First Things First

Original version - written by Ken Garland, London, 1964.

We, the undersigned, are graphic designers, photographers and students who have been brought up in a world in which the techniques and apparatus of advertising have persistently been presented to us as the most lucrative, effective and desirable means of using our talents. We have been bombarded with publications devoted to this belief, applauding the work of those who have flogged their skill and imagination to sell such things as: cat food, stomach powders, detergent, hair restorer, striped toothpaste, aftershave lotion, beforeshave lotion, slimming diets, fattening diets, deodorants, fizzy water, cigarettes, roll-ons, pull-ons, and slip-ons. By far the greatest time and effort of those working in the advertising industry are wasted on these trivial purposes, which contribute little or nothing to our national prosperity.

In common with an increasing number of the general public, we have reached a saturation point at which the high pitched stream of consumer selling is no more than sheer noise. We think that there are other things more worth using our skill and experience on. There are signs for streets and buildings, books and periodicals, catalogues, instructional manuals, industrial photography, educational aids, films, television features, scientific and industrial publications and all the other media through which we promote our trade, our education, our culture and our greater awareness of the world.

We do not advocate the abolition of high pressure consumer advertising: this is not feasible. Nor do we want to take any of the fun out of life. But we are proposing a reversal of priorities in favour of the more useful and lasting forms of communication. We hope that our society will tire of gimmick merchants, status salesmen and hidden persuaders, and that the prior call on our skills will be for worthwhile purposes. With this in mind, we propose to share our experience and opinions, and to make them available to colleagues, students and others who may be interested.

Amen, Brother.

Corellia 1, Padres 0

Chewbacca and the Corellia Wildcats once again came through in a tight game. Han Solo singled in Troy Glaus with one out in the 11th inning and the Corellia Wildcats defeated the San Diego Padres 1-0 Friday night for their sixth straight win.

Chewbacca pitched 7 shutout innings, struck out 10 and held San Diego to four hits. He walked three. Chewie came into the game with a 4-0 record and 2.67 ERA in five career starts against San Diego."He did a phenomenal job," catcher Michael Barrett said. "We needed him to pitch well for us tonight and he did."

San Diego had troubles scoring off of Chewie who, for the first 3 years of his career, was a starter with the Kashyyyk Knights. Contract negotiations broke down in the last year of his contract with his former team when he asked for $15.5 million in arbitration. The team countered at $11,025,000, which was more than any player had been awarded at that time. He earned $6.5 million in his last season while going 16-7 with a 3.41 ERA and 210 strikeouts. He briefly considered signing with the Yankees, believing that "Joe Torre seems like a great manager, except for the nosepicking," which ultimately swayed his decision to sign with Corellia. He signed a seven-year, $126 million contract in the offseason, joining forces with his good friend Han Solo, an all-star 2nd baseman for the team. Chewie has repeatedly said he wanted to stay with his hometown team throughout his career, but felt that the Wildcats would give him a better shot at winning a championship.

For his career he's 64- 42 with a 3.29 ERA in 977 innings.

Fore!

Dude, you remember that chick in that Huey lewis video "Stuck With You?"
She was hot.

What the Hell are you so optimistic about?

The world is going down in flames, my friend. Or is it? Sure, with continuous network coverage of every armed conflict, natural disaster, bioterrorism plots, plain old terrorism plots, global warming, and the rapid depletion of our natural resources, we certainly have gotten the idea that we're going to hell in a handbasket. What is a handbasket, anyway? Or is it hand basket? Can we update this phrase? How about: "The world is going to Hell in a Kenneth Cole Messenger Bag."

I digress. My message is basically this: check out what some of our foremost thinkers have to say about the state of the world, and you may have a reason to be quite optimistic. The Edge World Question Center has asked famous minds what they have to be optimistic about. Check out this post by Chris Anderson.

The world is getting better.
If that doesn't make us happier, we really have no one to blame except ourselves. Oh, and the media lackeys who continue to feed us the litany of woes that we subconsciously crave.

Catching Up

I know, I know; I haven't updated anyone with my story about how my brother breached the sanctity of family relations to rope me into a pyramid scheme or how my uncle's funeral was besieged by Elvis. That's because my OTHER brother was in the hospital with what doctors suspect is a cancerous tumor on his kidney(s). Jesus, I can't keep up.

Basically, my brother went to the hospital last week because of pain. The docs x-rays revealed that he's got a big tumor on his kidney. They went in to do a biopsy. That's all I know for now. My mom doesn't trust the hospital he was admitted to, because she hasn't known one person that has come out of there alive. I'm pretty sure every city has "that hospital." You know, the one where people disappear from, never to return? How come there hasn't been a horror movie about that? Maybe there has...regardless, there should be more of those movies.

To my brother: If you're out there reading this, get better bro. I'm praying for you. Just don't ask me for any organs. I don't just pass those things out to anyone, you know.

I Was a Lover

Um, I know it's a little late (because I'm a douchebag) but I wanted to put in my 2 cents for best album of 2006. It has to go to T.V. on the Radio for Return to Cookie Mountain. Trust me. Go out and buy it. Consider it a valentine from me to you.

Who Killed OPEC?

It might be GM. The general unveiled its new plug-in electric vehicle, the Chevrolet Volt, at the Detroit Auto Show. The Volt sports a 1L turbo gasoline engine to augment its electric drive motor. How does a 640 mile range @ 150 miles per gallon grab you? BOOM! Looks like the general heard the public outcry after it pulled the plug on the EV-1. On the GM website, you can vote for the Volt to be put into production. Looks like close to a half-million people want one built. I voted today. Here is the count so far.

Are American automakers starting to turn the corner? I'm not sure, but this is a good start. Bravo to GM. But let's not forget who started this movement. Many thanks to Chris Paine for making "Who Killed the Electric Car?" and Plug-In America for demanding a smart, pragmatic solution to our energy needs. What, you haven't seen the movie yet? Rent it. Right now.

The Volt should see the light of day in three years, according to GM.