful ‘big business’ constituency and their policies do everything possible to keep both of them in power. We need to realize that our continued silence makes us complicit in this charade.

With that in mind, I thought of a simple but potentially game-changing idea, something that cannot be reconciled with the policies republicans continue to advocate. It’s fundamental, foundational, memorable, and uniquely all our own: Profit from progress, not the past.

Progress by its very definition means“to move, go, or proceed forward; to advance; to improve; to become better or more complete.” That is what it means to be a progressive. Conserve by its very definition means to “save for later use; to protect an environment.” Let’s be clear here, the only thing conservatives wish to protect is their own power: just take a look at what they do and who they help with their power.

Republicans have masterfully manipulated America into permitting, but not supporting, their platform. America is begging for a change, but we must do more than just say “we’re not republicans.” We must articulate a much more promising future, a way out of the darkness of the past seven years of fear and outright failure.

A focus on progress suggests a true marketplace of ideas, where each and everyone of us has an equal opportunity to create and participate. We must continue to actively advocate for this world, it is perfect counterpoint to the George W. Bush era, and a much needed breath of fresh air in our national discourse.