Marketing tends to target human aspirations. That is a broad theme which is used stateside to snare the gullibles. It has reached heightened proportions with everything from water to phones to cars being labeled as smart. Clearly we see a trend that highlights the fact that people are not - smart. That they are aspiring to be and therefore affiliating to these items that are labeled smart hoping some of it would rub off.
The only thing that gets rubbed off amongst this aspirational generation is their petty bank balance. But no matter. Soon they are amongst the most talked about and hip crowd who having seen the smartness they exude have also jumped on the bandwagon and are now all sporting smart water bottles in one hand juggling the smart phone in the other.
But wait don't text and drive - also don't drink and drive - even if its a smart car! Some may have managed to shove their device down their throat while pouring water in their ear. Oops!
Time magazine did a cover story recently about how these self-absorbed, texting and picture taking jobless youth would actually help our civilization but I don't feel that cheerful. On the other hand one has to realize that the luxury of zero fee credit is only possible to a select few when there are tons of lackluster, texting cardholders that default and keep the bankers happy.
This autumn the weather gods cooperated as we took a family trip in the northeast to see six states that qualify or makeup what is known colloquially in America as New England. Mass, Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Connecticut and Rhode Island (tiniest state in the union). The outing helped tally up the states we either lived in, visited or have worked in to 47. Guess which three have eluded this intrepid traveling family. Any rate the drive was all in about 1,800 miles and included some memorable geographic wonders or points of interest. Easternmost part of state of Massachusetts being one. Furthest drivable road east in Mass being another. Visit to all Ivy League schools (term harkens to a collegiate athletics conference and generally regarded as elite academic institutes of some repute worldwide) is another random bucket list item of which this trip afforded the chance to knock two more of the list. Dartmouth in Hanover, NH and Brown (and its sister institute the RISD - school f
Maybe the time is ripe to have a new theory- that the total smartness (or idiocy-that sounds more interesting) in the world remains constant. Smart people are being replaced by the gadgets.
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