Are you buying away America this holiday season? Well, if you're not, make sure you do your part by using your hard earned savings to buy those plasma TV you always wanted. Wait, what about a brand-new Sony PlayStation 3 gaming console? With this little gadget, you and your kids can spend hours and hours playing in front of the plasma TV! Allowing you some quality time to bond with your kids! Or, what about an iPod-compatible home theater system which you always wanted to play your favorite pirated albums? What about those fancy, trendy-looking clothes which you would always want to wear to go to a party? With such a low price at your local Wal-Mart or malls your dreams may just have come true.
What you must not forget is to say thank you to the countless Chinese migrant workers whom has to endure a meager or no pay to just to make your life more enjoyable. Even better, these workers often get paid overtime, have health insurance coverage, live in nice housings, and their children even get a chance to go to local school! What is there not to like?
Other things you should also be more optimistic is that you are trading away America's future by buying products made abroad. This include an exchange of the U.S. job market with cheap foreign produces. For now, it's ok you're trading away low-tech jobs. Wait until you start trading away hi-tech jobs. Now, that would be something we should all be excited about!
Please, be responsible over this holiday season. Please buy away America this season.
While you're at it you might as well buy away your soul and conscience.
Saturday, November 25, 2006
Tuesday, November 21, 2006
On consumerism, pop culture and the hollow self-identity
It is in no doubt that the world we live in today are more free, open, and diverse. But, under this twisted form of freedom in a pseudo-democratic state, are we really free? North America is the premier place in which an average Joe or Jane is always surrounded by mass media, notion of consumerism, and the everlasting, but poison, pop culture. One should then ask, what extend do these have on us, as human beings?
Do we feel more liberated through shopping and buying meaningless produce and products? Do we, as the people in a Western society, feel more comfortable by indulging in pop culture? No, we do not. We are simply following the models and guidelines written by corporate conglomerates and its high executives, with the sole purpose of meeting their bottom line. We are simply transferring the burden and human rights abuse to the unlucky people of the Third World countries, where a worker has to work an average of 40 plus hours to earn a minimum hourly wage of merely few cents just to satisfy the insatiable needs of you and me. Now, what is the justification in that? Are we morally responsible? Have we lose our conscience by indulging in expensive clothes, electronic gadgets, TV sets, and game consoles? Are we retaining our self-identity through soul searching, cultural identification, and self understanding, or is it being molded by Nike labels, Reebok shoes, Levi Jeans, and Gap clothes?
How hollow are we becoming when one has to learn history from franchised movies, fiction novels, and tabloid newspapers? Could we be this stupid, or are we just lazy to search for the truth?
I rarely visit shopping malls, but when I did I would always notice three things. One, the number of malls and its accompanying shops would always outnumber the number of museums and libraries altogether. Secondly, the population density per acre in a shopping mall would always outnumber that of libraries or museums. Finally, by the differences in the level of comfort. For example, in malls you would always guaranteed to have a multiplies of chairs, sofas, lavatories, information services and etc., but in a library and museum you would only have a limited few. Now, doesn't this tell you something?
Consumerism and empty pop culture are transforming you and me into mindless, thoughtless, buying-on-impulse zombies. One who is oblivious to the current worldly events, such as the Palestinian issues, the human rights abuse in China, Africa, Europe, and the Middle East, and the environmental problems, namely Global Warming, to just name a few. How are we to notice these when we are so overwhelmed by the indoctrinated buying instincts? This not only applies to the working class but also to the educated elites.
Will we ever wake up in time to save our souls? This answer is for you to figure out. Nobody can write your own destination, you've to write and walk it yourself!
Do we feel more liberated through shopping and buying meaningless produce and products? Do we, as the people in a Western society, feel more comfortable by indulging in pop culture? No, we do not. We are simply following the models and guidelines written by corporate conglomerates and its high executives, with the sole purpose of meeting their bottom line. We are simply transferring the burden and human rights abuse to the unlucky people of the Third World countries, where a worker has to work an average of 40 plus hours to earn a minimum hourly wage of merely few cents just to satisfy the insatiable needs of you and me. Now, what is the justification in that? Are we morally responsible? Have we lose our conscience by indulging in expensive clothes, electronic gadgets, TV sets, and game consoles? Are we retaining our self-identity through soul searching, cultural identification, and self understanding, or is it being molded by Nike labels, Reebok shoes, Levi Jeans, and Gap clothes?
How hollow are we becoming when one has to learn history from franchised movies, fiction novels, and tabloid newspapers? Could we be this stupid, or are we just lazy to search for the truth?
I rarely visit shopping malls, but when I did I would always notice three things. One, the number of malls and its accompanying shops would always outnumber the number of museums and libraries altogether. Secondly, the population density per acre in a shopping mall would always outnumber that of libraries or museums. Finally, by the differences in the level of comfort. For example, in malls you would always guaranteed to have a multiplies of chairs, sofas, lavatories, information services and etc., but in a library and museum you would only have a limited few. Now, doesn't this tell you something?
Consumerism and empty pop culture are transforming you and me into mindless, thoughtless, buying-on-impulse zombies. One who is oblivious to the current worldly events, such as the Palestinian issues, the human rights abuse in China, Africa, Europe, and the Middle East, and the environmental problems, namely Global Warming, to just name a few. How are we to notice these when we are so overwhelmed by the indoctrinated buying instincts? This not only applies to the working class but also to the educated elites.
Will we ever wake up in time to save our souls? This answer is for you to figure out. Nobody can write your own destination, you've to write and walk it yourself!
Saturday, November 04, 2006
Dear Mr. President
Here's Dear Mr. President from Pink's latest album, I'm not dead. Enjoy!
So, when is Dear Mr. Prime Minister coming out?
At least, a live president is better than a dead one!
So, when is Dear Mr. Prime Minister coming out?
At least, a live president is better than a dead one!
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