For the third year in a row comic news site Multiveristy named Image Comics “publisher of the year.” To coincide with granting the honor Multiversity’s David Harper sat down with Image Comics publisher Eric Stephenson to talk about the past, present, and future of the company. In the interview, Stephenson discusses the successful Image Expo which will be returning to the Bay Area on January 9, 2014. While no news about what may be announced at the 2014 Image Expo is revealed Stephenson discusses how the event came to be and how it was Robert Kirkman’s enthusiasm that set everything in motion:
…my initial reaction was essentially a cross between unbridled revulsion and abject despair. It all sounded like considerably more trouble than it was worth, frankly, but as typically happens, I got caught up in Robert’s enthusiasm for the ideas, and what do you know? Everything was fine. Better than fine, actually, because what we quickly learned was that there’s real value in making big announcements outside the circus atmosphere of the regular convention circuit.
Since I last wrote about Image Expo a number of new creators have been added to the already robust slate: Nick Spencer (Morning Glories, Bedlam), Joe Keatinge (Glory), Wes Craig (Deadly Class), James Robinson (The Saviors), Paul Azaceta (Outcast), and Joshua Williamson (Ghosted).
Tim Draper proposes California Hunger Games
TechCrunch is reporting that technology investor Tim Draper is proposing a ballot initiative that would see California broken up into six states. His plan, called “Six Californias” and available to read on TechCrunch, is currently lacking meat on the bone. One of his main points is the plan would break up monopolistic power: “Competition is good, monopolies are bad. This initiative encourages more competition and less monopolistic power. Like all competitive systems, costs will be lower and service will be better.”
That statement seems counter-intuitive to how he’s proposed the state be fragmented. The proposal would create state monopolies through concentration of industry. It sounds rather Hunger Games-esque with each state being a district with a specialization. Generalizing, we’re looking at the Bread Basket State, the Entertainment State, the Tech State, the Timber and Marijuana State, the Wine State, and the Warehouse and Distribution State.
While Draper’s proposal suggests the plan will result in “lower costs” it doesn’t address the added cost associated with intrastate vs. interstate commerce. For example, what will happen when the Bread Basket State, which currently provides a great deal of the food and dairy for California, no longer receives the significant tax support that comes from other regions?