Adbusters

I know this is in the sidebar, but in case you haven't mosied on over to the Adbusters site, here's your chance to tell us what you think about it.

Kalle Lasn

What are your initial thoughts on Culture Jam? As you're plowing through this book, here's some info on the author:
Time
AlterNet
SustainAbility

Will American Brands Be a Casualty of War?

Here's an article with exactly that title. For your post, answer the same question using information from the article to either support or deny your claim.

Spring break

Since the time-honored tradition of spring break is upon us, I thought I would Google "spring break" to see what popped up. To my surprise, up came SPRINGBREAK.COM. This website is a mecca for all spring breakers planning the coolest spring break getaway ever. Anything you could ever want to know about trips is here - including all the parties, cruises and "gear" you could ask for. I didn't realize there was one site that could sell everything possibly related to the spring break experience.

Not Quite Perfect

Once again, I give you an article from The Onion - the satire newspaper. Before you read this, please go into it knowing that it is NOT SERIOUS. This is meant to be funny. It's like watching Saturday Night Live, only in an on-line, readable format. That said, please don't make comments about whether or not you would take your children to this McDonald's because it doesn't exist. Instead, please focus your response on WHY The Onion would select this as something to poke fun at. Think of this in relation to, perhaps, the Starbucks article left for you earlier on this page. What do the ideas presented in this article suggest about how we as Americans view labels?

Buy American

This has also come up in class - the labels that actually say "Made in America." The first site I have to offer you is one that advertises Buy American. The second site I offer you is a government site about the standards associated with the "Made in America" label. Interesting...I didn't think something like that would have to be defined so clearly - almost as though there may be fine lines separating something that was actually made in America from something else that was only sort of made in America.

American Apparel

Believe it or not, there is actually an American company that practices ethical treatment of employees: American Apparel. Read over their mission and get some information on the company. Feel free, too, to browse their online catalogue - but feel no pressure from me, even though I love the clothes American Apparel produces. What do you think about the company and what its able to accomplish? Why don't more companies do this?

Vote with Dollars

To concentrate more on the question of labels and what they say about us as citizens, here's a quick glance at someone who claims to vote with dollars. Is this possible, do you think? Do you attempt to vote with your dollars? Do you think it's important to pay attention to the people you give your money to? Or do you see no difference between handing cash to the cashier at Wal-mart or to the farmer at the corner market?

Organic

Since we talked a couple weeks ago about organic foods, I thought it would be a good idea to include a link to an organic food site. Notice how political this is! Does it matter what you purchase? Isn't food just food? Answer these questions with information you learn on the topic from the website.

Jay Leno

I couldn't find exactly what Nick told me about, but this is close. This is a highlight from an episode of Jay Leno that features brands and their suggested "real" names. Can you think of any more?

Big Ten

I haven't been able to log on and post anything for a couple days; I think the system must have been down. But, all's well today, finally!

We talked about this concept of the Big Ten I think two class meetings ago and I said I would put it up on here. Poke around some - what you find may surprise you.