Derek S
@thecontraire.bsky.social
"My greatest wisdom is the knowledge that I do not know." —John Steinbeck • Mostly music, photography, & art • Sometimes books, business, marketing, news, and technology • No DMs • inquiries@thecontraire
Pinned
Derek S
@thecontraire.bsky.social
· Apr 6
From Long-Tail Theory to Community Revival: The Evolution of Culture and Commerce - The Contraire
The Contraire By: @thecontraire.bsky.social / A Road Back: In Exile and Out of Exile Sunday, April 6, 2025 Introduction The following is my personal theory as to how and why certain societal, economic...
thecontraire.com
How social media and billionaires broke the #LongTailTheory —and why the future of fulfillment isn’t in your feed, but in your #community. A personal theory on #culture, capitalism, and connection.
#socialmedia #econsky #sociology #psychology #econ #tech #HandsOff
thecontraire.com/2025/04/long...
#socialmedia #econsky #sociology #psychology #econ #tech #HandsOff
thecontraire.com/2025/04/long...
🎶 #NowPlaying 🎶
Fuck it up
Burn it down
Cover it all in gasoline
Light the match
Turn around
Level it all and flee the scene
Choke it in
Spit it out
Make a nightmare into a dream
Cover it all in gasoline
#Gasoline
#AllRageStillOnlyNumb
#StoryOfTheYear
Fuck it up
Burn it down
Cover it all in gasoline
Light the match
Turn around
Level it all and flee the scene
Choke it in
Spit it out
Make a nightmare into a dream
Cover it all in gasoline
#Gasoline
#AllRageStillOnlyNumb
#StoryOfTheYear
Story Of The Year - Gasoline (All Rage Still Only Numb) (OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO)
YouTube video by SharpTone Records
youtu.be
November 28, 2025 at 7:11 PM
🎶 #NowPlaying 🎶
Fuck it up
Burn it down
Cover it all in gasoline
Light the match
Turn around
Level it all and flee the scene
Choke it in
Spit it out
Make a nightmare into a dream
Cover it all in gasoline
#Gasoline
#AllRageStillOnlyNumb
#StoryOfTheYear
Fuck it up
Burn it down
Cover it all in gasoline
Light the match
Turn around
Level it all and flee the scene
Choke it in
Spit it out
Make a nightmare into a dream
Cover it all in gasoline
#Gasoline
#AllRageStillOnlyNumb
#StoryOfTheYear
Reposted by Derek S
"We shall not cease from exploration, and the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time."
-T. S. Eliot
-T. S. Eliot
November 24, 2025 at 5:08 AM
"We shall not cease from exploration, and the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time."
-T. S. Eliot
-T. S. Eliot
🎶 #NowPlaying 🎶
I'm not the man I'll grow to be
In many years to come
I'll listen where I used to speak
And I'll sit where I used to run
Maybe a husband to a wife
Maybe a father to a son
And they'll know like I know
That the road is long…
#TheRoadIsLong #Passenger
I'm not the man I'll grow to be
In many years to come
I'll listen where I used to speak
And I'll sit where I used to run
Maybe a husband to a wife
Maybe a father to a son
And they'll know like I know
That the road is long…
#TheRoadIsLong #Passenger
🎶 #NowPlaying 🎶
I'm everything I have become
From all that's been before
I've never really known a lot
But one thing
I am sure that I know
Yes, I know
That the road is long
#TheRoadIsLong #Passenger
I'm everything I have become
From all that's been before
I've never really known a lot
But one thing
I am sure that I know
Yes, I know
That the road is long
#TheRoadIsLong #Passenger
The Road Is Long
YouTube video by Passenger - Topic
youtu.be
November 28, 2025 at 5:11 PM
🎶 #NowPlaying 🎶
I'm not the man I'll grow to be
In many years to come
I'll listen where I used to speak
