On the Change-of-Address Pack
Anticipating my departure from Providence, I headed to the Thayer Street Post Office last week to acquire a change-of-address form. What the friendly postal workers gave me, though, was an official "Change-Of-Address Pack," consisting of an overstuffed envelope containing coupons redeemable for services provided by U-haul, Home Depot, and other companies that might have something to offer relocating Americans, as well as the simple form I sought. This hefty and brightly-colored pack made me wonder two things.
1) To what extent should official transactions between a citizen and his government have corporate sponsorship? If my Change-of-Adress form is padded with Home Depot deals, should my tax forms be brought to me by H&R Block; my passport bookmarked with a flyer promoting Continental Airlines; and my birth certificate stapled to a deal for AIG life insurance?
2) How much waste is directely associted with advertising? Surely millions of trees are felled and hundreds of landfills are swollen with America's disregarded fliers and junk mail. But what about the waste of mental power begotten by an ad-saturated society? How much human consciousness--the most valuable human resource of all--has been drained as we stare at billboards and T.V. commercials, as we are captured and captivated on city busses and at stadiums, and even as we seek to fill out our change-of-address forms? What ideas could we have generated, and what perceptions could we have perceived were our minds not occupied with the new Norelco Razor, an attorney who can defend us from DUI's, or recent price slashes at Wal-Mart?
I think the latter kind of waste--waste of mind--is grossly underestimated in our considerations of the relative benefits and costs of advertising. Fortunately, we can strive to reclaim our minds from the inane and ubiquitous grasp of corporate advertising. I have two suggestions
1) As citizens we can demand that corporate advertising be eliminated from our governmental transactions. Yes, this will result in decreased governmental revenue with which to produce things like change-of-address forms, but the savings of physical and psychological waste will be significant; and the ideal of a democratic government that represents the people, and not the interests with enough money to advertise on a national scale, will be preserved. (While we're at it, we can strive to reduce the incredible influence of corporations on government by advocating for a little friggin' campaign finance reform).
2) As consumers, we can reduce the prevalence of advertising in our lives by consuming fewer advertising-soaked services, or by paying for alternate services that have fewer advertisements. Entertainment via the Internet is an increasingly great alternative to sitting sessile in front of a T.V. And I'm salivating for the near future when the rise of satellite radio will save us from the idiocy of fm radio.
Those of you who have just moved and want to file a USPS change-of-address form without the official "Change-of-Address Pack" can do so here.
1) To what extent should official transactions between a citizen and his government have corporate sponsorship? If my Change-of-Adress form is padded with Home Depot deals, should my tax forms be brought to me by H&R Block; my passport bookmarked with a flyer promoting Continental Airlines; and my birth certificate stapled to a deal for AIG life insurance?
2) How much waste is directely associted with advertising? Surely millions of trees are felled and hundreds of landfills are swollen with America's disregarded fliers and junk mail. But what about the waste of mental power begotten by an ad-saturated society? How much human consciousness--the most valuable human resource of all--has been drained as we stare at billboards and T.V. commercials, as we are captured and captivated on city busses and at stadiums, and even as we seek to fill out our change-of-address forms? What ideas could we have generated, and what perceptions could we have perceived were our minds not occupied with the new Norelco Razor, an attorney who can defend us from DUI's, or recent price slashes at Wal-Mart?
I think the latter kind of waste--waste of mind--is grossly underestimated in our considerations of the relative benefits and costs of advertising. Fortunately, we can strive to reclaim our minds from the inane and ubiquitous grasp of corporate advertising. I have two suggestions
1) As citizens we can demand that corporate advertising be eliminated from our governmental transactions. Yes, this will result in decreased governmental revenue with which to produce things like change-of-address forms, but the savings of physical and psychological waste will be significant; and the ideal of a democratic government that represents the people, and not the interests with enough money to advertise on a national scale, will be preserved. (While we're at it, we can strive to reduce the incredible influence of corporations on government by advocating for a little friggin' campaign finance reform).
2) As consumers, we can reduce the prevalence of advertising in our lives by consuming fewer advertising-soaked services, or by paying for alternate services that have fewer advertisements. Entertainment via the Internet is an increasingly great alternative to sitting sessile in front of a T.V. And I'm salivating for the near future when the rise of satellite radio will save us from the idiocy of fm radio.
Those of you who have just moved and want to file a USPS change-of-address form without the official "Change-of-Address Pack" can do so here.
