Paula LaBrot

Paula LaBrot is a 30-year resident of Topanga, a futurist with a special interest in the uncharted waters of cyberspace. plabrot@messengermountainnews.com

All Things Disconnected

David Goodhart, author of The Road to Somewhere, writes, “We no longer need the help of rats or fleas to spread disease—we can do it ourselves thanks to mass international travel and…

A Rare Look at Tennessee Williams’ Last Play

The Topanga Actors Company staged reading of Tennessee Williams’ last play, A House Not Meant To Stand, was performed to very appreciative full houses at the Topanga Library, over the weekend of…

E-Voting is Here!

E-voting has arrived. Let’s take a good look at it from the fundamental concept that free and fair elections are the cornerstone of our great republic.  People worry about hackers and foreign…

Smart Homes

So, what the heck is a smart home anyway? We hear it all the time, along with smart TV, smart cars, smart phones. Smart. Smart. Smart.  Smart technology is much more than…

Flu!

So, now we all know there is a city in China called Wuhan. Wuhan is the epicenter of the new coronavirus, which scientists are desperately trying to rein in before the world…

Consumer Electronics Show 2020

CES 2020, the annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, is the Super Bowl convention of consumer electronics and technologies, where exhibitors from the biggest named companies to garage geniuses converge to…

The 2020 Challenge

I have never, in my whole life, gone into a new year braced for ugly. For heaven’s sake, I’m a futurist…. usually very excited to turn the page to tomorrow. But 2020…

Goodbye, 2019

As 2019 draws to a close, we bid it farewell and turn to welcome the future, 2020.  For me, 2019 was a relentless year of loss of treasured animals and people, even…

Look for the Stars

I have a sappy, emotional mug. I love it. It says, “When it’s dark, look for the stars.” So, in the spirit of this season of love and light, I want to…

Scrooge Comes to Topanga

Every idiot who goes about with “Merry Christmas” on his lips should be boiled with his own pudding and buried with a stake of holly through his heart. Bah. Humbug. —Ebenezer Scrooge,…