[Note: a significant amount of this column appeared on 9/25 in the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. I live in Sarasota FL so there is a Florida emphasis here. ] These two hurricanes have dominated the news cycles for the past few weeks. Initially, there was hyperventilating weather and news coverage. Where will landfall be? When will […]

It was about 10 years ago that I started to write about electric cars in this space with this and this column.  It was clear to me then that, ultimately, they would become mainstream and become a significant percentage of cars driven in the developed countries of the world.  In early 2008, I forecast that 2010-2015 would be the dawn of the age of the electric car and of course it was.

The title of this column is an obvious lift from James Carville’s famous line about the 1992 election: “It’s the economy, stupid”.  That is probably the most quoted campaign statement from TV talking heads of all time, certainly since he uttered it 25 years ago.

In this past year [or two] of politics and elections, much has been made about what is going on with national elections.  The pundits have looked at what has happened largely through the lens of traditional political thinking.  The rise of populism and nationalism.  The global elite class leaving the eviscerated middle class and lower classes behind in the rush to embrace globalism.  Well, okay, that is certainly true to some degree.  But these lenses of traditional political thinking do not fully explain the realities of what has and is happening.

In a recent column here titled “The Next 20 Years: 2017-2037” I wrote: “There will be more change in the next 20 years than any 20-50 year period in history. In fact, future historians may well look back on this time as a historical transit as significant as the beginning of the Industrial Revolution or […]

There will be more change in the next 20 years than any 20-50 year period in history. In fact, future historians may well look back on this time as a historical transit as significant as the beginning of the Industrial Revolution or the Renaissance. It is hard to imagine any area of life that will […]

Last week I took a look back at forecasts made here about media. This week we look back on forecasts made about technology. Again, as a futurist I post forecasts on my web site, what I forecast and when that forecast was made. February 2008 “We now have “smart” phones. In the years ahead everything […]

Starting with this column and for the next few weeks, I will revisit forecasts I have made over the last ten years. As far as I know, I am the only futurist who posts most of my forecasts – what I forecast and when I did so- on my web site.  All of the forecasts […]

In an earlier column in this space, I wrote about the dominant technology trends of 2017 and beyond. Today, I want to address what will be one of the most dominant technology trends in human history. Artificial intelligence is being mentioned everywhere in the media, as it is dramatically developing and being deployed everywhere in […]

This is the Transformation Decade a name I coined on 01/01/10. The dictionary definition of transformation is “ a change in form, appearance, nature or character” Given the current political, social and economic climate in America and the world today, this description certainly pertains. Most institutions, certainly businesses are actively going through some form of […]

2017 will see the continuation of the collapse of physical retail. There will be many more store closings this year following the recent announcements from Macy’s, Sears, and K-Mart. This is something I have been forecasting for years. Back in January 2009 I wrote: “Retailing is in a free fall.  There will be numerous bankruptcies […]