Shoes And Dresses

I think that options will lead to my premature death. Throughout life I've been faced with options, and as an indecisive person options are more or less equivalent to adversity.

Now what does this have to do with technology and culture? Shoes, dresses… and more shoes. I've been searching for the perfect gown and strappy sandal combination for a week. I've found many things I like but nothing I love (at least in combination). So I settled for less. I purchased an over priced gown that is a size too big, despite the fact that it doesn't come smaller and a poorly made pair of heels that are surely going to do a better job escorting my face to the floor than they will help me glide into the elegant 1920s ball room. Oh well.

I'm pretty much positive that America’s capitalist economy is the cause of my problem. Capitalism has bred market conditions that are conducive to a saturated market and competition between vendors that has inspired them to skimp on quality A.K.A my shitty shoes.

Back in the day, the American/English textiles and clothing industry was something great. Tailors and their apprentices would make each article of clothing with love and by hand while customizing their individual designs to their client’s personality. There was also usually only one person who worked the garment from its conception to its maturation, which lead to pride in the work and innovation in design based on the personal goals of the Taylor.

Now, design is a collaborative process that has been placed on Gerald Ford's revolutionary assembly line. By dissecting the creation of a garment, capitalism has taken the pride out of the work; thus turning the creator into a mere assembler. Technology has allowed this to happen, and in that respect technology has failed us. Increase in technology has allowed vendors to cut corners and to concentrate on solely maximizing profits, again: leading to crappy quality.

Every generation throughout modern history has used the phrase, “they don’t make things the way they used to.” The fact that each generation has used this phrase indicates that the general trend of product quality has gone down while the increase in innovative technology has gone up. This indirect relationship leads me to the following point. Technology does not have the ability to surpass or even equate to the innovations of the human mind.

The human mind incorporates passion, emotion, intuition and humor into every idea it has and every item it creates. The human mind is also capable of thinking laterally (from a to c back to a) vs. the computer, which is only equipped to think linearly (from a to b to c). Ergo, while creating a product or working to accomplish a task it may be easy to gravitate to the crutch of the computer or the calculator, please don’t sell yourself short. Your mind is your greatest tool, and it always will be.