Andy Lau's Icebucket and a Founding Father Sighs

With all the recent excitement that the ALS ice bucket challenge has brought young and old in the United States, I was delighted, though oddly shocked at discovering one of my beloved Hong Kong actors, Andy Lau, also has given in to the trend. (watch the video here)  He created a high-production quality video that beautifully captured the frigid ice water as it poured down his chiseled chest.  Post ice water dosing-slow mo, Andy also announced his donation before naming Jay Zhou and several other popular singers and actors to follow suit with the now INTERNATIONAL Ice Bucket Challenge. 

In today's ever-connected world, it's amazing how this "challenge" has spread like ebola! (too soon?) And it began my reflection on new media and how it is shaping behavior globally.  If you are reading this blog, I need not go into a whole lot of details regarding the good ole days of publishing compared to the instant access internet at our fingertips. 

Regardless, I began to think about if Ben Franklin were transported from toiling away on the Pennsylvania Gazette to the editorial floor of The New York Times right now, what would he think of this social media thing? I couldn't help but crack a smile at the thought of someone handing him a smart phone and saying " Hey check this out, you can receive information instantly without waiting for the post".... "Oh by the by, this is Facebook, you can keep in touch with your friends, family and classmates- sharing news, music, videos".... And then him promptly asking why on god's green earth all these people were dumping ice water on their heads, sighing out of his inability to understand. 

At any rate, the nominations to dump ice on your friends' and family members' heads have successfully circled the globe with other time traveling historical figures observing humanity and wondering how ice and water on one's head solves anything.  And to think I was going to nominate Andy Lau when I was challenged...