The Long Tail of Amateurs

Just read The Cult of Amateurs by Andrew Keen. Keen presents a distressing picture of the internet and its culture. I agree with Keen that theft and fraud are rampant in some quarters of the internet. But for those of us who legally download music, Keen should reassess the internet and theft. Illegal downloaders represent the 80's mixtapes and dubs. Most people want to pay fairly for content; most people do not want to waste the shelf space or the plastic it takes to make a CD. The trade-off is that some of us are going to need to learn about myspace. I do miss album artwork (but not that much). But I like sifting through music at home on Rhapsody.
As for Keen decrying the flood of Amateurs queing up to play expert, guilty as charged....
Keen raises a good question: what ever happened to expertise?
Mostly, thanks to Keen for pointing out some of Chimera of the internet. For all of the ease and goodness, there is much mischief and foolishness there (excuse me while I answer an email from Nigeria). Yet, I love blogs and legally downloaded music and movies, banking and email, library access and, above all, online convenience and freeness. Would not trade it in!
I am currently reading Chris Anderson's The Long Tail. Anderson has good points as well.
For the most part, they are Burke and Paine - two men with good arguments talking past one another. More on this subject later (and what it has to do with God).