And I'll sit where I used to run
Maybe a husband to a wife
Maybe a father to a son
And they'll know like I know
That the road is long…
#TheRoadIsLong #Passenger
I'm not the man I'll grow to be
In many years to come
I'll listen where I used to speak
And I'll sit where I used to run
Maybe a husband to a wife
Maybe a father to a son
And they'll know like I know
That the road is long…
#TheRoadIsLong #Passenger
🎶 #NowPlaying 🎶
Thrice
Anaheim, CA — November 2025
House of Blues Anaheim
#photography #concerts
#thrice #dustinkensrue
#houseofblues #hobanaheim #anaheim
Thrice
Anaheim, CA — November 2025
House of Blues Anaheim
#photography #concerts
#thrice #dustinkensrue
#houseofblues #hobanaheim #anaheim
November 24, 2025 at 5:11 AM
🎶 #NowPlaying 🎶
Thrice
Anaheim, CA — November 2025
House of Blues Anaheim
#photography #concerts
#thrice #dustinkensrue
#houseofblues #hobanaheim #anaheim
Thrice
Anaheim, CA — November 2025
House of Blues Anaheim
#photography #concerts
#thrice #dustinkensrue
#houseofblues #hobanaheim #anaheim
🎶 #NowPlaying 🎶
I hope that I will
Never let you down
I know that this
Can be more than just
Flashing lights and sound
Can we pick you off the ground?
More than flashing lights and sound…
#TheArtistInTheAmbulance #Thrice
I hope that I will
Never let you down
I know that this
Can be more than just
Flashing lights and sound
Can we pick you off the ground?
More than flashing lights and sound…
#TheArtistInTheAmbulance #Thrice
🎶 #NowPlaying 🎶
I'm still gonna try
To do what's right
I know that there's a
Difference between sleight of hand
And giving everything you have
There's a line drawn in the sand
I'm working up the will to cross it
#TheArtistintheAmbulance #Thrice
youtu.be/dqy1jA8-WCQ
I'm still gonna try
To do what's right
I know that there's a
Difference between sleight of hand
And giving everything you have
There's a line drawn in the sand
I'm working up the will to cross it
#TheArtistintheAmbulance #Thrice
youtu.be/dqy1jA8-WCQ
Thrice - The Artist In The Ambulance [Audio]
YouTube video by Thrice
youtu.be
November 24, 2025 at 12:44 AM
🎶 #NowPlaying 🎶
I hope that I will
Never let you down
I know that this
Can be more than just
Flashing lights and sound
Can we pick you off the ground?
More than flashing lights and sound…
#TheArtistInTheAmbulance #Thrice
I hope that I will
Never let you down
I know that this
Can be more than just
Flashing lights and sound
Can we pick you off the ground?
More than flashing lights and sound…
#TheArtistInTheAmbulance #Thrice
Reposted by Derek S
Look, there it stands,
as if insentient.
When it stilled my mind
and drew me to itself
and I came near,
I saw that it was
absolute stillness,
O Arunachala!
Ramana Maharshi, 20th century
#Photography #Poetry #SpeirGorm #Stunday #ImageAndVerse #ArtOfBlueSky #PhotographersOfBlueSky #EastCoastKin
as if insentient.
When it stilled my mind
and drew me to itself
and I came near,
I saw that it was
absolute stillness,
O Arunachala!
Ramana Maharshi, 20th century
#Photography #Poetry #SpeirGorm #Stunday #ImageAndVerse #ArtOfBlueSky #PhotographersOfBlueSky #EastCoastKin
November 23, 2025 at 8:54 AM
Look, there it stands,
as if insentient.
When it stilled my mind
and drew me to itself
and I came near,
I saw that it was
absolute stillness,
O Arunachala!
Ramana Maharshi, 20th century
#Photography #Poetry #SpeirGorm #Stunday #ImageAndVerse #ArtOfBlueSky #PhotographersOfBlueSky #EastCoastKin
as if insentient.
When it stilled my mind
and drew me to itself
and I came near,
I saw that it was
absolute stillness,
O Arunachala!
