“I've grown certain that the root of all fear is that we've been forced to deny who we are.”
Frances Moore Lappe
I agree with Lappe in so much as I believe that today we tend to over identify ourselves with what we have rather than who we actually are. The consequence of this is both a fear of losing our material wealth and a sense of increased isolation from others who have more or less than us. This in turn seems to lead to an insatiable desire to have more for fear of being overtaken. This is the marketer dream and the very thing they play upon, as they seek to convince us to want what ever it is they have to sell. This is entirely self perpetuating since you buy more to assuage your fear and then fear losing the status it has given you, so in turn need to buy more and so on and so on.
Are you simply the sum of what you have? Are the richest people in the world really the best human beings? Are fear and competition the ingredients for a happy life?
One’s sense of self is greatly influenced by societal norms which are in turn influenced by much of what has gone before in this blog. I believe that we, as individuals, must become aware of our own personal identity and to honestly reflect on what has informed it. We can change what we choose to identify with and thereby change ourselves. When we do this we will become more personally empowered to challenge those who seek to defend the systems and structures which they believe serve them preferentially today.
Showing posts with label consumerism. Show all posts
Showing posts with label consumerism. Show all posts
Wednesday, 13 January 2010
Tuesday, 5 January 2010
The consequence of corporations
“I see in the near future a crisis approaching that unnerves me and causes me to tremble for the safety of my country. Corporations have been enthroned, an era of corruption in high places will follow, and the money-power of the country will endeavour to prolong its reign by working upon the prejudices of the people until the wealth is aggregated in a few hands and the Republic is destroyed.”
Abraham Lincoln
The global influence of today’s multi-national corporations must not be under estimated. Whilst today we look to the UN to advocate what needs to be done to protect the good of all in the world, I believe it is only with the agreement and co-operation of the world’s largest corporations, that the necessary changes can be implemented. The world’s largest corporation Royal Dutch Shell has an annual turnover in excess of $450 billion, which would give it a raking of number 22 in the league tables of national economic scale. RD Shell has a greater annual turnover than the Gross Domestic Product (Atlas method) of Saudi Arabia. Even the 10th highest revenue generating company would rank 45th in the league of economic nations. Not only are they hugely significant financially, they are absolutely totalitarian in nature, the executive controls the behaviour of the whole and the enterprise is focused on one thing alone, the generation of maximum wealth for its shareholders. These companies would not exist if they did not have consumers providing a financial return for their products or services, we the consumer are therefore to be held equally accountable for their activities.
Whilst Abraham Lincoln’s quote serves as a useful warning of what might be, I do not believe corporations are intentionally malignant and that this quotation says as much about the struggle between different groups, be that business folk or politicians, for power and influence, as it does about any disservice to the People. I believe that the growth of corporations and the damage their activities are doing to the planet and to human society, is more a function of the global economic model and human social constructions, than it is about any deliberate intent to dominate. In recent times, whenever humankind has been threatened, it has been the corporations that have responded to actually provided the solutions to any particular problem; be that pharmaceuticals, fossil fuel reserves or armaments. Corporations are excellent problem solvers; the question is; are we asking them to solve the right problems?
It is interesting to note that prior to the 'credit crunch' of the world’s 10 largest revenue generating enterprises, 5 were oil and gas companies and 4 were automobile companies. It is a small wonder that little has been done to reduce our fossil fuel dependency over the last 15 years, despite irrefutable evidence of the damage it is causing. Furthermore, since 6 of theses companies are American owned, is it surprising that George.W.Bush a former oilman himself, has continually frustrated the global attempt to take positive action to address this issue? The lobbying power of major corporations cannot be under estimated and because of their size it is unlikely to diminish. The key is for corporations to redefine themselves as the executors of the global agenda since they are best placed and best able to serve this role.
