You can't criticize these people for what they do. Survey Says I cringe whenever unsupported conclusions are drawn from poorly designed surveys. It should come as no surprise that individuals with enough money to afford a laptop, a cell phone, a beeper, and a home computer are also likely to believe in democracy, feel in control of change, and be optimistic about their future. Wired would have gotten the same result if the researchers had compared the attitudes of those who drive a Lexus to work with the attitudes of those who take the bus. This is pure conjecture.
Art is only as good as the entity that creates it.
The computer is just a new kind of paintbrush. It will always take true creative genius to produce great art, regardless of the medium. The satellite-based telecom industry generates billions of dollars annually and provides thousands of jobs. NASA and JPL, by comparison, amount to chump change. Forget Europe, Japan, and especially Russia.