So, one day, as we are all wont to do, I decided to explore some of the comparative possibilities of Google Trends.
Of course, it’s necessary to see as a starting point, in the eternal war of good vs evil, which side is winning.
Huzzah, good lives to fight the fight another day, although evil had a recent spike. Note that good has been on the rise since 2004… and tends to dip during the XMAS season.
Maybe if evil had a different name, it might fare a little better in the competition.
Wow! They’re pretty close. It’s times like this that I wish Trends gave actual numbers, but that would be google exposing it’s inner data, which isn’t kosher for passover.
Well, existential concerns and eternal struggle aside, what do we really prioritize?
Well, there is a clear winner here. Obviously we’re FAR more concerned about money then happiness.
So, who gets more attention, those who have money, or those who do not?
Well, no surprise here, the rich own the media and are the gatekeepers of information, so naturally, there are 2x more mentions of what the rich experience in this world then the poor.
Yet if we phrase it a different way, it seems that we USED to be more interested in the plight of the poor. 
But now, we are more concerned with the plight of the wealthy.
I wonder why this is, what are our priorities, in terms of how we treat eachother?
Oh I see. Selfishness is on the rise, while charity has been on a baseline.
Perhaps it’s a matter of attitude?
Even with all the rhetoric, hope and fear are still neck and neck.
Hope and fear put in terms of money, what is our income to debt ratio?
Getting smaller every day, indeed, last year our money fears almost overcame our business performance. News stories crossed over.
How are hope and fear promoted on the news?
Freedom seems to be on the decline, while terror maintains steadily, with occasional spikes equating to terror events.
To get away from it all, what do we turn to?
Wow, sex wins out! We’re really interested in sex, apparently.
Ok, so rock and roll is kind of a generic phrase, how about music?
Sex is more popular then music, and the gap is widening.
Ok ok, so this is the internet, populated by geeks much more interested in cold machines then warm, soft bodies. 
Maybe not.
Ok, so what out there gets more interest and hype then sex?
News comes close, you’d think our addiction to current information could match our interest in sex, but no.
So maybe, money? Could money be more interesting then sex?
Wow, so much for gold diggers. This was kind of surprising actually.
What about love, could it be that love contains greater interest for us then sex?
Close, but not very. Maybe back in happy, idyllic 2004 when we were all spending frivilously.
Surely power, electricity, social standing, the raw, visceral respect and fear of others, is more engaging then sex.
Power, love, money, news, nothing even comes close.
So what on this earth could be more popular then sex?
No comment.
Technorati Tags: google trends, storytelling, society, research