We must recognise the role corporations play in creating unnecessary consumer demand and the increasingly slick slight of hand they use to increase sales and the unnecessary use of natural resources but equally important, if not more so, is to identify what makes corporations so effective at getting things done across international boundaries and how this and their other competencies might be deployed to further our collective cause, which I propose should be to re-enchant the world..
Abraham Lincoln
The global influence of today’s multi-national corporations must not be under estimated. Whilst today we look to the UN to advocate what needs to be done to protect the good of all in the world, I believe it is only with the agreement and co-operation of the world’s largest corporations, that the necessary changes can be implemented. The world’s largest corporation Royal Dutch Shell has an annual turnover in excess of $450 billion, which would give it a raking of number 22 in the league tables of national economic scale. RD Shell has a greater annual turnover than the Gross Domestic Product (Atlas method) of Saudi Arabia. Even the 10th highest revenue generating company would rank 45th in the league of economic nations. Not only are they hugely significant financially, they are absolutely totalitarian in nature, the executive controls the behaviour of the whole and the enterprise is focused on one thing alone, the generation of maximum wealth for its shareholders. These companies would not exist if they did not have consumers providing a financial return for their products or services, we the consumer are therefore to be held equally accountable for their activities.
Whilst Abraham Lincoln’s quote serves as a useful warning of what might be, I do not believe corporations are intentionally malignant and that this quotation says as much about the struggle between different groups, be that business folk or politicians, for power and influence, as it does about any disservice to the People. I believe that the growth of corporations and the damage their activities are doing to the planet and to human society, is more a function of the global economic model and human social constructions, than it is about any deliberate intent to dominate. In recent times, whenever humankind has been threatened, it has been the corporations that have responded to actually provided the solutions to any particular problem; be that pharmaceuticals, fossil fuel reserves or armaments. Corporations are excellent problem solvers; the question is; are we asking them to solve the right problems?
It is interesting to note that prior to the 'credit crunch' of the world’s 10 largest revenue generating enterprises, 5 were oil and gas companies and 4 were automobile companies. It is a small wonder that little has been done to reduce our fossil fuel dependency over the last 15 years, despite irrefutable evidence of the damage it is causing. Furthermore, since 6 of theses companies are American owned, is it surprising that George.W.Bush a former oilman himself, has continually frustrated the global attempt to take positive action to address this issue? The lobbying power of major corporations cannot be under estimated and because of their size it is unlikely to diminish. The key is for corporations to redefine themselves as the executors of the global agenda since they are best placed and best able to serve this role.
We must recognise the role corporations play in creating unnecessary consumer demand and the increasingly slick slight of hand they use to increase sales and the unnecessary use of natural resources but equally important, if not more so, is to identify what makes corporations so effective at getting things done across international boundaries and how this and their other competencies might be deployed to further our collective cause, which I propose should be to re-enchant the world..
Friday, 13 November 2009
Marketing and the Media: The Sirens of consumerism
"Yes, I sell people things they don't need. I can't, however, sell them something they don't want. Even with advertising. Even if I were of a mind to."
John O'Toole
In the West all but the very few are fortunate to have their basic needs for food, shelter, warmth and safety met. We are consequently pre-occupied not by what we need but by what we want and what we want, is predominately influenced by marketing and the media. Both have been proven to very effective in moderating both our desires and behaviours. This in and of itself is not a bad thing; in times of great hardship when a collective effort has been required both have played a major part in mobilising people toward a common cause. For this reason my concern does not lie with either activities but with the predominate purpose to which they are being applied. The vast majority of marketing and media effort is directed at increasing our desire to purchase things and therefore to consume more natural resources over and above what we actually need.
One could see the media as simply a vehicle for the marketing messages but the media industry is massive and it uses marketing to perpetuate itself and as such is just as malignant. Everywhere you go in the world you will notice their footprints to a greater of lesser extent. If one pays attention to almost every type of advert underlying it is a message which attempts to get people to identify themselves with the product, they are really attempting to sell to your ego and not your rational mind. This is the case for almost everything from automobiles to toilet tissue. The people who are doing this are really very, very good at what they do and if we ever decided that we need to get the global community to change the way they view themselves in relation to the world at large, such people and practices would be vital to the cause.
