I think the growing disenchantment that pops up towards makers like this from time to time is most closely related to a certain smugness that accompanies the presentation of the thing. A certain sense that maker culture is onto something special, that they are the seeds of some sort of movement.
I more or less agree with the sentiment others have expressed that maker culture is nothing new, and has existed in all socioeconomic strata of many -- yes, mostly male -- groups of societies for a long time.
But in my short life thus far, at least in the circles I travel in, maker culture has lately achieved a certain mainstreaming, which looks to me at least somewhat more inclusive and generally accessible than I recall from my youth. The internet has something to do with this. It looks to me to be on balance a net plus for society.
The reaction of the author is natural swing of the pendulum, reminding others that there are other important things besides simple creation, material or otherwise. She also draws important attention to a natural side effect of capitalism, which is that things that generate capital are highly prized, sometimes out of proportion to what they actually deserved, when society is looked at as a whole.
I more or less agree with the sentiment others have expressed that maker culture is nothing new, and has existed in all socioeconomic strata of many -- yes, mostly male -- groups of societies for a long time.
But in my short life thus far, at least in the circles I travel in, maker culture has lately achieved a certain mainstreaming, which looks to me at least somewhat more inclusive and generally accessible than I recall from my youth. The internet has something to do with this. It looks to me to be on balance a net plus for society.
The reaction of the author is natural swing of the pendulum, reminding others that there are other important things besides simple creation, material or otherwise. She also draws important attention to a natural side effect of capitalism, which is that things that generate capital are highly prized, sometimes out of proportion to what they actually deserved, when society is looked at as a whole.