Shopping Ourselves to Recovery

/ 04.04.2009. u 09:15

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The best thing we can do, in this time of economic crises, is to go shopping.

There has long been an unwritten psychological boon which comes with this. We shop when we are feeling down. We shop when we are feeling good. We feel empowered even if we do not buy anything. The very idea that we COULD decide to exchange money for the good on display before us is a powerful notion.

Our new shopping complex at Ušće is another example of this. Never mind that we are teetering on the edge of solvency. Never mind that the new Ušće mall is a rearranged replica of Delta City. Who cares about uncertain finances, unemployment, inflation, and rising taxes? We can just buy a new pair of pants and all will pass.

I sound cynical, I know. But in reality I do believe in consumerism. The consumer is the one piece on the chess board that can move anywhere it wants. It can leap from one side of the board to the other even more ably than the queen. When the consumer's voice is heard, the rest of society redeploys itself to accommodate it.

Why?

Western capitalism. It is predicated on the consumer. We produce commodities and merchandise in large quantities to trade for money. With the money, we build more and we buy more. We have service providers who tell us what to do with our money, what to buy, what to do with what we bought, and how to tell everyone around us how cool we are.

The consumer's place as a link in the chain is immutable, and when the consumer decides to stay home, the whole economy trembles.

Therefore let us have another fifteen shopping malls in Belgrade! We need to draw the consumer out of his hiding place and into the aisles. As a side note, perhaps it is also a good thing that we do not have a lot of choice in shops. Maybe the monopolists are helping us become better consumers by hypnosis. We see the same shops over and over again until finally we feel they are part of our mental landscape.

If we had real consumer choices, not those dictated by one or two people from their yachts, we might become confused. We might wander aimlessly without BUYING anything. An embarrassment of choice is a burden on the much needed Shopping Automaton. We are, or so it seems to be, incapable of making informed choices in shopping. We need easy, binary choices.

Zeros or ones.

So far, the zeros seem to have it.

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Sepulturero 10:20 04.04.2009

Another quote

Shop until you drop!

odpocetka 11:14 04.04.2009

why?!

Don't get it. Maybe because I am a human, not a consumer...

Chris Farmer 11:38 04.04.2009

Re: why?!

I submit that if you are not a consumer, you are not a human.

We must consume (food at least), and unless we grow everything ourselves or eat only berries and tree bark from the forest, at some point we will all have been consumer.

That you identify yourself first as a human, this is another story... I should have hoped it were so fundamentally true that it would go without saying. But then, I must also make allowances for making politically correct sound bites.

Glibness to one side, I regret to inform you that you are indeed a consumer. Like the rest of us.

It is not such a bad thing.

Jelena Pavlović 11:54 04.04.2009

Re: why?!

drug.clan 13:56 04.04.2009

I hope

Western capitalism. It is predicated on the consumer. We produce commodities and merchandise in large quantities to trade for money.

Are you sure? You are talking about eastern communism?

With the money, we build more and we buy more.

Or "After we spend all the money, we take credit and we buy more"

I hope that "buy, buy" will soon became "bye bye"

dunjica 14:16 04.04.2009

The Crux

We see the same shops over and over again until finally we feel they are part of our mental landscape.

This is what makes the places all over the world becoming gradually replicas of the same prototype, product of a bad taste and lack of creativity. This killed my potential to become a good consumer long time ago.

Sofroniye 16:32 04.04.2009

Money money money money

Serbia is not quite the right place to promote that idea. Nor that will resolve the current problem. As far as I can see it there are two ways to get out of this (well three but 3rd is not very likely): a) one really big war, b) govt. of China and India stimulate spending both through consumer loans (similar to what large dept. stores have in USA) and changing the spending habits of their people (Chinese are not big spenders even when they have money - just to prevent racism accusations which are rather popular on this site I am talking about Chinese ppl that I met and had opportunity to observe for a longer period of time) which can only (?) be done through some kind of "mind shaping"

strategies.

The 3rd one is less probable. Obviously some people took away money from some other people in eternal war for balance of power. They are waiting to buy things (houses, companies, loans etc) at very low prices. They could simply come out and reinvest it. This shifting power through money grab is a known strategy and was done in 90s to Arabs and their investments in communication and car industry.

But overall I agree, spending is the preferred way to get out of this but as far as I can see a war is more likely solution.

Roger, over and out.

Chris Farmer 18:09 04.04.2009

Re: Money money money money

I feel I must disagree with the war assessment.

The fact is that this country (i.e., Serbia and Yugoslavia) has long been a place of consumerism. We have always liked to buy brands and designer labels, often going abroad to do so when they were not available here. Even in the time of sanctions, the shops were crowded and sales of what merchandise was available were thriving.

Further, the long-standing (although now diminishing) black market for counterfeit or smuggled goods also stands of proof of the people's desire to buy more, to accumulate possessions, or to acquire status symbols. I do not think it is so much different here than elsewhere in the world.

As to the economic benefits of war, there is much literature about the pros and cons. I believe, however, that wars benefit large economic systems more - they spur industrial production put more people into the workforce, and other such effects.

The US economy rebounded after WWII for this reason. Also because the war was not fought there. But no one will tell you that war brought an economic panacea to Germany and Italy, two countries which required years of reconstruction and a lot of money to nurse back to health.

