Thursday, January 17, 2008
Fearful Consumers
"For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind."
2 Timothy 1: 7 (NKJV)
Peace and blessings,
One of the things I have noticed since being in higher education is the importance of being critical of one's surroundings. That's not to say that one has to be in higher education to be critical, but that it just when it happened for me. Among other things, one of the things that I have been extremely critical of is the American media (e. g. talk shows, news, etc...) and the overt and covert messages they give to us as Americans. It is my belief that many of the messages put forth by various mainstream media outlets (most of which are owned by the same small group of wealthy elites) try to condition us into developing to two distinct yet related "dispositions." On one end, we are constantly being bombarded with news about violence, the threat of violence, and other things that are considered dangerous to our way of life. It has gotten to the point where we are afraid of or suspicious of others wherever we go. Now I know violence and danger are a part of reality, as my heart and prayers will forever go out to anyone who has lost someone to violence. Therefore, I am not saying that the media should sugar-coat things and make them seem better than what they are. However, I just find it strange that news related to violence and the threat of violence over-whemingly outweighs the news about good, positive things that we as individuals and as collectives do all the time. Can we get a little balance here? I believe that the reason why the answer to this question has in the past and is currently "no" is because unlike feeling good or positive, feeling afraid has deep psychological effects. It is this psychological effect that I think certain media giants bank on to help them maintain their profits. When we are afraid, we are often willing to go to great lengths to alleviate that fear. It is this consequence of fear that leads me to the other disposition I think we are often being conditioned to adopt...
What does someone who is afraid of not being popular, someone who is afraid of getting old, and someone who is afraid being vulnerable have in common? Each of them will likely go to great lengths to alleviate their fear. In American society, it appears that one of the best ways to capitalize off of this fear (and I think certain major corporations understand this a great deal) is for us when we are afraid to consume or purchase things we believe will provide us security and comfort. There are times when I have to check myself and ask "do I really need this, or am I just afraid of going without it , or of how others would view me if I did not have it?" Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that we are dumb and easily conditioned into doing whatever. There are tons and tons of money that goes into marketing campaigns for various companies, and many times than not the people working on these campaigns are very knowledgeable about human behavior. Whether it's a deep-dish pizza or a 2008 Porsche or a whatever, the goal of many marketing-based commercials is to make us as viewers feel that we need to purchase that product. In others, it's like they want us to be afraid of how our life would be without that particular product. Before I conclude let me clarify something. I am not pointing any fingers at those who work in marketing because I have major respect for the profession. In fact, I considered majoring in it in undergrad and would like to personally learn more about what all goes into marketing. The point I am trying to raise is that as with the news about violence and threats to our lifestyle, there is a such a proliferation of commercials promoting consumption that I rarely expect commercials to be about anything different. Of course there are different types of commercials out there with other messages (e. g. health issues), but again it is about balance. This lack of balance has led me to believe that one of the major goals of mainstream media outlets is to keep us afraid and to keep us consuming. In other words, make us fearful consumers.
What do you think? Stay blessed, encouraged, and speekonit...
2 Timothy 1: 7 (NKJV)
Peace and blessings,
One of the things I have noticed since being in higher education is the importance of being critical of one's surroundings. That's not to say that one has to be in higher education to be critical, but that it just when it happened for me. Among other things, one of the things that I have been extremely critical of is the American media (e. g. talk shows, news, etc...) and the overt and covert messages they give to us as Americans. It is my belief that many of the messages put forth by various mainstream media outlets (most of which are owned by the same small group of wealthy elites) try to condition us into developing to two distinct yet related "dispositions." On one end, we are constantly being bombarded with news about violence, the threat of violence, and other things that are considered dangerous to our way of life. It has gotten to the point where we are afraid of or suspicious of others wherever we go. Now I know violence and danger are a part of reality, as my heart and prayers will forever go out to anyone who has lost someone to violence. Therefore, I am not saying that the media should sugar-coat things and make them seem better than what they are. However, I just find it strange that news related to violence and the threat of violence over-whemingly outweighs the news about good, positive things that we as individuals and as collectives do all the time. Can we get a little balance here? I believe that the reason why the answer to this question has in the past and is currently "no" is because unlike feeling good or positive, feeling afraid has deep psychological effects. It is this psychological effect that I think certain media giants bank on to help them maintain their profits. When we are afraid, we are often willing to go to great lengths to alleviate that fear. It is this consequence of fear that leads me to the other disposition I think we are often being conditioned to adopt...
