A Change in E-Commerce

Greetings earthlings! After a brief respite in the Caribbean I am back. It stands to reason television would eventually “come back.” After I continually ranted about the offensive ignorant “bottom line” of television it seems things have changed somewhat. No, I will say there has been a decisive change in the aesthetic of modern television. It took a while to naturally evolve, but it finally did. Are the results pleasing or not? The votes are not in yet, so it is hard to say. I do think it is an improvement. The new concept in advertising at least seems to have historical reference. That means some thought goes into the group television is seeking to attract, what their desired result is, and how they are trying to achieve their goals. That could be seminal because the empty chasm that was television three months ago has changed dramatically. I don’t necessarily mean the programs. I mean the production of advertising. It could be that when Google bought You Tube, when the predictions were You Tube was going to be sued for copyright infringement, advertisers decided to change directions. Like the first "internet bubble," the prospect of mega-dollars being earned through upstart dot.com E-businesses, which came crashing down when the businesses didn’t run themselves, losing the money of their investors, it could be the reality of E-Commerce reared its ugly head again. (That was a mouthful and a run-on sentence) With the recent wave of publicity over “ground-breaking” companies specializing in hard drive recovery, it could be America is beginning to become wary of corporate America’s push for conversion to digital in all mediums. Digital may be cheaper and more convenient, but when the product fails? I think at least we have crossed a stepping stone of vocational technology which is allowing Grunge-Era graduates to create art. This must be the generation that was, that could, that should find their places in the heart of American commerce. It is paradoxical that their aesthetic is not that different than the previous generation, the Baby Boomers. It is about time they are pushed into retirement leaving jobs for the youth of America. (As a personal sidebar: I have been waiting my whole life of 44 years for an opportunity to parade and sell my wares. At almost every turn I have been challenged rather than welcomed into America commerce. Much like a symphony orchestra or a college or university, “tenure” dictates that those in power remain in power, almost until they are dead. That means once you get the sweet college teaching gig or orchestra position, you keep it for too long a period of time to accommodate your rising students and children. This has been apparent in the American educational system for decades. As one Discovery Channel program reported, at the turn of the century it was common for young men, sons of prominent fathers, to have to move to other parts of the country to find success, because tradition and “old money” created a stagnant economic and social ladder upon which to climb. In a nutshell living in Fayetteville, North Carolina, a pinnacle of “old money,” I have always shouted under my breath, “Why can’t some of these old farts die and give us an opportunity to seek the same fortune we deserve?” Personal opinions aside, it is wise that America discovers archiving our history and current commerce on potentially failing hard drives could be a mistake. The question of whether our existence as human beings was going to shift to cyberdome needed to be exposed, contemplated, and answered. I think most people would agree living in an artificial world created by Japanese computer-game programmers in no way can replicate the beautiful “human” experiences possible with intimate contact between one another. It seems television’s new aesthetic has gone over the moral edge somewhat, but that is okay. Violent and somewhat startling reactions are normal, and in the context of what television tries to be, it is common. The pure shock tool of television will probably keep its tentacles in programming for a while longer. I think it is good that at least it is being attempted with wit, humor, and endearing heterosexuality. It was probably a monolithic decision for companies whether to continue pushing the envelope of E-Media or re-invent TV. As Bill Gates and Steve Jobs have exhibited, the foundation of virtual media is hardware. If your hardware ceases to operate, then so does cyber/entertainment world. That is a stark realization represented well by anyone who has a hard drive fail. When what appears to be your whole life's existence disappears on your hard drive, that predicates a reappraisal of one’s system. Do we really want to stock our whole existence on a computer? As some of the newly-produced television advertisements say, the guy with the largest antlers (or are they Martian ears?) is the one that deciphers the potpourri of digital entertainment to suit his own personal needs. That has been a daunting task since the evolution of technology, like many tenants of history, is not uniform. Why has there been such a drastic change in economic policy in the last decade that reversed the common philosophy that corporate mergers were detrimental to the American economy? We broke up the Baby Bells, we split Micro-soft, yet American media companies still continue to buy each other quelling healthy competition among companies. Has this been the “One World Order.” Has the attempt at globalization been an attempt by one small group of elite to control the world? When people don’t spend money, no one wins. Business, larger companies, government, and individuals. NO ONE BENEFITS in Capitalism when no one spends. People don’t spend for many reasons. They don’t spend when the “environment” in which they are expected to spend seems jive and insincere. When a feeling of desperation of a seller overwhelms the consumer, subduing his own sense of pleasure at buying a product they will enjoy, they tend not to buy. That is the selfishness of Capitalism at its worst. The humanity of Capitalism at its best is making products for people that reinforce healthy social habits building a community that supports the economy. Salesmanship is the art of having faith in a product that sincerely provides a wise or enlightened service in an age of violence and inhumanity. Television is attempting that challenge at the moment, to recover from 9/11 and reinvent American pop culture. I applaud them for that. Television has always been a teacher of our children, whether anyone wants to admit it or not. It should try to remain as such. Movies have always been a source of good education. They should try to remain as such. Reading, writing, and ‘rithmatic have always served out youth population. They should continue. The “paper trail” has always served as the backbone of our society, and it should remain as such. Luckily American business’s are beginning to see the limitations of technology in comparison to the far reaching depths of the human mind and soul. With a few more decades of human suffering media may once again reach a state of artistry.