Cosmic Capitalism

 

If survival of the species is a worthwhile game-plan then application of logic can't be harmful.

My thoughts are we have three options:

1. Laissez faire Corporatism/Capitalism/Scientific Materialism

There's enough history to argue that we are no more in control of our destiny, then there is evidence of why we exist in the vastness of the universe, apparently alone. Most of our discoveries are more a case of accidents then purpose-driven discovery, and so the solution is let it unfold without a plan. I have a deep conviction about transition of energy after death and don't fear dying, but it strikes me as odd that those who are least predisposed to this kind of thinking, are most unlikely to openly and vocally champion Capitalism's course of action. If one doesn't believe in life after death why hand over to those who are living?

2. Harmony

This option requires a more immediate and locally self-sufficient discussion on managed population decline. In 50 years with one-family-one-child policies, as China has already shown, we could be in a position to conclude what that harmony means. How the resources are intelligently shared, how much untouched nature is to be contiguous with humans and how to rewire corporations to wean them off addiction to profits.

3. Cosmic Capitalism

The picture of the Chanel logo on the moon was the first visualization that made sense to me.

It never occurred to me until recently that capitalism could be the solution to our problem. Not the mutant strain we are working. Currently capitalism is a shoe scraping cripple for unbiquitous wealth creation. It's the HIV of abundance, a malignant tumor on our collective hope for a better tomorrow. 

What explains the absence of truly awesome visionary branding, selling futures of cosmic   promises with travel or luxury brands (for example) vying with each other right now to brand the lunar surface as a terrestrially inspired vision. I'm talking about a celebration of firm conviction in cosmic capitalism, physically investing in the wealth needed to enable us to eject ourselves from the orbit of an uninhabitable Earth, and leaving behind a spent womb and bruised uterus ready for metamorphic change? A Goodbye-Earth lunar-branding experience, celebrating escape from orbit, and out of this solar system and onto the next.

With capitalism that has vision such as this I can roll with the costs of what is left behind. But the capitalism we have. It has no balls. It's a parasite. It has no future.

What say you? 

Smile - You're on Camera

One of the first bust ups I had with the Red Bull pitch that we won was the use of this visual. I rejected it on the basis that it used women who aren't the main customer group, but more importantly because it is everything about branding in China that is wrong wrong wrong. It's easy for marketing people in China to look at the smiley happy people in Western FMCG advertising and think that's the way to do it, but what invariably comes out in China is a thick smear of unvarnished schmaltz. The notion of portraying anything approaching real life is anathema to the marketing heads in China including Li Ning who hasn't got a clue that the branding part is the dramatization of the blood pumping through an organisation, not some laquered image projection.

 

These girls are the Olympic hostesses. They are trained to smile and it's this training that is the problem. Not the solution. The Chinese bless them, have had a tragic modern history, that like the Russians is bloody and dripping in carnage juice not to mention infused with suspicion and fear. Nobody could really deny it, even the Chinese, but they choose to ignore it collectively white wash over what makes them who they are today. That's where it goes wrong.

So you can see that the smile is part of the Olympic orchestrated image. The idea put in front of me (yes this is the level of creative in China we often see) was that after a hard days working at their smile, a gal just needs to take a swig on her Red Bull to make it through the day. Of course the idea is risible and explains why I often want to just write the fucking scripts myself but just to be professional I pointed out that the reasons for rejection were, it wasn't female, it wasn't blue collar enough (lorry drivers are often paid a subsidy to drink Red Bull and not fall asleep at the wheel) and most important of all, that the smile did not come from the HEART. A synthetic smile is exactly what I expect Li Ning to insist upon and make no mistake he doesn't undertand that it's all about saying 'fucking hell, I failed' that makes a brand.

It's not just Li Ning. It's the entire country. 1.3 Billion population and despite loving them hugely for so many things, I've yet to come across one Chinese entrepreneur, or brand visionary who has the balls to embrace their flaws and their run with it.

There are reasons for this and I'll explain some of those in some later posts.

But in the mean time I'd also like to see a Western agency that can see past their noses and their short term immediate profits (show me one ad, just one ad) that knows it's all about saying no to clients who are often under immense pressure to deliver the synthetic goods, on time and on budget. What most Western agencies don't realise is that this is an economic bubble we're living in and that doesn't justify running with what I think is so often some of the weakest creativity I've ever come across and I think I've worked in more countries than most. 

One of my predictions however is that just like punk emerging from the ashes of a charred British society I anticipate an unleashing of the creative Chinese spirit once this amazing country hits harder times. When it's not all about the money because there will be less of it about. 

For the time being though most are on the oxyacetylane rampant consumerism which the smarter people in the West know has a logic that predicts and defines it's own end with a simplicity that will leaving most people gasping......or choking if you wish.