What does someone who is afraid of not being popular, someone who is afraid of getting old, and someone who is afraid being vulnerable have in common? Each of them will likely go to great lengths to alleviate their fear. In American society, it appears that one of the best ways to capitalize off of this fear (and I think certain major corporations understand this a great deal) is for us when we are afraid to consume or purchase things we believe will provide us security and comfort. There are times when I have to check myself and ask "do I really need this, or am I just afraid of going without it , or of how others would view me if I did not have it?" Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that we are dumb and easily conditioned into doing whatever. There are tons and tons of money that goes into marketing campaigns for various companies, and many times than not the people working on these campaigns are very knowledgeable about human behavior. Whether it's a deep-dish pizza or a 2008 Porsche or a whatever, the goal of many marketing-based commercials is to make us as viewers feel that we need to purchase that product. In others, it's like they want us to be afraid of how our life would be without that particular product. Before I conclude let me clarify something. I am not pointing any fingers at those who work in marketing because I have major respect for the profession. In fact, I considered majoring in it in undergrad and would like to personally learn more about what all goes into marketing. The point I am trying to raise is that as with the news about violence and threats to our lifestyle, there is a such a proliferation of commercials promoting consumption that I rarely expect commercials to be about anything different. Of course there are different types of commercials out there with other messages (e. g. health issues), but again it is about balance. This lack of balance has led me to believe that one of the major goals of mainstream media outlets is to keep us afraid and to keep us consuming. In other words, make us fearful consumers.
What do you think? Stay blessed, encouraged, and speekonit...
Labels: America, consumersim, fear
Thursday, October 25, 2007
News Updates: Southern Cali Wildfires; America a Nation of Fear?; God's Love for us as Individuals
Peace and blessings,
Below are a few news updates. Please pray for those who have lost homes and/or loved ones during these fires. Also pray for our country. Take care, have a blessed day, and speekonit...
1) The Wildfires that recently hit Southern California may start to get under control
2) A very insightful article about the power of fear especially within the U.S.
3) An article about how God loves as individuals, and how we can learn to better love ourselves. God is good because earlier this week my friends and I were just talking about doing away with guilt, and forgiving ourselves for our transgressions once God has forgiven us.
Below are a few news updates. Please pray for those who have lost homes and/or loved ones during these fires. Also pray for our country. Take care, have a blessed day, and speekonit...
1) The Wildfires that recently hit Southern California
2) A very insightful article about
3) An article about how
Labels: America, fear, God, love, news, prayer, Southern California
Friday, July 06, 2007
On the Immigration Debate, pt. 2
Peace and blessings,
As promised, I wanted to follow up on my previous post regarding the immigration debate. What's interesting to me is that we have a long history in this country of engaging in or allowing certain things to happen as long as those things benefit us economically. However, once these things become a burden on us, we want to do away with them completely. The way I see it, the current immigration debate is no different.
In addition to contributing to the social and cultural fabric of the U.S., most would agree that immigrants (legal and illegal) have contributed most signifcantly to the U.S. economy. Furthermore, economic prosperity (better jobs, wages, schools) is one of the main reasons that people come to the U.S. The argument that the amount of illegal immigrants in the U.S. is becoming "problematic" because they are using services that are intended for U.S. citizens holds weight, but viewing this argument, and the whole debate through a historical lens may shed some light on what should be done to address this issue.
This country was founded on, and is maintained by, capitalism. In other words, America came to be as a result of a minority of people exploiting and gettting wealthy on the backs of the majority. The very first manifestation of this was slavery, which was the most extreme form of capitalism. In contemporary society, capitalism generally refers to the idea of maximizing profit from cheap labor. Slavery was an extreme form of this because slaves (especially those working in the fields) did not get paid anything.
It is my belief that this capitalist mentality, or this notion that there's nothing morally wrong with a few getting extremely wealthy off of the backs of those who are barely making enough for themselves to survive, let alone their families, that is mostly responsible for the large numbers of immigrants (legal and illegal) in the U.S. In other words, the "promise" of jobs and the fact that capitalism requires increasingly cheap labor to increase profits and remain competitive contributed to this widely held belief that America is the place to be if you are looking for a job. As a result, people from other countries, expecially those from countries where they are oppressed and in dire poverty, come to America to seek employment and a better life for themselves and/or their families.