Ramana Maharshi, 20th century
#Photography #Poetry #SpeirGorm #Stunday #ImageAndVerse #ArtOfBlueSky #PhotographersOfBlueSky #EastCoastKin
Reposted by Derek S
‘I am not some stone commission
Like a statue in a park
I am flesh and blood and vision
I am howling in the dark
Long blue shadows of the jackals
Are falling on a pay phone by the road
Oh, all they ever wanted
Was just to come in from the cold’
Joni Mitchell
#imageandverse
#eastcoastkin
Like a statue in a park
I am flesh and blood and vision
I am howling in the dark
Long blue shadows of the jackals
Are falling on a pay phone by the road
Oh, all they ever wanted
Was just to come in from the cold’
Joni Mitchell
#imageandverse
#eastcoastkin
November 23, 2025 at 3:22 PM
‘I am not some stone commission
Like a statue in a park
I am flesh and blood and vision
I am howling in the dark
Long blue shadows of the jackals
Are falling on a pay phone by the road
Oh, all they ever wanted
Was just to come in from the cold’
Joni Mitchell
#imageandverse
#eastcoastkin
Like a statue in a park
I am flesh and blood and vision
I am howling in the dark
Long blue shadows of the jackals
Are falling on a pay phone by the road
Oh, all they ever wanted
Was just to come in from the cold’
Joni Mitchell
#imageandverse
#eastcoastkin
Reposted by Derek S
August 19, 2025 at 1:26 PM
🎶 #NowPlaying 🎶
Starting to permeate
A shifting paradigm
Ain’t always taking place
In a race against time
I wouldn’t hesitate
The work is never done
In a continuous
Race against time
Slow burn
Billowing
Your turn
Meet mе at the front…
#Circulate #TheStartingLine
Starting to permeate
A shifting paradigm
Ain’t always taking place
In a race against time
I wouldn’t hesitate
The work is never done
In a continuous
Race against time
Slow burn
Billowing
Your turn
Meet mе at the front…
#Circulate #TheStartingLine
🎶 #NowPlaying 🎶
Cultural demolition
Never was set in stone
In the midst of repetition
Subtle changes
Manage to occur
Slow burn
Billowing
Your turn
Meet me at the front…
#Circulate #TheStartingLine
Cultural demolition
Never was set in stone
In the midst of repetition
Subtle changes
Manage to occur
Slow burn
Billowing
Your turn
Meet me at the front…
#Circulate #TheStartingLine
The Starting Line - Circulate (Official Music Video)
YouTube video by The Starting Line
youtu.be
November 23, 2025 at 10:22 PM
🎶 #NowPlaying 🎶
Starting to permeate
A shifting paradigm
Ain’t always taking place
In a race against time
I wouldn’t hesitate
The work is never done
In a continuous
Race against time
Slow burn
Billowing
Your turn
Meet mе at the front…
#Circulate #TheStartingLine
Starting to permeate
A shifting paradigm
Ain’t always taking place
In a race against time
I wouldn’t hesitate
The work is never done
In a continuous
Race against time
Slow burn
Billowing
Your turn
Meet mе at the front…
#Circulate #TheStartingLine
The Format
October 2025
@ Hollywood Forever
Hollywood, CA
#photography
#concerts #theformat
#natereuss #sammeans
#hollywoodforever
#hollywood #california
October 2025
@ Hollywood Forever
Hollywood, CA
#photography
#concerts #theformat
#natereuss #sammeans
#hollywoodforever
#hollywood #california
November 22, 2025 at 9:00 PM
The Format
October 2025
@ Hollywood Forever
Hollywood, CA
#photography
#concerts #theformat
#natereuss #sammeans
#hollywoodforever
#hollywood #california
October 2025
@ Hollywood Forever
Hollywood, CA
#photography
#concerts #theformat
#natereuss #sammeans
#hollywoodforever
#hollywood #california
🎶 #NowPlaying 🎶
It's just another stretch of highway
I never asked for ordinary time
And time change
If I rewrote this
It might just sound the same
#DareTo… #Spitalfield
It's just another stretch of highway
I never asked for ordinary time
And time change
If I rewrote this
It might just sound the same
#DareTo… #Spitalfield
Dare To...
