A couple of streams of thought colliding:

1. When you add a comment to my site, you have to click the “ADD + VALUE” button, which means you’re adding value to conversations we have here.
2. Comments close automatically after five days. This policy was originally instituted to prevent old conversations (ie, stupid arguments) from dragging on indefinitely and to - hopefully - keep things moving at a brisk pace, and to keep people within this shared value community focused around the same basic sets of subject matters.
3. The front page of this blog now displays only posts from the past day. When you click “Old Articles” at the bottom of the page, it takes you to the day previous to that. You can comment on anything, therefore, within the first five pages chronologically backwards into the site’s history.

What this has the net effect of doing is focusing conversations around CURRENT topics. Since I have been writing so much about alternative systems of currency lately, this seems like some kind of important connection, but I’m not yet sure how to pull the inherent value out of it, or necessarily even what questions to ask to begin doing so.

While we’re thinking about this topic though, check out Current Gallery, a Baltimore-based gallery here in town run by a friend of mine. As far as I understand it, the building in which they are set up is going to be demolished by the city at an undetermined date in the near future. Somehow, in the meantime, he was given the right to run an art gallery within that space temporarily until it is demolished.

Incidentally, he and I were talking about perhaps organizing some events in this gallery collaboratively: maybe some readings or lectures or something. I am currently courting a couple people within the region (other bloggers and deep-thinkers who many of you know and love) to get together for just such an event. Will keep you posted on progress there…

{See also: my post on wax tablets}

One other quote to toss into this mix:

This is because community currencies lose value the moment you get them so you spend them. The value part works a bit like airmiles. Community currencies are therefore only valid for a short period of time then they expire. Gone. Defunct. A former valuable item becomes worthless. So you spend it.

CURRENTCY!