IPS Blog

Managing Donald Kaul's fan mail got harder after his farewell column. That's no surprise — he's a master columnist with a vast and loyal following. Yet I had a hunch that this part of my job wasn't quite as challenging as it should be. So I checked with the good people who manage the OtherWords email system and got what Don would call "unsettling news."

Virtually all the emails sent to OtherWords@ips-dc.org were going nowhere. And they weren't bouncing. Anyone sending them had no way to discover that no one would ever read them.

I hate to admit this. But I want to do my best at shepherding all those messages from all the readers and editors who are relaying their kind words to Don. A tech expert has sworn that those vanished emails aren't retrievable no matter how hard he and his colleagues wave their magic wands. So, if you emailed a note to that address before Tuesday afternoon, when we fixed this snafu, please send it again.

Here's a collection of my favorite letters and comments that streamed into my inbox before and after this glitch got resolved, paired with gems I found in various comment sections. Please, keep them coming. I've excerpted passages from the longer missives and left in two terms that may be unfamiliar. Many readers refer to "Over The Coffee," the title of Kaul's column in the Des Moines Register for years. Because he sometimes playfully referred to himself as "O.T. Coffee," he earned the nickname "O.T."

—Emily Schwartz Greco, the managing editor of OtherWords, a non-profit editorial service run by the Institute for Policy Studies. Please send (or re-send) your letters to Donald Kaul via email to otherwords@ips-dc.org. You can also snail-mail them to OtherWords, 1112 16^th Street, NW, Suite 600, Washington, DC 20036.

The Letters So Far

"Thank you for the years of wit and insight you have provided. I hope you have many years left at '100 percent.' If you do, send me the name of the doctors 'cause I haven't been at 100 percent in many years either. I don't have to go through that whole heart attack thing to get to 100 percent do I? Hug the wife, eat well and avoid nincompoops as best you can, unless you find them entertaining. Highest regards, a fan."
—Gene Ferrell

"I am 84 and if you stop writing I'll have to call 911. Seriously, please keep writing. It doesn't have to be politics all the time. Tell us about your life in journalism. You're a very funny guy who is quite serious. Don't let your fans down (and you've got tons of them)."
—Norm from Glenview, Illinois

"Your assessment of what is going on in DC, and in the rest of the country, also, the churches, is right on in my book. Please keep on writing! The world still needs the wisdom (dare I any longer use that word?) of the Silent Generation, especially yours. Besides, it will be good for you! I know that you are not a 'believer,' whatever that exactly means, but I am, whatever that exactly means, so I will just go ahead and offer prayers for your recovery and health. Best wishes."
—Elliot Blackburn

"Get well and keep us sensible folk in mind. The crazies are taking over. You have more great observations to make."
—Ann Bevington

"Even though Congress may give you a bad stomach ache, we need you to keep on a keepin' on. I'm looking forward to the day when you'll be back on the firing line. With best regards,"
—Roy Hickman, Kerrville, Texas (formerly from Ames, Iowa)

"You help to keep us sane by voicing what many of us are thinking but not articulating, certainly not as well as you do. Thanks for all of these years of great reading...may they continue."
—Sue Sharp Johnson, Oelwein, Iowa

"What a great article, My broken heart! Telling all your readers about what you went through, always adding a little humor, a little advice, but still writing about what's so important to most of us Americans. Please get back on your road to recovery and hopefully back to what you have always done best, writing! Your faithful reader,"
—Duane Lombardi

"This brings both good news and bad news about Donald Kaul. First, I'm so glad to hear that he survived the serious heart attack. But the last of what he wrote, about him dropping out of writing, is very sad/bad news. The last part of his words, about the status of our country and Congress, contain some real hard hitting zingers and I sure agree with him. Best wishes Donald. I hope you won't give up on your writing. You have sharp and needed wisdom to share. I hope I will be able to read your words at least from time to time. The crooks, the robber barons, the bible thumpers, the politicians on both sides, and the apathetic public all need your wise attention."
—Charlotte Walker, Coralville, Iowa

"I wish Donald well in his recovery, will take his advice regarding chest pains and will miss his columns that were islands of respite in the sea of madness that is this on-line posting, publishing, social media or whatever we call it place on the Internet where we go to read and write now."
—Paul Deaton

"My thoughts are with you, Donald. I may be one of the few people in the country who can honestly state that I have every book you've published. I often feel like things have gone to far to keep fighting, but I've decided the alternative to fighting is dying, and I don't think you're any more ready to do that than I am. Take care of yourself."
—Maciej P. Wojtkowski, Olsztyn, Poland

"I grew up in Iowa, nurtured on a weekly diet of 'Over The Coffee' in the Des Moines Register. Donald, you were my first :-) columnist that I read regularly. Your column about Pat Buchanan's speech at the 1992 Rep. Convention is permanently laminated in my literary collection. I am wishing passionately for your complete physical recovery and hoping that you find the fortitude to keep writing. But mostly just get well!"
—pammy2

"Your columns have helped me cope with the madness that's taking over. And while that might not suffice as a reason for you to continue writing, it's not nothing. Here's wishing you a long and happy life. Thank you for the many smiles, laughs and insights since I found Over The Coffee in the 1975."

