Conquered
the west, created a capitalist commerce based economy
that is the envy of the world, suffers pain and even humiliation
in quiet dignity. Quite a fellow that guy. Of course even
the most ingrained can see that some of their fellow individualists
are slipping. They have lost their identity to a growing
consumer economy. Their children look and act pretty much
like everyone else's children. Their jobs and cars and
vacations are mundane and humdrum. But not he, the true
rugged individualist. True, his car may look a lot like
someone else's and his kids are getting C's in courses
that probably won't get them into Princeton, but by his
Christian God, he still has plenty of ways
to stand out.
In
today's world economy, it takes a lot of individualists
to buy all the stuff pouring out of China. It also takes
a lot of them to buy Ford, Chevy, and Dodge SUV's, so
it behoves the producers of all those goods to ensure
that their products appeal to that rugged fellow. Thus
we have beach towels, t'shirts, and pork loin all at the
local Super Wal'Mart in a dizzying variety of three and
even four colors and/or flavors. Plenty of ways to express
your rugged self there!
But
wait! You can drop $250K on a brand new home and have
four or even five different floor plans to choose from.
You can also select faux brick or aluminium siding as
well as composite or shake shingles. No chance of getting
lost in the crowd in your subdivision.
And
let us not forget our second major purchase, the automobile.
Here, the variety is virtually endless. Current trends
for the past fifteen years or so have been towards SUV's.
Yes, they are thirsty, awkward, difficult to park, and
hugely expensive, but to the rugged individualist, the
reward is clear. Why, just walk around the parking lot
of that Super Center Wally World. You should have no trouble
at all picking out the true individualist four'wheeler!
It's either red or silver, or dark green. It towers over
the common masses and has huge chrome wheels. True there
may be one or two similar ones out there but we can pick
Mr. Rugged out, I'm
sure.
Well,
enough gentle sarcasm. You see where I am going with this.
And if you accept my premise, it all seems pretty cynical
and even dismal. Sorry sport, but it gets worse. That
same world economy that thinks of you as a percentage
of market share also views you as a very malleable but
necessary commodity called labor. Labor is a necessary
expense to produce all those products that will be sold
to those individualists. When all the consumers and all
the labor coexisted in the same pool, things were simple
and even fair for the most part. Trouble is, the labor
pool has moved. Far, far away, where the labor is much
cheaper and thus allows for more profit. All of this is
as evident as the nose on your rugged mug.
What
was not so apparent at first but is becoming clearer
every day is that a corporate entity that reduces human
beings to market share and production cost has no conscience
and thus no concern for those human beings. Quite the
contrary, as General Motors and Delta Airlines are telling
us right now, those miserable humans with their ailments
and health needs are far too expensive to allow for
a reasonable profit margin. Get it? The human element
is too damned expensive!
So,
what are we expensive'to'operate'production'cost'factors
to do? Essentially, nothing. There is nothing to be
done. Those who would and could protect us are instead
the ones who gain the most by our situation. Eventually,
ours like all civilizations will fail and someone will
pick up the shards and begin again.
In
a way, rather than being angered and saddened by the
situation, we should revel in the fact that we will
be among the last to get at least a small piece of the
good life out of this particular civilization. Those
who built it for us didn't get as much out of it as
they thought they would and those who follow us will
certainly never get much good from it. And as the last
poor bastard loses his ass, the eternal winners will
still be on top of the heap, insulated from your misfortune
and the slings and arrows of everyday existence. Insulated
by the power, money, and influence that is always theirs
at the top of the dunghill.
Smile
bravely rugged individualist! Gaze proudly into the
setting sun with your craggy worn brow shadowed and
highlighted by the flames of empire. You, oh rugged
one, are certainly not at all like the masses.
