Columnist David Brooks is coming to town tomorrow. He is, no doubt, on a junket to sell his latest book—The Social Animal. I am leery of Mr. Brooks’ latest insight into human nature. It was just a few short years ago that he was decidedly on the wrong side of explaining the mortgage crisis.
But I did watch his book tour interview with Charlie Rose last week and found myself drawn to the scientific research he credits for inspiring his new book. Brooks does seem at least interested in how people think. His column on Monday was another riff on smart questions. I like this theme. So even if I don’t agree with Brooks much of the time, I do appreciate his approach.
The great state of Minnesota has a funny approach to thinking. There is a lot of homegrown pride in being a thoughtful community. New York Mills, MN is the town that hosts “The Great American Think Off”, and even when we elect a showman wrestler to the top job, he turns his wrestling moniker into Rodin’s Dante, a poet and intellect. (Yeah, that campaign does work on many levels.)
So welcome to our town Mr. Brooks. You will no doubt fill Westminster Town Hall Forum to capacity like you have on your previous visits. You will probably even sell a whole bunch of books; the snow hasn’t melted yet here and many of us are down to the last of our winter reading stacks.
I will probably even dust off my 1959 Knowledge Worker lingo in favor of your emergent systems culture and economy talk.
