Nobody’s Born a Cover Song

Somewhere along the way we left the front door open, and the noise walked in, wiped its feet, and made itself the man of the house. When was the last time you had a thought of your own? Not one GenAI fed you. Not one a podcast handed you on the drive in. Not one you scrolled past and absorbed without noticing. Just an old-fashioned thought that came out of the blue while you were walking, or sitting still, with no one watching. If you have to reach for it, you're not alone. That's rather the point. The world is loud, and it is a problem … but it’s not the whole problem. The whole problem is that we're accomplices in our own murder. We pulled up the chair and asked, “Sugar?” A 24-hour news cycle. Spotify, YouTube, Instagram, TikTok. Each one quietly stripping people of their ability to think freely. And now a fresh wave coming up the rear, promising to think for you, write for you, answer for you. Where's the You in any of it? We keep chasing the same answer down different prompts,…