Avant-Garde, a late-60s magazine that I admired in those days, used to run features that offered the reader a collection of short answers to a question, all from a group of well-known people. Usually the group of know-it-alls ran heavy on artists, writers, musicians, filmmakers, and so forth. The editors once asked 25 “noted Americans” to say who they thought was the most hated man in America.
The answers, taken as a group, were quite interesting.
Another time the magazine's editors asked a panel to name the machine they hate the most, and why. Then another panel was asked to predict what ordinary things, in their time, would be transformed into classics, 20 years into the future. That one was fun. I remember someone said something like -- Converse's (Chuck Taylor) canvas basketball shoes will be rediscovered, to be seen as cool by a whole new generation.
That one sure turned out to be a bulls-eye.
Today, I doubt many of the gizmos, to do with communication, will matter much 20 years from now. So, what ordinary things in 2012 do you think will be seen as classic, or perhaps much-collected kitsch, in 2032?
Since 1985, in various formats, SLANT -- an independent voice based in Richmond's Fan District -- has offered its readers original commentary on politics and popular culture, including cartoons and selected sundries. Warning: Sometimes that means satirical content. All rights are reserved.
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