Ad Nauseam 3 & 4

Much of our class discussions reflect a concern for the environment in which our children are educated and socialized. Channel One streaming into classrooms, tricking vulnerable minds into believing that Pepsi commercials are public service announcements just doesn’t seem advantageous. Our children are a perfect audience, constantly absorbing information, eagerly and subconsciously structuring a worldview which in time will mature into the perspective of an adult. We must treat our children as a generation which will impact the planet, the structure of society and ultimately the human value system. Instead, we treat them as a growing army of consumers who are impressionable are perfect for perpetuating companies who have an insatiable hunger for wealth. It unnerving to imagine what kind of future adults are we entrusting our civilization to.
This makes the section on community all the more pressing. We have forced communities that are crutched by products, marketable lifestyles and identities. Authentic human connection, acceptance and common goals have been shadowed by the corruption and overuse of “community” in consumer culture.
I argue that community is just a word and the phenomenon itself will live on, recognized either through different language cues or an entirely different level of understanding. Again, the theme of critical thinking and analysis of experiences becomes crucial.