Pointing the Finger

It seems like we all like to point the finger at someone else when a problem arouses in society.  I didn’t eat the last cookie, we failed the project because the rest of the group didn’t fulfill all of their duties, the planet is crumbling because you didn’t recycle that bottle, I spent all that money because you told me to, why didn’t you tell me if I kicked the television set it would fall over and break?  Rather than stepping back from the situation and asking ourselves what the root of the problem actually is, we use the scapegoat method and blame the rest of the world for our stupid mistakes.  Naomi Klein, for example, wrote a book called No Logo.  The book basically discusses the idea that the name brands people represent and buy actually become a part of the individual themselves; almost like the media generates our supposed unique persona.  Klein is seemingly blaming what we like to term as ‘conformists’ for this mass portion of globalization.  The integration of our society is revolving around these logos that will, in turn, damage our small business economics. 

            One could say that my mind has altered some of Klein’s theories, and I have to say I am not fully knowledgeable on this particular topic, but I do believe Klein’s argument to be somewhat unimpressive.  There are always two sides of the spectrum that are typically quite antagonistic of one another.  In this sense it seems as though Klein, and her supporters, are pointing the finger at those individuals wearing what are termed as ‘logos.’  The finger is generically pointed at the Wal-Mart shoppers, the Starbucks consumers, and the Abercrombie and Fitch supporters.  Now what about the people that don’t shop at these particular stores?  They have no part in our consumerist world?  There is a plethora of individuals shopping at the same stores because they are avoiding the larger stores.  Does that not make them a part of this same consumerism?  Simply because their products are not mentioned in the media means those products are not a part of consumerism?  I hear the argument a lot about Starbucks being this huge corporation, and it has lost the value of being a small coffee shop atmosphere. 

            I wrote last weeks blog article about people being jealous of others because they are unable to do something, so rather than becoming a part of the group, they sit back and make a mockery of them.  It seems like that is a similar case issue that is happening here.  The individuals boycotting Starbucks go to other coffee shops to get practically the same coffee.  I don’t know about you, but I have yet to walk into any American coffee shop and see these coffee beans growing in the back of the store.  Starbucks in particular gets so much crap for being such a successful business, yet it seems to me like the antagonistic society is just jealous because of their brilliance.  People don’t go to Starbucks to drink cheap coffee; it’s one of the most expensive coffee shops I’ve been to.  People go there because they enjoy the coffee and the atmosphere.  It is a quick and easy way to get your morning joe, and you can do so with the person behind the counter smiling back at you.

            I don’t think Klein is false in her theories that logos create an individual persona, but I do think it is false to put the individuals that don’t conform on a pedestal.  Klein does so discretely, but by the documentary we viewed in class about No Logo it seems like the finger was pointed in every direction but her own.  It seems like the rest of the world look at Americans (and I believe some Americans do as well) in a skewed form of reality.  The elite class, the upper-middle class, and even the middle class have it pretty well off in this country.  However, when looking at the lower classes in the U.S., people tend to forget the high standards of this country.  Looking at California alone we see how nearly impossible it is for individuals to make rent, eat food, pay bills, and have a family.  When something like Wal-Mart is in our backyard telling us we can purchase a loaf of bread for $3.00 cheaper than the local organic food market, you bet your ass we’re going to take that opportunity. 

            Thomas Friedman was another individual we watched in class the other day, and discussed his book The World is Flat.  The ideas here were of outsourcing, and the jobs that are given from a corporation to third-party associates.  This area is similar to the mentioned by Klein, but Friedman seems to be on the opposite spectrum in thinking that outsourcing is a positive thing.  He seems to believe that outsourcing is opening doors for employment to individuals that didn’t seem to have much of a chance prior to this movement.  In this he claims that globalization is a “political perfect storm.”  Friedman sees all of the technological advances in the world to be a good thing in that societies are now able to communicate with one another, and it seems as though he believes this will bring about instantaneous business and personal associations with other societies.  Klein blames the individuals for globalization and outsourcing, whereas Friedman blames the individual.  Friedman claims that this world is moving in a fast direction, and you have to move fast with it or you’ll get left behind.  He claims it to be practically a necessary means of survival for all of us in order to keep up.

            Although we can clearly see Friedman’s theory makes much more sense to me than Klein’s, I still say he is pointing the finger.  His view tends to be in a positive direction, while Klein believes it to be going in a negative direction.  I honestly don’t think either individual is correct simply because of how grey that whole area can be.  We can all sit back and make up theories about how the world is developing, the reasons behind it, and use history to support our ideas.  However, I don’t think there is any one particular suggestion that can be deemed exact truth.  There is no right or wrong, that’s why they’re theories.  The world obviously is developing in a direction not everyone saw, but it seems inevitable that things will be getting worse in some aspects and better in others.  To say that these changes are right and wrong are all a matter of opinion.  I think we all need to step back and ask not only what the rest of society is doing, but what are we doing.  Let’s try to not point the finger at everyone else, but look in ourselves to see where the problems are and what we can do to fix them.