Of all the current vehicles for the distribution of the current consumerist propaganda today, television must be the most potent. In many countries a license fee to own one still exists, it amuses me to see signs on people's doors requesting door to door salespeople not to call, whilst the inhabitants spend ever increasing hours, paying to watch the best salesperson of all, in not only their living room but now in many other rooms in the house. It is not just the adverts on commercial television enticing us to consume more but also the myriad of lifestyle programmes encouraging us to revamp our living spaces, wardrobes, gardens and just about everything else one could imagine. Furthermore with the advent of digital TV, marketeers can now target groups based on specific areas of interest which is proven to deliver a higher sales conversion rates.
Celebrities also concerns me deeply, not only because they are used as paragons of virtue, to convince us that if we only looked like them or bought the things they did, that we too would be better people but also because it is a sign of what we currently value as a society. The plethora of celebrity based magazines herald these people as idols, people to aspire to be like. If we all lived a celebrity lifestyle things would be many, many times worse than they are today and our demise would be absolutely unavoidable. Who we see as celebrities indicate what we truly value as a culture and contentious though it may be, I believe that suggests that what the majority of people really value, is money, and I find this incredibly sad. If we are to change, we must address this issue and I hope marketing and the media will one day play it's part in furthering this cause and in helping people become aware of the non-financial richness of life.
John O'Toole
In the West all but the very few are fortunate to have their basic needs for food, shelter, warmth and safety met. We are consequently pre-occupied not by what we need but by what we want and what we want, is predominately influenced by marketing and the media. Both have been proven to very effective in moderating both our desires and behaviours. This in and of itself is not a bad thing; in times of great hardship when a collective effort has been required both have played a major part in mobilising people toward a common cause. For this reason my concern does not lie with either activities but with the predominate purpose to which they are being applied. The vast majority of marketing and media effort is directed at increasing our desire to purchase things and therefore to consume more natural resources over and above what we actually need.
One could see the media as simply a vehicle for the marketing messages but the media industry is massive and it uses marketing to perpetuate itself and as such is just as malignant. Everywhere you go in the world you will notice their footprints to a greater of lesser extent. If one pays attention to almost every type of advert underlying it is a message which attempts to get people to identify themselves with the product, they are really attempting to sell to your ego and not your rational mind. This is the case for almost everything from automobiles to toilet tissue. The people who are doing this are really very, very good at what they do and if we ever decided that we need to get the global community to change the way they view themselves in relation to the world at large, such people and practices would be vital to the cause.
Of all the current vehicles for the distribution of the current consumerist propaganda today, television must be the most potent. In many countries a license fee to own one still exists, it amuses me to see signs on people's doors requesting door to door salespeople not to call, whilst the inhabitants spend ever increasing hours, paying to watch the best salesperson of all, in not only their living room but now in many other rooms in the house. It is not just the adverts on commercial television enticing us to consume more but also the myriad of lifestyle programmes encouraging us to revamp our living spaces, wardrobes, gardens and just about everything else one could imagine. Furthermore with the advent of digital TV, marketeers can now target groups based on specific areas of interest which is proven to deliver a higher sales conversion rates.
Celebrities also concerns me deeply, not only because they are used as paragons of virtue, to convince us that if we only looked like them or bought the things they did, that we too would be better people but also because it is a sign of what we currently value as a society. The plethora of celebrity based magazines herald these people as idols, people to aspire to be like. If we all lived a celebrity lifestyle things would be many, many times worse than they are today and our demise would be absolutely unavoidable. Who we see as celebrities indicate what we truly value as a culture and contentious though it may be, I believe that suggests that what the majority of people really value, is money, and I find this incredibly sad. If we are to change, we must address this issue and I hope marketing and the media will one day play it's part in furthering this cause and in helping people become aware of the non-financial richness of life.
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