The Angel List Controversy, Fred's Marketing Controversy

Image by Lachlan Hardy via FlickrThere are two major controversies raging in the blogosphere right now. One is to do with The Angel List. The other is to do with our own Fred Wilson's blog post about marketing. Fred has started a s_itstorm by suggesting the best tech startups don't need marketing budgets. In fact, that is how he spots a great tech startup when he sees one.

The Angel List controversy I am sanguine about. I don't see two sides to the argument. There are many ways to invest. The Angel List is just one of them. Efforts like The Angel List have surely democratized the investment climate for the early stage startups. But there are old school holdouts with proven track records who think the process at The Angel List is too diluted. You can't really find nuggets of gold there.

I have said before that I don't expect an iconic company like Google, Facebook to emerge out of Y Combinator. But Y Combinator has been a great entrance to the scene. The majority of startups are not going to go IPO. And Y Combinator works great for such middling efforts.

Santogold/Santigold: Brooklyn Anthems

Brooklyn And Santogold/Santigold
Barack Is Going To Need Me All Over Again

Brooklyn And Santogold/Santigold

Image by The U.S. National Archives via FlickrSantigold: MySpace, Wikipedia, YouTube

Barack almost took Brooklyn during the February 2008 primary. Things were looking so bad before the primary day, Congressman Weiner urged Hillary to make an appearance in Brooklyn, and she did.

I moved to New York City summer of 2005 and placed myself in the smack center of the borough.

Darabi Hits Top 5 Again At This Blog

The first time was here. Never underestimate the power of a controversy to generate page hits. More page hits from a magazine article controversy than from World FoodSpotting Day.

Bihar, Darbhanga

Image via WikipediaI am increasingly thinking in terms of India. More specifically the great state of Bihar. Specifically my birthtown of Darbhanga. I am thinking in terms of Darbhanga as the place I want to start with.

I know the terrain. I know the state language, the national language, the local languages.

India has been the largest microfinance market in the world. Bihar is India's poorest state.

But I need to do my homework first.

Twitter Is Amazing For Networking

Image via WikipediaTwitter is absolutely the best tool out there for networking. Because it is so low pressure. There is much power in 140 characters.

You do have to know the kind of people you are looking for. In my case I am looking for angel investors. There is The Angel List that everyone knows about. Recently I created one called NYC Angels.

You try to enter into the conversation. Once you locate the herd where you want to hunt, you start replying to tweets. You read articles people have tweeted, and you write back your comments. Most of the time you will get ignored. The fish don't bite. And that's okay.

But I got one big shot to agree to meet me. And I am in talks with another with whom by now I have moved over to email. There is rapport.

In Foley Square A Libya Feeling

Image by Rob Blatt via FlickrI have been obsessed with news about Libya. So when I showed up for the Foley Square rally to express solidarity with Planned Parenthood earlier today, I kept thinking about Libya.

This event had enormous buzz. When you hear about an event on Facebook, and PlanCast, and over email and maybe one or two other ways, you know something's going on. And this rally was as big as I expected it to be. Looked to me like the entire New York congressional delegation was there. And many other speakers.

Incredible India

"I want to be a truck when I grow up."

A Gurkha Joke

Image via WikipediaMore people from Nepal died in the two world wars than people from any non warring country. The Nepalis fought on the side of the British. The feudal rulers of Nepal kept the British in India happy by supplying soldiers.

When Thatcher invaded the Falkland Islands in the 1980s, the Gurkhas were at the forefront of the swift victory. It is said they ran with their knives/khukris, not guns.

The politics of fighting for another country is another topic. And I have my views. But for now, here's a joke.

This was World War II. The British were busy defending themselves in Burma. One Gurkha got lost in the jungles of Burma in the north. After long weeks of walking he finally showed up in the capital city of Rangoon, down south. He was asked, how did you do it? How did you make it all the way to Rangoon?

"That was not a problem, Sir," the Gurkha soldier replied. "I had a map."

The officer took a look at the map. The guy had a really old map of London with him.

Guns Of Brooklyn: Santogold

With shared music tastes - if this is any indication - Fred, I might even let you invest in my company! ;-)



(Via Fred Wilson)

Soraya Darabi In New York Magazine

Foodspotting Co-Founder Soraya Darabi Likes to Pick Food Off Other People’s Plates, Doesn’t Advocate Gummy Bears for Lunch

A Tweet From Someone Running For Congress

My Reply

Hackers And Founders MeetUp: Amazing

Image via CrunchBaseLast night I dropped by the Hackers And Founders MeetUp after a long gap of months, and it was just an amazing experience. It was about how I felt - very comfortable - and the people I met - fun and interesting and amazing - and some work leads I was able to generate. I might have found myself a business consulting gig. And I am constantly on a lookout for people to grab. If I can't get them in round one, I will need them in round two. That tends to be my attitude.