Speculations on why socially observable time has stopped

[justdrew]

http://www.bratton.info/projects/talks/we-need-to-talk-about-ted/

[8bitagent]

Surprised that article didn't mention the major change Brooklyn has seen in the last 5-6 years. Though I guess "Bushwick" is the new "Williamsburg".

When I was a punk in London in 1980-84, there were punks, skins, droogs, soulboys, teddy boys, mods, rockers, antpeople and latterly, new romatics. I don't see many of these kinds of tribe now. Maybe the homogenisation of a racially-integrated society, which deters tribalism within it's own ranks, has led to the waning of a need to feel 'different' and a part of the abnormal, lest it be intepreted by the majority as an 'ism' or individually as an 'ist'.

That's because youth "counter culture" has been replaced with corporate sponsored trendoid hipster-ism. Brought to you by Apple, Google and Facebook. There is no more fringe.

[Luther Blissett]

Indeed, hmmmm. What then was the "term" used for the consumer/customer before 1900ish? Shopper? Client? Perhaps there was no term in popular use.

It was you. As in you.

How many times have I seen the advertisements of "Won't you come down to see our grand assortments of X",

Perhaps it was "buyer".

Up until the modern era starting around the late 19th century, the structure of doing business from top to bottom was moneylender > merchant > journeyman > apprentice, which after the industrial revolution slowly changed to one where the "owners" had their own financial stake in business, which saw the rise of Standard Oil and huge conglomerates. The new structure was similar to one we see today, executive > manager class > worker class > underclass.

Since modern ad agencies only started forming as soon as late as 1841 and only really started making actual "ad campaigns" towards the 1880's, and because the highest level of financial concern came from the same merchant who was selling the goods, consumers were just everyone. They were clients.

[norton ash]

Haha, 'guests' haha. I'm not a shopper, I'm a guest. Can I borrow your computer, my gracious host, or is someone else on it?

http://pressroom.target.com/news/target ... u-s-stores

MINNEAPOLIS — December 19, 2013
Target today confirmed it is aware of unauthorized access to payment card data that may have impacted certain guests making credit and debit card purchases in its U.S. stores. Target is working closely with law enforcement and financial institutions, and has identified and resolved the issue.

“Target’s first priority is preserving the trust of our guests and we have moved swiftly to address this issue, so guests can shop with confidence. We regret any inconvenience this may cause,” said Gregg Steinhafel, chairman, president and chief executive officer, Target. “We take this matter very seriously and are working with law enforcement to bring those responsible to justice.”

Approximately 40 million credit and debit card accounts may have been impacted between Nov. 27 and Dec. 15, 2013. Target alerted authorities and financial institutions immediately after it was made aware of the unauthorized access, and is putting all appropriate resources behind these efforts. Among other actions, Target is partnering with a leading third-party forensics firm to conduct a thorough investigation of the incident.

More information is available at Target’s corporate website. Guests who suspect unauthorized activity should contact Target at: 866-852-8680.

About Target

Minneapolis-based Target Corporation (NYSE: TGT) serves guests at 1,921 stores – 1,797 in the United States and 124 in Canada – and at Target.com.

[Luther Blissett]

Surprised that article didn't mention the major change Brooklyn has seen in the last 5-6 years. Though I guess "Bushwick" is the new "Williamsburg".

When I was a punk in London in 1980-84, there were punks, skins, droogs, soulboys, teddy boys, mods, rockers, antpeople and latterly, new romatics. I don't see many of these kinds of tribe now. Maybe the homogenisation of a racially-integrated society, which deters tribalism within it's own ranks, has led to the waning of a need to feel 'different' and a part of the abnormal, lest it be intepreted by the majority as an 'ism' or individually as an 'ist'.

That's because youth "counter culture" has been replaced with corporate sponsored trendoid hipster-ism. Brought to you by Apple, Google and Facebook. There is no more fringe.

I see about 12-20 distinct subcultures in the western underground today. On a global level the cultural landscape remains as mind-boggling as ever. I'm sure there are plenty more subcultures in the west that I'm not aware of (or I'm not sure if they are serious or a joke). These are divided roughly along the same lines that they were in the past — politics, class, music, fashion, and the other arts and humanities.

The most profound difference today is that people have more complexity and cultural awareness in their lives; i.e. someone we would visually identify as a "hippie" and who probably also self-identifies as something along the lines of a "hippie" might also be incredibly well-versed in minimalist noise music and Chicago hip hop, contemporary east coast video art, and are involved in anti-street violence activism. Marxist crust punks might like twee pop, radical feminism, reggaeton, DMT and camping. (and so on and so forth)

There are important new subcultures that I see coming out of distinct political causes, especially as relates to marginalized and oppressed people. I think I've said before in this thread, but as young black, queer, trans*, native, latino, and other groups use technology to gain more of a voice, subcultural components spring up around them like social justice, native punk, and progressive queer culture in general which is perpetually on the avant garde.

[0_0]

[Luther Blissett]

Bannable offense. What about socially observable time stopping do you not understand?

