intellectual properties

“And so I quit…”

In the past, my feelings toward Facebook and similar social networking sites had swung between a genuine sense of connection and community to the uncomfortable awareness that what all of our blogs, online journals and personal profiles really amounted to was serious narcissism. As my feelings of over-exposure continued to mount, the obvious solution would have been to set limits on my Facebook time – yet I still found myself sucked in for longer periods every time I visited. In part, it was the hundreds of little links to and hints about other people’s lives that kept me coming back. But even more addicting were the never-ending possibilities to introduce, enhance and reveal more of myself…

…In the end, what does all this online, arms-length self-promotion ultimately provide? Perhaps it’s merely one component of the pursuit to alleviate some of the blackness encountered in the existential vacuum of modern life. As Schopenhauer once projected, modern humans may be doomed to eternally vacillate between distress and boredom. For the vast majority of people experiencing the fragmented, fast-paced modern world of 2008, a Sunday pause at the end of a hectic week may cause them to become all too aware of the lack of content in their lives. So we update our online profiles and tell ourselves that we are reaching out…

–http://www.adbusters.org/magazine/80/quit_facebook.html

somewhere to go

it’s more than a little unnerving that i relate so much to this:

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waking up

related to the New Yorker piece on subversive advertising, there is The Reconquest of Cool:

Suddenly, people are waking up in droves from the dreamland of corporate cool. We’re realizing that ever since we were little babies crawling around the TV sets in our living rooms, we’ve been lied to, propagandized, and told incessantly, day after day, that we can find happiness through consumption. That’s why, like rats in a Skinner box, we’ve kept on pressing that BUY button – millions of us marching in lockstep, all dreaming the same consumerist dream.

Now the fog is lifting. We’re finally beginning to understand where this bogus cool has been leading us: not to happiness and prosperity as promised in the ads, but to cynicism, ecocide and a brutal, dog-eat-dog future.

i think this is possibly true for older generations, but i think today’s youth are still deep in the fog, still defining themselves by logos and possessions. the presence of D&G and LV ripoffs all over street fashion is a sign of the times. is there anything that will bring them out, or is consumer culture too ingrained?

BND 2007

a friend of mine sent a link to this news story about a toy made in China that contains a chemical that turns into GHB when ingested (it’s not intended for ingestion, but kids eat things). she expressed concern that people are putting their consumer values ahead of their health and safety values. this news item is quite timely considering the holiday season is right around the corner, and so is BUY NOTHING DAY.

On November 23, we celebrate the fifteenth annual Buy Nothing Day. This year is going to be exceptional. The mainstream has finally woken up to the reality of the environmental crisis, and the responsibility that lies with us, the planet’s most affluent – the upper 20% that consume 80% of the world’s resources. Now’s our chance to do something about it.

i think that not only is buying american (or european, or canadian, or other places that have 1st world health and safety standards, not just for us but for them) is important, but more important than that i think is just plain NOT BUYING.

rampant consumerism is killing our environment, our children, our economy. it all just has to stop. whether it’s toxic toys from china or plastic disposable things made in the USA, we don’t need more crap – we need less. and the more people think they need, the more they’re willing to give up in terms of human rights and safety so that they can get cheaper and cheaper goods.

americans are so addicted to the instant-gratification response of consumerism (which is promoted and put into our brains by commercial marketing and the media) that we think it feels like “punishment” for american families to force themselves to stop buying toys and all kinds of cheap chintzy crap at Wal-Mart and instead save money for healthier, better things. WTF?

the money spent on material things we don’t need could be put to better use in our lives – better food, better homes, higher education, healthy activities, self-improvement, savings accounts for your kids … all kinds of things. for you AND your children. think about how much money you would save for your family if every time you went to the store you only bought things you really need, instead of things you think you WANT.

if we want to save our children’s futures, we need to stop feeding into a toxic economy NOW, and also be good role models to teach our children different and better consumer spending habits. there is just no way around it.

BND 2006

forget the jam-packed malls and streets
spend your friday cuddling at home with your loved ones
raking leaves
basking in sun or fog
reading a long lost book
taking care of yourself
remembering that in other parts of the world,
$100 buys 2 months of education
or a year’s worth of clean water
and be thankful that you are alive and well and loved
instead of wanting what glitters in the darkness.

friday, november 24th, is Buy Nothing Day. resist.
=http://www.adbusters.orgadbusters.org

B N C

picky.eater has reminded me that it’s already that time of year again when the GAP and MACY*S have about two hundred sales and stupid jingles ring in your ears at the bank and the grocery store and the pharmacy and advertisers go nuts trying to convince you that you NEED things you have absolutely no use for and make you feel GUILTY for not buying your special someone a glittery glowy sparkly rock or scented pillow or heated shoes or SOMETHING.

once again, i advocate boycotting the consumer mania and focusing on spending the time and effort and money you would’ve spent shopping on treating your friends and family as human beings that you love, not just gift recipients. make charitable donations, work a soup kitchen, give a heap of toys to the Goodwill. if you must buy something, buy something good and pure and USEFUL and productive, not some ugly sweaters or gadgets no one will use or toys that will break in 10 minutes, and above all else don’t buy it for yourself, even if it is on sale for 99.99% off.

Buy Nothing Day

dear friends and family,

i’m writing to urge you to kick off this holiday season by laying off the credit cards. you already have enough debt, don’t you? instead of spending your Friday-After-Thanksgiving (how many free Fridays off work do you get a year? one!) wandering swarmed shopping malls, spending money on over-priced made-in-china consumer goods, why not take the day to actually spend it with your friends and family, get out and get some fresh air, take the kids to the zoo, or something else healthy and productive? and, in the meantime, save yourself some money and help to curb America’s consumption?

i know what you’re thinking: but what about all those sales?! holiday shopping will boost America’s slumping economy! it’s my patriotic duty to go shopping! that really is a false dream, and i urge you to literally not “buy in” to those kinds of capitalist, consumer-focussed arguments for holiday spending.

for more information, take the tour at Adbusters to learn more about Buy Nothing Day. OR – visit Buy Nothing Christmas, to learn about more alternatives for the holidays. especially check out the stories and comments section, which also includes comments AGAINST this campaign.

love to you all, and best wishes for a CALM, PEACEFUL holiday season.

p.s. i’m giving your permission to forward this on if you feel like spreading the word.

buy nothing day

it’s coming soon — a little over a month from today: the day after thanksgiving. to some, it’s a free friday off work, a day to spend with the family, the start of a three day weekend. to others (mostly women), it’s the “biggest shopping day of the year”. millions of consumers flood commercial districts, spending money on everything from children’s toys to fur coats — most of which is unnecessary and wasteful. this year, why not use the day for something more constructive, and less destructive? i’m sure most of you have credit card bills as deep as mine. Buy Nothing Day is an annual resistance to corporate gluttony and consumerism. i’m sure you can think of better ways to spend your day than crammed into an obnoxious shopping mall, going through sales racks. so how about it? want more info?