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Seoul and Tokyo: "They're better at being human"

Better at being human?! Okay, I say that a bit tongue-in-cheek ... I think. After a trip to Japan, Jim Gaffigan said it well in one of his skits. It takes you less than a day in Tokyo to realize that the basic fiber of living is in many ways more elevated than what you are used to. Running a bit late, my friends and I ran right up to the door of a bus, and the driver sighed. Only then did we notice a marker some TEN feet away, behind which a group of people had already organized themselves into a line and were patiently excusing our ignorance. At the subway we noticed carriages for only women during designated "rush hours" for their greater comfort  😀. And yes, the toilets do make you feel like your country you thought was so developed all your life has actually been (and still is) in the stone age—we're not talking about 4K, AI or rocket science here — just t oilets! Why haven't we perfected the toilet yet? They didn't stop at the toilet, lol. Japan's techno...

A picture with some colors and some shapes


The day you stop writing is the day you have nothing left to say.
How often do you say something worth writing down? That you can't tell Gemini wrote it is more telling than anything I've ever heard you say. The wordiest sentence is less noisy than your mouth. Reading what I wrote is voluntary. Hearing what I say is forced upon you. Several good writers could have replaced half the workforce way before AI could. How many wasteful meetings could have been replaced with a single, well-written WhatsApp message? If they won't listen to the message, they won't listen to three hours of you blowing hot air. The best speakers are good writers. If you can't write in complete sentences, imagine what you sound like. The only things you really need to hear have been written down. Speech needs only survive the moment, writing the test of time. If you don't have the patience to write, do you really think you have the patience to listen? What takes 30 minutes to listen to takes 5 minutes to read, and what takes 30 minutes to listen to again takes 5 minutes to read again, then again and then again. Every good writer must dumb down their speech, and every good reader uses a much smaller portion of their brain to interpret the words coming out of your mouth. Stop talking, say something and write it down. I've never heard "think before you write." Writers don't need to be reminded to choose their words carefully. A good piece of writing is music to my ears. A poor writer has every reason to fear what he has written will be used against him. A good writer is used to it. First we stopped writing. Then we stopped reading. Then we stopped listening. Then we stopped talking. Now we're just staring. What comes after Gen Alpha? Would you like to see a picture with some colors and some shapes? I keep a piece of what I share for myself. No one cared what he had to say until he put on the mask. Write something, I'm giving up on you.


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