RSSSeattle / Silicon Valley dust-up
I caught the original spat between Techcrunch's Michael Arrington and Redfin's Glen Kelman when it first popped up last month, debating whether or not Seattle is now in contention to be "the next Silicon Valley" as the New York Times put it, with Seattle native Kelman taking the Pacific Northwest corner and Arrington championing the Valley. I dismissed those, and the inevitably resulting blog storm, as both pointless and irrelevant to this blog (not that I don't comment on a lot of other things equally irrelevant to this blog). But now that CIO magazine has seen fit to cover it I suppose I can weigh in (from my desk here in Seattle).
It's still pointless, mind you; people find ways to justify the choices they make, however ridiculous, and choosing where you live is significant enough to most people that they can defend it as self-righteously as their favorite sports team. So Kelman, Arrington, and most of the rest are talking past one another about a lot of things that can't really be quantified or compared and which probably don't matter all that much even if they could be.
I have to admit a little disappointment in those who have raised the Seattle banner, though. What the hell are you people thinking? If you actually win the argument somehow, you're just going to saddle us with more Californians. I realize that Kelman, in the real estate business, may very well have this as an ulterior motive, but the rest of you have no excuse. One of the best characteristics of Seattle, I've always felt (and which point has been hit upon by no few of those "defending" the Emerald City), is its native ability to be insularly disdainful, and even arrogantly superior, of and about things that the rest of the country values. It may happen that this has some business advantages, sure; but those of you out waving the flag are disproving the point by waving it: what do you care what people think? If we have a good thing here, make the best of it, let those who fit in find there way here (they will, on their own), and be succesful while keeping the rest of the country in the dark. It's the Internet, for crying out loud, who cares where you are? And if you dislike or feel superior to Silicon Valley, talk it up! Otherwise you're going to have all the very people who make it what it is on your doorstep, and then there really will be nothing to brag about.