I think in Serbia we can and will spend our way out of this crisis – and if not out exactly then at least through it.

One of the points which I wanted to make, however, would be that a little more competition would be welcome. Retail works in Serbia – we need more choice not more of the same.

Sofroniye 19:28 04.04.2009

Re: Money money money money

One of the points which I wanted to make, however, would be that a little more competition would be welcome. Retail works in Serbia – we ne

Depends on how you define consumerism. While it is true that people go for brands (which as a social phenomenon on par, in my opinion, with famous European snobbishness) it is also through that FIXING things precedes BUYING new. My comment was related to that and I still stand behind it. I visited Serbia recently and quite often heard (I know some will say that is due to lack of purchasing power but I still believe it is more than that) oh I don't need to buy that I can fix this. The American consumerism as it stands in my opinion means I will go and buy 20 pairs of shoes although I need one or I will throw away this broken thing and buy a new one. Anyway I still stand behind this only Chinese and Indian spending can create some boost in the West.

And I still believe that everybody is preparing for war. Russians are building new submarines, Americans are putting quite a bit of Obama's package into military industry. If I am making weapons sooner or later I will want to recover some money I put into that. Of course USA military industry creates a lot of spinoff technologies/companies and I agree that there is some return in it but still I read somewhere that Americans didn't fully recover cost of Vietnamese war (not to mention one in Iraq and Afghanistan). Therefore I believe that within couple of years (at most 10-15) we will have a big one.

The easiest way to change how people think is war. I think that here we are witnessing something else not just the economy. WWI convinced people that some type of global government is needed. (It is well known fact that Woodrow Wilson wanted to be the first world president). What will be the purpose of WWIII it remains to be seen :)

Chris Farmer 20:49 04.04.2009

Re: Money money money money

Sofroniye
Depends on how you define consumerism. While it is true that people go for brands (which as a social phenomenon on par, in my opinion, with famous European snobbishness) it is also through that FIXING things precedes BUYING new. My comment was related to that and I still stand behind it. I visited Serbia recently and quite often heard (I know some will say that is due to lack of purchasing power but I still believe it is more than that) oh I don't need to buy that I can fix this.

I am not convinced that people find a value in fixing what is broken more than a necessity to do so because of a) lack of cash to replace or b) lack of availability. Also, while every new gizmo is usually available here, retailers will almost never have replacement parts to fix them.

And I still believe that everybody is preparing for war. Russians are building new submarines, Americans are putting quite a bit of Obama's package into military industry. If I am making weapons sooner or later I will want to recover some money I put into that. Of course USA military industry creates a lot of spinoff technologies/companies and I agree that there is some return in it but still I read somewhere that Americans didn't fully recover cost of Vietnamese war (not to mention one in Iraq and Afghanistan).

Whether or not we are preparing for war - and some would argue that having a standing army and military budget means we are ALWAYS preparing for war - the question as to its economic benefit would still remain.

Personally, I am not convinced that a war would do anything more for world economics than a general reduction of population. The military-industrial complex is alive and well with or without a war to sustain it as long as governments decide the allocate funds to it.

Let's hope we do not put either of our theories to the test...

Domazet 21:00 04.04.2009

Either 'we' does not relate to...

Western capitalism. It is predicated on the consumer. We produce commodities and merchandise in large quantities...

'western capitalism' or Chris didn't leave Serbia for quite some time...

Chris Farmer 10:01 05.04.2009

Re: Either 'we' does not relate to...

Domazet
...'western capitalism' or Chris didn't leave Serbia for quite some time...

The intrinsic alienation of "we" and "you" or "us" and "them" will be the subject of a further study...

Domazet 14:17 05.04.2009

I'm looking forward...

Chris Farmer
Domazet
...'western capitalism' or Chris didn't leave Serbia for quite some time...

The intrinsic alienation of "we" and "you" or "us" and "them" will be the subject of a further study...

...but I had in mind a bit more mundane fact that Western Capitalism does not produce all that much anymore. Providing that services are not understood as commodity or merchandise. Are they?

Chris Farmer 15:42 05.04.2009

Re: I'm looking forward...

Ah! Mea massima culpa... I will write it anyway as it is a Bee in my Bonnet.

As to WC (i.e., Western Cap), I suppose you are correct that Western manufacturing has been largely flushed out to Asia, but the WC (i.e, now read Westerner Consumer) is alive and well and consuming copiously.

I remember reading, for example, that Nike was the single largest employer in Vietnam - larger even than the government.

I was writing more about the causal chain than the origin of the producers. We cause things to be made; we buy them; and we thus cause MORE to be be made....

Sofroniye 15:06 06.04.2009

Re: I'm looking forward...

Chris Farmer
Ah! Mea massima culpa... I will write it anyway as it is a Bee in my Bonnet.

As to WC (i.e., Western Cap), I suppose you are correct that Western manufacturing has been largely flushed out to Asia, but the WC (i.e, now read Westerner Consumer) is alive and well and consuming copiously.

I remember reading, for example, that Nike was the single largest employer in Vietnam - larger even than the government.

I was writing more about the causal chain than the origin of the producers. We cause things to be made; we buy them; and we thus cause MORE to be be made....

Well I would say that actually production overall is going done. That is why we will see even more layoffs in China. People are buying less and producers are actually making less in order to avoid stocking up. Consumer spending in February was actually down.