YouTube video by Spitalfield - Topic
youtu.be
November 21, 2025 at 9:11 PM
🎶 #NowPlaying 🎶
It's just another stretch of highway
I never asked for ordinary time
And time change
If I rewrote this
It might just sound the same
#DareTo… #Spitalfield
It's just another stretch of highway
I never asked for ordinary time
And time change
If I rewrote this
It might just sound the same
#DareTo… #Spitalfield
“John Steinbeck once said that socialism never took root in America because the poor see themselves not as an exploited proletariat but as temporarily embarrassed millionaires.”
—Ronald Wright, A Short History of Progress
#quotes #ronaldwright #books
#johnsteinbeck #steinbeck
youtu.be/eU9Rvot38cI
—Ronald Wright, A Short History of Progress
#quotes #ronaldwright #books
#johnsteinbeck #steinbeck
youtu.be/eU9Rvot38cI
November 5, 2025 at 7:11 PM
“John Steinbeck once said that socialism never took root in America because the poor see themselves not as an exploited proletariat but as temporarily embarrassed millionaires.”
—Ronald Wright, A Short History of Progress
#quotes #ronaldwright #books
#johnsteinbeck #steinbeck
youtu.be/eU9Rvot38cI
—Ronald Wright, A Short History of Progress
#quotes #ronaldwright #books
#johnsteinbeck #steinbeck
youtu.be/eU9Rvot38cI
Reposted by Derek S
NEW: Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic nominee and a state assemblymember, will become New York City’s next mayor, The Associated Press reports.
He will be the city’s first Muslim mayor and, at age 34, ties the record for the youngest person to hold the office. https://to.pbs.org/4ovh28q
He will be the city’s first Muslim mayor and, at age 34, ties the record for the youngest person to hold the office. https://to.pbs.org/4ovh28q
November 5, 2025 at 2:40 AM
NEW: Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic nominee and a state assemblymember, will become New York City’s next mayor, The Associated Press reports.
He will be the city’s first Muslim mayor and, at age 34, ties the record for the youngest person to hold the office. https://to.pbs.org/4ovh28q
He will be the city’s first Muslim mayor and, at age 34, ties the record for the youngest person to hold the office. https://to.pbs.org/4ovh28q
It’s Election Day.
☑️ Virginia
☑️ New Jersey
☑️ NYC
☑️ Pennsylvania
✅ California (we’re not losing this)
+
🔥 Jack Smith, gloves off dgaf
We work the offseason to win when it counts.
If good things happen, it’s because we were effective enough to earn them. Keep going.
☑️ Virginia
☑️ New Jersey
☑️ NYC
☑️ Pennsylvania
✅ California (we’re not losing this)
+
🔥 Jack Smith, gloves off dgaf
We work the offseason to win when it counts.
If good things happen, it’s because we were effective enough to earn them. Keep going.
November 4, 2025 at 5:13 PM
It’s Election Day.
☑️ Virginia
☑️ New Jersey
☑️ NYC
☑️ Pennsylvania
✅ California (we’re not losing this)
+
🔥 Jack Smith, gloves off dgaf
We work the offseason to win when it counts.
If good things happen, it’s because we were effective enough to earn them. Keep going.
☑️ Virginia
☑️ New Jersey
☑️ NYC
☑️ Pennsylvania
✅ California (we’re not losing this)
+
🔥 Jack Smith, gloves off dgaf
We work the offseason to win when it counts.
If good things happen, it’s because we were effective enough to earn them. Keep going.
