slowpencil__notebook_

tshirts and unions

This is just a random note to myself about realizing how complicated real life is versus the simplification branding, advertisment, media and the press work hard to create in order to emit a potent message. There’s very little you can buy these days with a clear conscience. Business is business, eh? I need to keep in mind that everything we consume has an impact and no matter how lightly we tread there’s always footprints – usually on other people’s backs, sometimes on the back of everyone.

American Apparel sure seems swell in the press and it’s own publicity but it’s a workplace like any other. A pyramid that hums along based on the hard work of real people. The website behindthelabel.org gives a brief outline of the management’s anti-union efforts. [SOURCE]

As I left the office one evening, two of the women who clean our office building were sitting in a side hallway trying to keep to themselves. One was visibly upset and crying though very muted and the other was trying to console her and discuss what was wrong. The discussion was in another language but I wish I could have understood what was wrong and helped in some way. She often sees me leave at weird and very late hours and I’ve wanted to talk with her about her job since I used to be in the same line of work. I hope she’s doing okay and her sadness and troubles pass.

6 March 2005, 20:50 ::

“the simplicity of branding, advertisment, media and the press”

is that a low blow at my job ???

— j smiley 2005-03-07 09:47 #
Ah, yes… I’ve reduced your esteemed occupation unfairly due to my unclear wording. My message was certainly not about lack of effort or ease of task. Oh it was a low blow alright… so I’ll reword it to be a bit more clear.

Honestly, the only thing you should feel bad about is the hyper-efficient slaughtering of so many trees with your crazy new HP Dunderbeck 3000. The better you do your job the quicker the paper pulp gets processed. I hope that at the very least your inks are soy-based so a few mega-farmers can divert the income from the oil barons. I take pride in the fact that my creations only require massive amounts of electricity, toxic chemicals for processing brain power and monopolistic megacorps to manage the data transmission. You sellout.

Want to start a hemp farm and knit burlap sacks? I’ve got some land in Illinois we can use.

— jmmygoggle 2005-03-07 14:04 #
i miss you and i love reading about what you’re doing. you have such a huge heart…ahh i love you.

— chak 2005-03-09 05:17 #
I say yes to that land in Illinois….... sounds fun. Hard, but fun.
Lets see here….

Paper is recyclable last time I checked. Computers? circuit boards? Silicone? I suppose you could recycle those although I more often than not see them in the dump. Sure, paper ends up there too, but at least that will decompose…... I make postcard for kids to enroll in YMCA nature camps…. you make games that teach people to shoot each other? Hmmmmm…..

— j smiley 2005-03-09 11:22 #
Oh don’t kid yourself. I know what hideous things those kids at summer camps do, I used to be one of them. In fact their number one agenda seems to be hucking down God’s greenery and polluting the atmosphere by torching the splintered remains. And you know that I’m the last person who would throw anything away. Chako had to pry that 486 PC with the AT keyboard port out of my hands when she realized I was going to strap that and your old 15 inch Mac (multimedia!) monitor to the roof of the Honda. But don’t worry tough guy. We can’t all walk the talk.

Oh who am I kidding. I just want to live on a turtle farm and shoot a bb gun full time. I’ll let you run the Gehner farm landfill on the other half of the property.

— jmmygoggle 2005-03-10 00:36 #

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