There is something in the air. Big changes. You can feel it. Society will change forever. Change always begins in a time of uncertainty, time of fear.

The problems with hierarchy

Our society is full of hierarchies. Think of governments, bosses, managements, teachers, media, companies etc. There are all kinds of layers in our society, some to regulate some to do the actual work.

But there is an inherit problem with the controlling elite. There is a tendency to favor themselves and their own group as with all groups. The people at the top are the richest and most powerful. The people that do the actual work are the poorest and at the bottom. If you want to be in the top you have to do some real big things to be selected in favor of a friend of that top. The same with getting work, it is all about connections and presenting yourself, not about who actually is the best.

Power to the social

But we saw the beginning of change with the coming of the internet. Information became accessible for everybody everywhere. People could learn about everything and with the coming of Google people could find information about anything.

Now we see the social revolution in the form of web 2.0. It created means to connect and share information. Websites were not run by a small elite but by everybody that wants to share. The working class could create groups online and find new kinds of organizations based on interest. Everybody could vent their opinion on blogs without being selected by an editor. Everybody could add an article to wikipedia.

Content that was the best got the most attention instead of what was chosen by a small elite. The power was to the people. The masses are becoming more smart and more creative every day.

The real turning point

But this is the first sign of change. People begin to get fed up by large institutional organizations. People flock online in self organized groups that combine or fall apart like the fluids inside a lava lamp.

It has already started with the newer generation young people who were raised in this newer web revolution. They begin to want a new education where they can roam free.

The next few weeks I will look into how society could change with this new revolution. What will happen in education, politics, economics, the business world, the media, entertainment, the third world and more?