🎶 #NowPlaying 🎶
This goddamn machine
Hungry and heartless
My whole generation
Got lost in the margin
We put our faith in you
You turned a profit
…
You can't have my friends
You can't have my brothers
You can't have me
No, you can't have me
#Cigarettes&Saints #TheWonderYears
This goddamn machine
Hungry and heartless
My whole generation
Got lost in the margin
We put our faith in you
You turned a profit
…
You can't have my friends
You can't have my brothers
You can't have me
No, you can't have me
#Cigarettes&Saints #TheWonderYears
The Wonder Years - Cigarettes & Saints (Official Music Video)
YouTube video by Hopeless Records
youtu.be
November 2, 2025 at 3:41 PM
🎶 #NowPlaying 🎶
This goddamn machine
Hungry and heartless
My whole generation
Got lost in the margin
We put our faith in you
You turned a profit
…
You can't have my friends
You can't have my brothers
You can't have me
No, you can't have me
#Cigarettes&Saints #TheWonderYears
This goddamn machine
Hungry and heartless
My whole generation
Got lost in the margin
We put our faith in you
You turned a profit
…
You can't have my friends
You can't have my brothers
You can't have me
No, you can't have me
#Cigarettes&Saints #TheWonderYears
“… Meta, Amazon, and Google—and even the newer AI labs such as OpenAI—have remade our world and have become unfathomably rich for it, all while being mostly oblivious or uninterested in the fallout.
…
In all scenarios, the outcome seems only to be real, painful disruption for the rest of us.”
…
In all scenarios, the outcome seems only to be real, painful disruption for the rest of us.”
Here’s How the AI Crash Happens
The U.S. is becoming an Nvidia-state.
www.theatlantic.com
November 2, 2025 at 3:33 PM
“… Meta, Amazon, and Google—and even the newer AI labs such as OpenAI—have remade our world and have become unfathomably rich for it, all while being mostly oblivious or uninterested in the fallout.
…
In all scenarios, the outcome seems only to be real, painful disruption for the rest of us.”
…
In all scenarios, the outcome seems only to be real, painful disruption for the rest of us.”
Run it back.
11/1 @ Sentinel Bridge
#photography #yosemite #halfdome #nationalparks #nature #travel #roadtrips
#ProtectOurParks
11/1 @ Sentinel Bridge
#photography #yosemite #halfdome #nationalparks #nature #travel #roadtrips
#ProtectOurParks
November 2, 2025 at 3:14 PM
Run it back.
11/1 @ Sentinel Bridge
#photography #yosemite #halfdome #nationalparks #nature #travel #roadtrips
#ProtectOurParks
11/1 @ Sentinel Bridge
#photography #yosemite #halfdome #nationalparks #nature #travel #roadtrips
#ProtectOurParks
"Consistent purpose is not enough to make life happy, but it is an almost indispensable condition of a happy life."
— Bertrand Russell
#quotes #philosophy #bertrandrussell
— Bertrand Russell
#quotes #philosophy #bertrandrussell
September 15, 2025 at 6:11 PM
"Consistent purpose is not enough to make life happy, but it is an almost indispensable condition of a happy life."
— Bertrand Russell
#quotes #philosophy #bertrandrussell
— Bertrand Russell
#quotes #philosophy #bertrandrussell
🎶 #NowSpinning 🎶
We're doing fine
And it gets
Better every time
We're doing fine
But I'll let you decide
There's something wrong
Cause everybody knows
That we can do this
On our own…
#Woah #Paramore
#AWKIF
youtu.be/oOj35ta7GQ8
We're doing fine
And it gets
Better every time
We're doing fine
But I'll let you decide
There's something wrong
Cause everybody knows
That we can do this
On our own…
#Woah #Paramore
#AWKIF
youtu.be/oOj35ta7GQ8
September 15, 2025 at 5:20 PM
🎶 #NowSpinning 🎶
We're doing fine
And it gets
Better every time
We're doing fine
But I'll let you decide
There's something wrong
Cause everybody knows
That we can do this
On our own…
#Woah #Paramore
#AWKIF
youtu.be/oOj35ta7GQ8
We're doing fine
And it gets
Better every time
We're doing fine
But I'll let you decide
There's something wrong
Cause everybody knows
That we can do this
On our own…
#Woah #Paramore
#AWKIF
youtu.be/oOj35ta7GQ8
Reposted by Derek S
August 1, 2025 at 11:00 AM
The Birds Don't Sing @ The Vatican
Clipse (ft. John Legend, Voices of Fire)
www.youtube.com/live/UFixHZE...
