Rioting Over Shoes? Really?
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People around the world are rioting about a number of things. The Syrians don't like Mr. Assad; the Greeks don't like austerity; the Chinese don't like authoritarianism. Big issues, all. It's understandable that folks would get upset about any of these things.
We're having riots here, too. What are they about? Shoes. Not the absence of shoes, but their superfluity.
A shoe is something you put on your foot so you can walk over rocks without hurting yourself. It is not something you camp out overnight and elbow your way past policemen and an angry mob to pay a big price for.
I refer, of course, to the Nike riots of last week and last December. Each series of contretemps took place in various cities in conjunction with the release of the latest sneaker model.
I call them sneakers only because Nike does. A sneaker used to be a low-cut canvas shoe with a rubber sole. It was white. It was cheap. You wore them on Saturday afternoon when you were a kid, or if you were playing with your kids. Remember Keds, kids?
There's nothing very sneaky about the modern version.
Modern sneakers make wearers look as if they have two club feet, and they call further attention to themselves with neon colors or sparkles or anything else the Nike folks can dream up. And they cost a lot. One optimistic buyer last week immediately put his prize on eBay with an asking price of $10,000 Canadian. I don't know the result.
Nike is not alone in its ability to manipulate the American consumer; Apple does a pretty good job, too. Any new product or version of anything produces long lines of people anxious to spend hundreds of dollars for something a nanosecond faster than the one they bought three months ago.
I don't get it. OK, I'm - um - not as young as I used to be. I've never cared much for crowds or fads, unless they're related to golf. (There's another industry with a crazy product cycle, but at least no riots.) I have a high regard for my money. But really, where do all these willing, frequent buyers come from? I thought we were in an economic slump.
This crush to buy this stuff speaks well, I suppose, for American marketers, and heaven knows we all want the economy to get moving, but how many sneakers or i-somethings or drivers can one person use? How about waiting for some decline in the functionality of the previous edition?
Of course, the economy that benefits most from this rampant consumerism is China's. All - and I think I'm safe in saying this - all this stuff is made in the People's Republic, or at least somewhere over there where low wages are an issue except when someone wants a new toy. It is apparently possible for hypocrisy and globalism to coexist comfortably.
I enjoy life's little pleasures as much as the next guy, especially new drivers, but with gasoline approaching, or beyond, $4, groceries in an upward spiral and a very stubborn unemployment rate, some of the spare cash that made buying these things possible is going to be spent on more basic items.
How are we going to get along when the lead story on the evening news doesn't cover a mad scramble for whatever, but instead features interviews with depressed motorists standing by gas pumps? Oh. We're already there.
It's just a guess, but I bet the Greeks aren't shoving each other aside to buy new Nikes. They're likely to be wearing whatever shoes they have for quite a while.
Fred Wolferman lives in Southern Pines. Contact him by e-mail at fwolferman@sbcglobal.net.
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Comments
ProudYankee 1 year, 2 months ago
Fred, this column is not one of your better efforts, as it makes you sound like a grouchy, old man, just looking for things to complain about.
HEY, you kids get off my lawn......
JER 1 year, 2 months ago
I seldom agree with Mr. Wolferman but I am 100% in agreement with this column. The economy is evidently much better than we thought it was. When I read stories about rioting over the latest sneaker or lines around the block every 6 months to spend $600.00 for the latest "I" something, I can only think of that old axiom: A fool and his money are soon parted. But hey, this is the freaking U.S. of A., we fools have the right to do whatever the hell we want. It's our money and there ain't no crotchety old codger gonna tell us how to spend it.
teufelhunden 1 year, 2 months ago
"But hey, this is the freaking U.S. of A., we fools have the right to do whatever the hell we want. It's our money and there ain't no crotchety old codger gonna tell us how to spend it."
Could that crotchety old codger be the US Government?
teufelhunden 1 year, 2 months ago
Oh and where or where are those people rioting over shoes getting the money to pay for them? I bet some are getting money from the "crotchety old codger"...
JER 1 year, 2 months ago
teufelhunden: Yes, I'm sure some of those folks are government employees. Let me know if the "ones" you are talking about can purchase "I" stuff or $300.00 sneakers with food stamps. People on unemployment insurance benefits can, I suppose, use that money however they choose, regardless of how stupid it might be. And then there are people like me, who are collecting their Social security benefits from the government program we contributed into for decades. I'm fairly certain it ain't us rioting for the sneakers but I'm sure some of us (just not me) are in that line for the "I" crap. Just being old doesn't make us smart.
Bigguy 1 year, 2 months ago
Until you have walked a mile in thier shoes Mr. Wolferman, I don't think you will ever get it.
JER 1 year, 2 months ago
wdd101st: Yea, you're right, I'm not an expert on the way government dispenses aid to the needy. From what I see from your comments, it looks like another case of technology gone haywire. Issuing a "credit card" instead of a food stamp might look like progress but, in reality, just provides a whole new means for defrauding the system. As with all crime, it is perpetrated by a small group but effects all of us. The only solution is to enforce the laws and punish the law breakers.
invmc 1 year, 2 months ago
If someone is receiving public assistance, there's no reason why they should have a 50 inch flatscreen, "i" anything, or the latest and greatest $200.00 Nike's. If you want to eat T-Bone steaks, drink malt liquor, and smoke White Owl Cigarillos, then go get a job. No I'm not a Socialist, just a Realist.
gardengirl 1 year, 2 months ago
entitlement mentality, plain and simple.
JustThinking 1 year, 2 months ago
Hey, the gangstas gotta have they shuuuuuuz!
invmc 1 year, 2 months ago
It's actually a very vicious cycle. Our youth of today are not afforded equal opportunities all the way around, therefore, forced into a life of crime in order to support their five children from five different mothers. Oh, and dont forget to factor in financing for 28 inch rims and matching hats and shoes for every outfit. Plus, there's the weekly dry cleaning bill for the stacks of Rocawear jeans that must be heavily starched and pressed to the point that they can stand by themself. Once entered into the life of crime, those bully cops have the nerve to arrest them and put them in jail, thus taking them away from their families and therefore forcing their families to live off of the system because their "men" (I use the term men loosely) have been wrongly locked up by the man. Sense the sarcasm yet? Society needs an enema.