When you’re bad at your job, you get fired. And that’s exactly what voters should do to Congress this fall. Forget about wars, unemployment, recession and healthcare reform. Congress should be fired for failing at the most essential part of their job—writing laws.

Steve Jobs didn't give us great technology: he gave us a great experience. That's what I'll remember about Steve Jobs. And not just in things named with a lower-case "I." Sure, the products that Apple introduced to the market after Jobs rejoined the company in 1997 "changed everything." For the first time, these kinds of devices were less about their specs and more about how they made you feel. Remember those early iPod commercials with silhouettes doing just about everything with the iPod in tow? It was about what you can do, not what the device can do. It wasn't about bytes, bits and speed. It was about the experience. His magic there was that he made the technology disappear. He made them beautiful. He made them fun. He made them a delight to buy, to use and even replace.

I’ve done it. Mostly unknowingly. And I’m sure you have too. In my last blog, I shared my surprise at the sheer volume of legal agreements I’ve entered as a result of living my “simple” life. (The number was 53 when I last wrote, but after further poking around, I’ve found another 17—a whopping 487 pages.)

Once I got a chance to read through these documents, I found another surprise waiting for me: about half of these agreements include pre-dispute arbitration clauses. Translation: I gave up my right to sue the other party in court.

As an information architect who spends a fair amount of time simplifying legal agreements and disclosures, I’ve developed a rather peculiar interest in these artifacts that each of us collect as we go about our lives. And because the world we live in moves so fast and furiously, we can compile quite a collection of artifacts without even noticing.