[Luther Blissett]

My picks for favorite music of 2013 are fairly accessible, but this was interesting:

[8bitagent]

Bannable offense. What about socially observable time stopping do you not understand?

Haha, I know all the "Tumblr" underground music scene well, and I'll just leave it at that. It's funny as it fits with my view of the shores of time lapping onto itself into total cultural entropy...so internet saavy teens are kind of shining a weird broken keileidoscopic mirror back on pop culture.

[DrEvil]

I think one reason we don't see as many subculture tribes out and about today is because new forms of communication have removed the need for tribal colors.

I could be sitting here in a SS uniform (I'm not, for the record), and you would be none the wiser. That wouldn't have worked so well if I had to go talk to people in person, like in the olden days.

[tazmic]

I think one reason we don't see as many subculture tribes out and about today is because new forms of communication have removed the need for tribal colors.

I could be sitting here in a SS uniform (I'm not, for the record), and you would be none the wiser. That wouldn't have worked so well if I had to go talk to people in person, like in the olden days.

Interesting. When I hear complaints about people walking through life staring into their devices, whilst not wanting to detract from the significant social impacts, I still think that we are just seeing the externalization of what they would have been doing anyway - stroking their personal narratives.

So I'm seeing the externalisation of private actions related to your internalization/virtualization of the public content. An inversion of sorts.

I suppose a major difference now is there is less need to find or demand the existence of mirrors in our immediate environment. We carry better ones in our pockets.

[Searcher08]

When I was a punk in London in 1980-84, there were punks, skins, droogs, soulboys, teddy boys, mods, rockers, antpeople and latterly, new romatics. I don't see many of these kinds of tribe now. Maybe the homogenisation of a racially-integrated society, which deters tribalism within it's own ranks, has led to the waning of a need to feel 'different' and a part of the abnormal, lest it be intepreted by the majority as an 'ism' or individually as an 'ist'.

Interesting - I was in Bristol (West of England city made rich by slave trade, full of fab architecture and orbited by vast broken sink estates full of chavs with accents like pirates and single digit IQs) There was one place which seemed to be where *everyone* went. Punks, gays, Prince people, gays, trannies, New Romantics, skinheads, rastas - all throwing shapes in bascially a subterranean cave to DJs playing epic 12 minute full-on remixes of Frankie Goes To Hollywood 'Two Tribes' while absolutely trolleyed on scrumpy. This was also pre-Gorbachev and there was a real sense of cold war and the possibility of nuclear war... a kind of if the only thing you can do to say Fuck You to the powers that be was dance, then dance...

Play this really loud and you will get the flavour of the politicised, banging, bombastic epic place and time it was. Great video as well. Good times


I also see very few of those 'tribes' now - one of the curious things is that the Millenial generation and Gen Z generation seem to place a huge value on 'individuality' yet to me anyway
it takes place within a space that is incredibly bland and blended to a homogeneity that is as distinctive as Cool Whhhip.

If they were breakfast cereals, they would be saying "Look Look I'm a different shape than the others!" when actually all they are are variations on maltodextrin filled, GMO-wheat stuffed, corn-starch sweetened sickly dreck - and a 'make you own amazing ultra-healthy muesli mix' true individual is seen as a being of truly incomprehensible weirdness.

There is also an aspect of these times where media consumption of what is being created now is of so low value that there is actually nothing to re-cycle - and the new post Big Brother TV world drips in arch cynicism from the get go - as if the announcer from The Running Man tells the baying audience "Do they live or die after this? hahaha - Who cares!" - it is no longer a cover up - the curtain has been pulled back and most people do not give a shit about seeing the 'Wizard pulling the levers', in fact it is more 'Pull the curtain back, its interfering with the entertainment'. People no longer care that former X-Factor winners whose selection consumed their lives for months are careerless, poor and discarded like trash - and they dont care that they dont care.

[82_28]

Somewhat fascinating is that I was a "punk" in the early 90s and shit as well. There was no accessible Internet then, thus all I can trace it down to is a single cassette tape with the Subhumans on one side and The Descendents on the other that a friend made for me. I was pulled instantly into the punk "scene". Besides the obvious, how is it that me in Denver got associated with the mindspace of UK "punk"? I suppose it was probably Wax Trax come to think of it.

http://www.waxtraxrecords.com/

[nomo]

Visible changes of the past 20 years that are obvious to me (NYC centric but still, and leaving out "personal tech"):

Traffic: SUVs everywhere. Even smaller cars today are taking on that boxy SUV shape.
More electric/hybrid cars and busses, more bicycles.

Architecture: pretty much all recent construction is made of glass, steel and concrete (though this seems to be changing again.)

Proliferation of chain stores outside of malls, onto "Main Street".
Ubiquity of banks and ATMs.

Cleaner (more sterile?) streets.

More "artisanal", "local", and "organic" style grocery stores and restaurants.

Infantilization of fashion: grownups wearing t-shirts, sweatpants, pajama pants, shorts, and flip-flops. Also, hipsters.

Less smoking in public.

Music: Autotune!

[nomo]

Excerpt from the 1990 JC Penney Christmas Catalogue.