——
#TheBirdsDontSing
#Clipse #JohnLegend #VoicesofFire
#LetGodSortEmOut
Clipse (ft. John Legend, Voices of Fire)
www.youtube.com/live/UFixHZE...
——
#TheBirdsDontSing
#Clipse #JohnLegend #VoicesofFire
#LetGodSortEmOut
LIVE: ‘Grace for the World’ Concert from Vatican City ft. Pharrell, Andrea Bocelli, Karol G & more
YouTube video by ABC News
www.youtube.com
September 15, 2025 at 4:13 PM
The Birds Don't Sing @ The Vatican
Clipse (ft. John Legend, Voices of Fire)
www.youtube.com/live/UFixHZE...
——
#TheBirdsDontSing
#Clipse #JohnLegend #VoicesofFire
#LetGodSortEmOut
Clipse (ft. John Legend, Voices of Fire)
www.youtube.com/live/UFixHZE...
——
#TheBirdsDontSing
#Clipse #JohnLegend #VoicesofFire
#LetGodSortEmOut
Sullen pupils
Sunken
Accost
Or lost
Freely wandering
Well-worn roads built
By calloused soles
But long forgotten
Found in
Seeking discovery
A fragile meaning
Slow sealing and soldering
Hell-torn holes ripped
Through imbalanced roots
Below frail ground.
Sunken
Accost
Or lost
Freely wandering
Well-worn roads built
By calloused soles
But long forgotten
Found in
Seeking discovery
A fragile meaning
Slow sealing and soldering
Hell-torn holes ripped
Through imbalanced roots
Below frail ground.
September 15, 2025 at 4:13 PM
Sullen pupils
Sunken
Accost
Or lost
Freely wandering
Well-worn roads built
By calloused soles
But long forgotten
Found in
Seeking discovery
A fragile meaning
Slow sealing and soldering
Hell-torn holes ripped
Through imbalanced roots
Below frail ground.
Sunken
Accost
Or lost
Freely wandering
Well-worn roads built
By calloused soles
But long forgotten
Found in
Seeking discovery
A fragile meaning
Slow sealing and soldering
Hell-torn holes ripped
Through imbalanced roots
Below frail ground.
🎶 #NowPlaying 🎶
I'm everything I have become
From all that's been before
I've never really known a lot
But one thing
I am sure that I know
Yes, I know
That the road is long
#TheRoadIsLong #Passenger
I'm everything I have become
From all that's been before
I've never really known a lot
But one thing
I am sure that I know
Yes, I know
That the road is long
#TheRoadIsLong #Passenger
The Road Is Long
YouTube video by Passenger - Topic
youtu.be
September 12, 2025 at 7:00 AM
🎶 #NowPlaying 🎶
I'm everything I have become
From all that's been before
I've never really known a lot
But one thing
I am sure that I know
Yes, I know
That the road is long
#TheRoadIsLong #Passenger
I'm everything I have become
From all that's been before
I've never really known a lot
But one thing
I am sure that I know
Yes, I know
That the road is long
#TheRoadIsLong #Passenger
Reposted by Derek S
Think of yourself as dead. You have lived your life. Now take what's left and live it properly.
Marcus Aurelius
🪷🪷🪷 🌊
(Photo by Kirpal Singh)
Marcus Aurelius
🪷🪷🪷 🌊
(Photo by Kirpal Singh)
September 12, 2025 at 6:01 AM
Think of yourself as dead. You have lived your life. Now take what's left and live it properly.
Marcus Aurelius
🪷🪷🪷 🌊
(Photo by Kirpal Singh)
Marcus Aurelius
🪷🪷🪷 🌊
(Photo by Kirpal Singh)