Predictions of the future

Published 2:49 pm Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Come, sit with us. It’s time to look into the future.

Gaze into our crystal ball. Or borrow our Magic 8 Ball. Or apply common sense — whatever’s easiest. We’re sticking with the crystal ball.

Here’s a story on the Boy Scouts of America. The group has “emphatically reaffirmed” a ban on gay scouts and scout masters, the Associated Press says.

The mist in the crystal ball is clearing. We see groups that both support and object to the ban making unreasonable arguments.

Opponents will continue to call the Boy Scouts hateful. But that can’t be right, can it? Calling a group that gets teenagers to improve public parks in their spare time hateful? Sounds more like an admirable group with a dated policy, not a hateful one.

We see defenders of the policy pointing to a U.S. Supreme Court decision that said the Boy Scouts of America is a private group, free to set its own rules — in principle, a fine point, but really, a pretty weak defense. As reasons go to exclude people, “because we can” bottoms the list.

Ultimately, we see the Boy Scouts reversing direction. It may take a decade, or it may happen in about two years, when AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson, an advocate for changing the policy, is expected to take over as president of the Scout’s national board.

It will happen, though. On this, the crystal ball is clear — and now it is fogging over again.

Let’s go back to the news. Here’s a story about a cable TV black out. Subscribers can’t see quality programming like “Jersey Shore.” Kids have to play outside instead of watching “Dora the Explorer” play outside.

Tragic.

Apparently, DirectTV is in a standoff over broadcast fees with Viacom, owner of Nickelodeon and MTV, among others.

The crystal ball is clearing. We see trouble.

It’s not clear how this dispute will resolve itself. But what is clear is that these channel freeze outs will continue, as the companies that make shows continue to bicker with the companies that beam the shows into households.

Eventually, it appears that the warring companies will agree the best way to make money will be to raise your bill. Already the price of TV is climbing. This will continue.

Images in the crystal ball are coming faster now.

We see smaller computers. Racier pop stars. More superhero movies.

We see fighting in the Middle East, in the U.S. Congress, between cats and dogs.

We see stock markets rising.

Wait, no, falling.

Shoot, now rising again.

We see it all in our crystal ball.