For instance, not to sound stereotypical (and I apologize to my readers if this statement is interpreted as such), but most would agree that there are certain sectors and jobs that appear to be primarily occupied by immigrants. It seems like allowing immigrants to come to America and employing them to work for cheap is "cool" with major corporations and the government (they are actually one in the same) as long as the primary "consequences" of this decision are increased profits, maintenance of vital institutions, and the perpetuation of the capitalist ethos. A "consequence" that America did not expect, however, was the realization that immigrants are not just workers but human beings, and that they felt entitled, citizen or not, to utilize the services of the country that is prospering from their labor.
Now i'm not saying that nothing should be done about immigration in America because there should be. What I am saying is that in order to fully address the issue in a way that values the humanity of each immigrant and of all those involved, America must take a hard look at the cultural ethos which helped create the situation that Americans are complaining about now. Trying to address this issue by only focusing on what to do with the illegal immigrants in this country and prevent more from entering the country will not suffice. Capitalist ideas are a huge part of the problem, and thus addressing these ideas are an integral part of the solution. It's not just a political and economic issue, but a moral one.....
What do you think? What role (if any) do you think America's promotion of capitalism plays in the massive flow of immigration the country has seen in the past 20 or so years? Weigh in and speekonit...
As promised, I wanted to follow up on my previous post regarding the immigration debate. What's interesting to me is that we have a long history in this country of engaging in or allowing certain things to happen as long as those things benefit us economically. However, once these things become a burden on us, we want to do away with them completely. The way I see it, the current immigration debate is no different.
In addition to contributing to the social and cultural fabric of the U.S., most would agree that immigrants (legal and illegal) have contributed most signifcantly to the U.S. economy. Furthermore, economic prosperity (better jobs, wages, schools) is one of the main reasons that people come to the U.S. The argument that the amount of illegal immigrants in the U.S. is becoming "problematic" because they are using services that are intended for U.S. citizens holds weight, but viewing this argument, and the whole debate through a historical lens may shed some light on what should be done to address this issue.
This country was founded on, and is maintained by, capitalism. In other words, America came to be as a result of a minority of people exploiting and gettting wealthy on the backs of the majority. The very first manifestation of this was slavery, which was the most extreme form of capitalism. In contemporary society, capitalism generally refers to the idea of maximizing profit from cheap labor. Slavery was an extreme form of this because slaves (especially those working in the fields) did not get paid anything.
It is my belief that this capitalist mentality, or this notion that there's nothing morally wrong with a few getting extremely wealthy off of the backs of those who are barely making enough for themselves to survive, let alone their families, that is mostly responsible for the large numbers of immigrants (legal and illegal) in the U.S. In other words, the "promise" of jobs and the fact that capitalism requires increasingly cheap labor to increase profits and remain competitive contributed to this widely held belief that America is the place to be if you are looking for a job. As a result, people from other countries, expecially those from countries where they are oppressed and in dire poverty, come to America to seek employment and a better life for themselves and/or their families.
For instance, not to sound stereotypical (and I apologize to my readers if this statement is interpreted as such), but most would agree that there are certain sectors and jobs that appear to be primarily occupied by immigrants. It seems like allowing immigrants to come to America and employing them to work for cheap is "cool" with major corporations and the government (they are actually one in the same) as long as the primary "consequences" of this decision are increased profits, maintenance of vital institutions, and the perpetuation of the capitalist ethos. A "consequence" that America did not expect, however, was the realization that immigrants are not just workers but human beings, and that they felt entitled, citizen or not, to utilize the services of the country that is prospering from their labor.
Now i'm not saying that nothing should be done about immigration in America because there should be. What I am saying is that in order to fully address the issue in a way that values the humanity of each immigrant and of all those involved, America must take a hard look at the cultural ethos which helped create the situation that Americans are complaining about now. Trying to address this issue by only focusing on what to do with the illegal immigrants in this country and prevent more from entering the country will not suffice. Capitalist ideas are a huge part of the problem, and thus addressing these ideas are an integral part of the solution. It's not just a political and economic issue, but a moral one.....
What do you think? What role (if any) do you think America's promotion of capitalism plays in the massive flow of immigration the country has seen in the past 20 or so years? Weigh in and speekonit...
Labels: America, capitalist, citizens, cultural, debate, economic, employment, government, humanity, illegal, immigration, institutions, legal, minority, moral, political, slavery, social, U.S.
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