Thursday, November 13, 2008

Distance Trust Technologies: London

Building on my previous post about distance trust technologies, London is in a social capital recession:

The City’s woes are contributing to Britain’s economic downturn too. Over all, the number of people in Britain receiving jobless payments increased at the fastest pace in 16 years in October, reaching 980,900.

“This is the toughest we have seen it,” said Stuart Fraser, an official with the City of London. “There is now a loss of trust in financial services. We have to rebuild our reputation.”

Before that, though, there is the matter of the growing number of out-of-work bankers to deal with — a task that each day seems to grow in difficulty.

Historically, London has been through many booms and busts of distance trust technologies. The British Empire was built on such an innovation, cartography. And maps are an early form of social media. Through these works of art a common view of place is cultivated. It is a powerful narrative that most people swallow wholesale because of perceived objectivity.

I figure London will cycle through this downturn and reassert its global dominance with the next generation of distance trust technologies. The talent that once toiled in the financial district has the expertise to fuel this rebirth, as long as they don't scatter to the four corners of the earth in search of employment. I think they would be well placed in Pittsburgh and its growing niche for solving the proximity problem.

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