Social Cartography

First, Watch This:

http://www.ted.com/talks/view/id/61



I love disaster flicks. I like the scene when all the important people are gathered, the President, the general, the Cabinet, the chest of drawers (I kid!), and the meek yet not-unattractive scientist explains the catastrophe - the meteor is coming, or the virus is spreading - and then they go to the projected damage screen. It always shows the point of impact or origin and then a scary red circle grows in size as the meek scientist says "Here's the affected area after a day, two days, a week, etc..." And then the sad music plays.

Based on the TED video I linked (I don't know how to embed. I tried and there was html everywhere), it looks like they really do something like that to deal with diseases and outbreaks and whatnot. Which is pretty cool. I think they call them Ghost Maps.


I'd like to see a Life Map of an entity with a positive influence on its community. I'd like to be in the room of important guys as the meek Pastor, or Community Volunteer, points to a screen and says, "This is the neighborhood three years ago before we established our church/school/rec center and after 6 months, 9 months, a year 18 months, and two years, we've reduced crime by 5% and increased the property value by 1% and all the babies born in the area can read as soon as they're born." I'd like to see that.

There are more churches in the within the city limits of Dallas TX than in any other city on the planet. What does Dallas's Life Map look like? What are the Hot Zones of well-being, charity, good-will and even tempered dispute resolution? How many inmates in the Dallas County Correctional Facility and Day Spa have been visited?

In the video, a single water pump near a Cess pool killed thousands. Shouldn't a fountain of the water of life have opposite effect?

I've been to Dallas. It's no Shining City on a Hill. It's a mean place with bad drivers, and sports teams that can't hack it in the post-season. It's a bunker of concrete, thirtythousandaire condos, and is in no real way distinguishable as a city full of churches. Maybe the guy who told me that was talking about the fried chicken joint. Which would make Dallas one of the most delicious cities in the world.

Churches used to run hospitals. Ever hear of Presby? Methodist? Churches used to have the sort of impact that could be charted on a Life Map. Churches used to plant themselves inside of cities instead of fleeing to highway off-ramps.

I'm moving into a new neighborhood soon. Maybe I'll make a good impact there. Maybe in a few years I'll meekly chart my relationship with my neighbors and see what kind of impact I've made. Maybe I can get James Spader in a lab coat to do the presentation. I hope Rip Torn will wear a General's Uniform if he attends. My life is a disaster flick, and it's probably boring if you're not in it. Michael Bay must be directing.

Hold Fast,

Caulfield