BenJam

Technological Tomfoolery & Pontification

1. Si 5.21.09 / 10pm

   Let’s throw some shit at your argument and see what sticks ;-)

   These individuals with their small, intricate, interesting and financially sound business plans are a nice idea. However Joe Public will still shop in big, brutal, boring and even more financially sound Tesco’s because that is where everything is cheap. He will also probably stop spending on extravagant things like freshly ground coffee. So it’ll be “fuck you” to fair trade and “Yes please” to blue stripe instant.

   You are an educated young male with a disposable income. An enviable position in this financial climate. No dependants, no commitments. The idea of lots of little independent co-ops is a lovely idea, whether it would survive in a recession is debatable. I’m no economist either, but I seem to remember being told that the self employed and the small businesses were often the first to crumble in recession. Especially outside of London.

   Regardless of all this, recession or not, there are always innovators and people willing to try new things. Recession won’t stop that but it’ll probably make it a damn sight harder for you to get any investors on board and make it a lot tougher to take the risk and leave your job in Starbucks when you have mouths to feed.

   “I don’t care about business and I don’t care about the country’s economy. I care about the world I live in…”

   There’s one hell of an oxymoronic statement. Let’s think about why they’re cutting down rainforest, over fishing the seas, building on anything green, charging absurd prices for AIDS medication. Smells like money to me. Smells like economics, like business. I love the smell of business in the morning, it’s like a kick in the crotch of humanity. The sort of kick that brings tears to your eyes.

   Anyway, I’m going to go and have a raspberry and dairy cream turnover and I’m going to put the box in the bin rather than the recycling because if we’re honest about it, we only care up to a point. Maybe I’ll dream about all the low paid raspberry pickers and the low price our dairy farmers get for their milk. Maybe I’ll dream about fake breasts, cheap food and token moral efforts instead. I love living in the west, the choices really are endless.

   Time for that turnover.

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2. BenJam 5.22.09 / 8am

   Mr. Hailstone, with this comment you do entice me! Firstly some background. I, due to an awe inspiring presentation by Ellen MacArthur this week am in a slightly positive disposition. Yes, it’s true. Me.

   Now, I was just last night talking about how, given that the Gates Foundation is currently changing the face of the WHO and international aid in general, I would almost confidently say taht anyone in Gates’ position would have done what he’s done. Reason being that, after being the worlds first and probably only cent-billionaire, he has nothing more to achieve in the business world (He is quite simply, a killer) and can only turn his focus on helping others.

   That said, he’s not from Texas, not in fossil fuels and doesn’t have a father breathing down his neck to ‘expand the old empire my boy’.

   But I still believe in the ability of the altruistic individual over the greed of the mob.

   Reply
3. BenJam 5.22.09 / 8am

   and yes “I don’t care about business and I don’t care about the country’s economy. I care about the world I live in…” is purposefully oxymoronic.

   Reply
4. Si 5.22.09 / 12pm

   The altruistic individual over the mob. Gates. I’m sure he thinks he’s doing good, he probably is to an extent, though others may question how much good.
   http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/thebusinessofgiving/2009193675__heres_how_the_article.html

   I would say that the altruistic individual often only really exists because of the mob. They are linked and therefore as good/bad as each other.
   Without getting into too much detail here:
   Altruistic individuals (I’m taking the view of these being the rich businessmen types, I realise there are plenty of volunteers being altruistic out there, but we’re talking business types here). A-l-t-r-u-i-s-t-i-c individuals. How are they in a position to be so altruistic. They’re rich, right? Where’d the money come from? Let’s look at Saint Bono. Where did his money come from? He’s a singer. Lovely. How nice of him. He’s a singer, he sells CDs to us, the ‘mob’. Plastic CDs with plastic cases made from oil from where? Aluminium too? Where’d the aluminium come from? Who mined it? Who toiled for Bono to sell his CDs? Are they getting any help from Bono? What about the cleanup job from all that plastic being chucked into the environment. Lovely. Thanks Bono. Maybe these global do-gooders are actually part of the problem, rather than the solution. Maybe their wealth is built on the crushed spirits of a thousand of the world’s poor. Just an idea.
   These individuals have more money than sense. Bono, Geldof etc. and every other rich idiot who throws money at the problem and expects it to be resolved. Sitting in their million dollar mansions preaching about how the public should give more. Buy a man a fish and he’ll eat for a day, buy him a fishing rod and he’ll eat forever, but he’ll never afford that X-box education if the global market doesn’t start paying him a fair wage for his fish.
   So are the rich only rich because someone has suffered? Should we really look up to them because they’re giving money back? Personally I think they owe us that money. They owe it to the production line workers in China, the farmers in Kenya, the miners, the workers, the proles. The ones who can’t be altruistic because someone is keeping them so poor that it’s a struggle to survive.
   Ellen MacArthur? I’d be impressed but last night, whilst asleep, I travelled 857,744km compared to her taking 72 days to do 50,660km. I didn’t even cry about it. Brian Blessed crushes mountains with his thighs. Now that’s an achievement.

   Reply
5. BenJam 5.22.09 / 9pm

   “Brian Blessed crushes mountains with his thighs. Now that’s an achievement.”

   and with that said I have no leg to stand on. Good night to you good sir.

   Reply

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