—John Kerr, Lee's Summit, Missouri, formerly of Rockwell City, Carroll, and Ames, Iowa

"I and most everyone I know have been reading Kaul since we were kids. Congrats to Kaul on the positive prognosis and he deserves to live his life out happy for everything he has already given us. For us though, the world is a little less sane without his commentary."
—Trish Nelson, University of Iowa

"So sorry to hear of your recent health problems but I wish you a full and speedy recovery. I also hope you will find the means to continue writing; your weekly editorial columns have always been a bright spot in this part of the Bible Belt."
—David B., Aurora, Missouri

When I tell people that I work for the New Economy, the response I often get is, "So is that, like, Google and stuff?" It takes a second for me to explain that the New Economy movement is about promoting the public ownership of wealth and that it involves a structural and cultural reorientation toward what's good for stakeholders in the community, rather than corporations.

At the recent progressive “Take Back the American Dream” conference, my partner immediately lost interest when I said this. He leaned back and gave a disappointed, "Oh… so like co-ops?" as an answer. Indeed, compared to the exciting world of shiny tablets and nifty smart phone apps, the concept of public ownership is decidedly old hat. Municipally owned utilities, Employee-Stock Purchase Plans, and community development corporations have been around (and prospering) for decades. Looking at the evidence, public ownership is as established as the state-owned Bank of North Dakota and the public-investment Alaska Permanent Fund that they champion.

But his initial reaction got me thinking: Can new technologies become part of the new economy movement?

On the one hand, the tech market is hardly an exception to the typical oligopoly speculation machine found in other industries. Google and Apple control 82 percent of the smartphone market. Microsoft's got an 88 percent share in operating systems, and in the United States, 82 percent of search engine operations fall under Google’s control, as well, allowing it to practically dictate privacy settings on the Internet. On top of unabashed monopolization, scandalous labor practices, such as those of Apple in China, provide little reassurance that these companies care much for what they do to communities. And the willingness to fuel bubbles evinced by Facebook's Instagram buyout suggests a mindset as greedy and careless as that of any i-banker.

On the other hand, the culture of companies like Google and Zynga is decidedly more open to New Economy principles than traditional industries. Google's "Don't be Evil" mantra, and its occasional genuine willingness to forego profit for the sake of the common good — witness the China office's decision to reroute through censorship-free Hong Kong — seem to suggest an open ear to end goals beyond profit. Its famous employee perks, no matter how instrumental for retaining talent, still equip workers with nap pods and free onsite childcare. And the concern with employee well-being extends to even smaller companies, such as Tagged, which gives its employees wellness allowance, yoga studios, and quiet rooms.

On average, high tech companies seem more participatory, less hierarchical, and more community-oriented than traditional industries. They also indicate a greater skepticism towards Wall Street bankers, the biggest opponents of the New Economy movement. Both Google and Facebook show a special concern for keeping control of their corporations in the hands of the founders. Finally, there's also the inherent sympathy of Silicon Valley, a place whose success stems from the public research of nearby universities and government projects. Stanford-raised entrepreneurs should have no trouble understanding the New Economy’s emphasis on anchor institutions and rooted development.

Perhaps the ultimate answer is that the new tech sector offers an opportunity, if not an immediate slam-dunk, for the New Economy Movement. Chuck Collins, in his "99 to1" book on inequality, argues that Occupy should partner with the portion of the 1 percent that is sympathetic to the protesters' goals. High tech is a great place to start. Less entrenched than finance and more oriented towards experimentation, Silicon Valley's entrepreneurs are more likely to consider a non- Keynesian-spending-or-austerity economic model. In a place where nothing-to-lose-by-trying start-ups are the norm,  should find an audience willing to listen.

Thus, we should try addressing ourselves to Silicon Valley entrepreneurs, to see if the language of Dilbert and Office Space can speak to the concerns of all of our communities.

Olga Musayev is a recent graduate from Yale University working to bring the principles of the New Economy Working Group to the next generation.