Mike Arrington, don't go, we need you

I do agree with Michael Arrington that we are losing an element of beauty in the start-up world. I know exactly what he means in his recent blog post, Silicon Valley could use a downturn right now. I am not a developer but I am creating an application that I truly believe in, with the help of unjaded and rightly motivated programmers and designers. And I am afraid of getting into the midst of the feeding frenzy with our site because I know we will necessarily lose something. There is something about the purity and idealism of the idea. The fact that we and the people we personally engage think it’s terrific and helpful: that’s about the extent of what motivates me. But because we are human, we are not impervious to competitive instincts, to the survival instinct even. And if it means playing the game in terms of raising money (or avoiding investors) and getting the right kind of publicity...what is an entrepreneur supposed to do?

Michael Arrington might consider his role in re-shaping the investment environment and the determinants of success of a new company. Perhaps it's a different kind of fund-raising mechanism for entrepreneurs who simply need less money, or new models for incubating companies like Y Combinator or Ooga Labs. He has a responsibility to side with beauty, to bolster it in an unbeautiful world.