Value of Something

Its been said that a fool is defined as one who knows the price of everything but the value of nothing. Philosophical minutae aside it is indeed fascinating to see what people will pay for certain product or service in context of their circumstance. Clearly circumstances at time of purchase are a key determining factor in transaction completion. They can be attributed to - 1. Net worth of an individual 2. Disposable funds available at time of decision making 3. Competitive standing within society (Jones or Li or Phadke or Gupta phenom depending on your continent) 4. Ignorance (of the buyer that is about to transact about the product or the actual transaction in question) 5. Influence (of the very society that he or she wants to transact in) Lets focus on items 4 and 5. We know that there is no point in discussing 1 or 2 since there is a debate on whether anyone is worth anything these days and besides the government is giving it away at 0% so go forth and froth. 3 is for another day another blog. What happens often is that Marketing machinery of the tout takes all available vacuum created by the total ignorance amidst the populace as a whole to whom the product is being sold. The more the ignorance at the individual level the better the success for the marketeer. Then again it depends on the mindset of the marketeer as to whether to go for the single large kill or attempt to drain the ignoramus over a period of time thereby creating an annuity income for themselves. Wonderful examples of brainwashed consumers stateside and more increasingly outside of the states are showing signs of fatigue against the onslaught of the marketing machine. They are both tuning out but also getting sucked into the whirlpool created by gems like planned obsolescence and supplementing their existence with doses of ubiquitous chemicals. American media largely runs promotional campaigns on three distinct types of commodities trying to outsmart the other... 1. Automobiles - from high gas mileage to state of the art consonant combinations (RDX to QX to SkyACTIV) there sure is a lot of hot air blowing from the pipes; 2. Drugs - as in pharma - from ones to assist with memory loss (or prevention I think) to erectile malfunction to vision impairment clearly these guys are not sure what letter of the alphabet is yet to be explored to sell a new pill before you go crazy or can fall asleep (no worry we have a pill for lunatic sleepwalkers too - Lunesta or some such); 3. Weight loss ideas - If you have gained too much weight as a side effect of consuming above mentioned pills and sitting in traffic in the QZX enabled gas sipping ride of yours we need to let you buy this uniquely formualted Swedish belt that vibrates each time you exhale and reduces your belly fat. If you order now we will send two so your car pool partner can also enjoy the weight loss phenom thereby further improving gas mileage and reducing the need for the memory loss pill since you will always have the belt on you. We make it easy. Price only $19.99. You want to know the value of this monologue to the next OTC med consuming CTX driving BP watching and Texting goofball? Priceless!

Presumptive Society

Today's world is hyper connected. I am not so sure what it means but you hear it a lot. It is probably hyper but not sure how connected it is. Sugar (fermented or not) is available in many ways than before and so getting hyper is easy. It is probably more a threat than cocaine since it is sold legally. And what is this connected stuff? Most people I encounter seem disconnected from reality. So going back to this assumption that we are connected there are subtle and no so subtle instances of how brands and companies and middle men try to portray someone - A linkedin profile for somebody working for X years at a place advertises to the connected network that so and so is CELEBRATING X years @ Such and Such Inc. Do we know if (s)he is celebrating or cringing? Perhaps a better way to portray will be - So and So LASTED X years @ such & such inc. Then it exhorts the readership to go ahead and congratulate them for this lasting effe...

Of Jims and Johns

Here is another essay on the subject of first names. As in birth names. Or names provided to an offspring at birth. While the developed world tends to shy away from the exotic like Refrigerator or Coca Cola for their new production there is a plethora of Jims and Johns and Bobs or Robs. Speaking of which I do not think there is a categoric decision point at the time of birth if a child will be hereafter called as Bob. I mean have not yet met a toddler called Bob or Rob for that matter. At some point though the parental instinct to mouth out multiple syllables runs out and they switch from calling the crawler Robert to simply Robbie to Rob. Now speaking of - it is strange that the name sounds like something you would not want Rob to do - i.e. Rob anyone. Then why call someone that? After all Rob Peter to Pay Paul is not exactly a maxim to live a young life? Is it? Perhaps Peter or Paul might want to have a say in it? Then there is this matter of going to the John. Why degrad...

On the go(zay masta) in Japan again

Cool cat the Japanese are Tokyo at dusk My second visit to this land of the rising sun after almost a decade. Back then clearly I was wet behind the ears product manager and likely didn’t pay attention to all (efficient) things Japanese. But today I did and of course continue to be impressed. It is as much the obvious stuff like on time travel that is both clean and comfortable and all that which makes it possible. The impressive landmark and landscapes that these humans have put together despite their cramped (or because of it) surroundings and precarious geological conditions could amaze a novice architect among us. But it’s also the little things that someone had to think about which have a phenomenal impact on day to day lives that make the Japanese stand apart. Below are few random examples- 1. Providing a very fine machined wooden toothpick in every packet of wooden chopsticks. The said chapsticks are simply set on the To Go counter of any food vendor/ convenience store wher...

Brown Motion

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