{"id":937,"date":"2013-03-06T21:43:35","date_gmt":"2013-03-06T21:43:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/beta.dminlgp.com\/selling-the-non-system-system\/"},"modified":"2013-03-06T21:43:35","modified_gmt":"2013-03-06T21:43:35","slug":"selling-the-non-system-system","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/selling-the-non-system-system\/","title":{"rendered":"Selling the Non-System “System”"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/span><\/p>\n

According to Andrew Heath and Joseph Potter, the authors of the book, Rebel Sell: Why the Culture Can\u2019t be Jammed<\/u>, theories such as the one found in the book No Logo<\/u>, by Naomi Klein, are false and unproductive.\u00a0 The theory, they explain, is actually a critique of mass society, not capitalism.\u00a0 This popular theory, found in various movies and books, and espoused by \u201ccounter-culture\u201d consumerists states, \u201cCapitalism requires conformity to function correctly.\u00a0 As a result, the system is based upon a generalized system of repression. Individuals who resist the pressure to conform therefore subvert the system, and aid in its overthrow.\u201d (this.org\/)\u00a0 Like Neo in the Matrix, we need to unplug from \u201cthe system.\u201d\u00a0 We must become \u201cculture jammers\u201d in order to stall and eventually overthrow \u201cthe system.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Heath and Potter counter this theory by explaining that, \u201cThere is no single, overarching system that integrates it all.\u00a0 The culture cannot be jammed because there is no such thing as \u2018the culture\u2019 or \u2018the system\u2019. (p. 10)\u00a0 So, if there is not a system, then what is there?\u00a0 The authors state, \u201cWe do not live in the Matrix, nor do we live in the spectacle.\u00a0 The world that we live in is in fact much more prosaic.\u00a0 It consists of billions of human beings, each pursuing some more or less plausible conception of the good, trying to cooperate with one another, and doing so with varying degrees of success.\u201d (p. 10)\u00a0 The concept of individualism eventually leads to conformity when enough individuals buy into the \u201cnon-conformist\u201d status.\u00a0 They explain that these \u201ccounter-culture\u201d consumers and theorists believe they are subverting a system that does not even exist.\u00a0 In other words, consumers acquire products that are \u201canti-establishment,\u201d music that is \u201canti-corporate\u201d (e.g. Kurt Cobain and punk rock), and buy into a \u201cstatus\u201d by purchasing counter-mass culture products.\u00a0 However, these individuals are still contributing to capitalism and consumer culture except they are buying \u201canti-culture\u201d brands, and thereby engaging in a perceived \u201cstatus\u201d of \u201ccounter-culture.\u201d\u00a0 These consumers believe they are rebelling against the culture and \u201cthe system\u201d but in reality are creating their own system of ideals and purchasing products that support their perceived reality.<\/span><\/p>\n

So, what do the authors suggest to help fix this \u201cnon-system?\u201d\u00a0 They state, \u201cAt this stage of late consumerism, our best bet is legislative action.\u201d (this.org\/)\u00a0 They believe that \u201carms-control agreements\u201d that stall anti-social forms of competition are the key to this process.\u00a0 They explain that individual liberty will be restricted in order to promote a more civilized society.\u00a0 And express that, \u201c<\/span>In the end, civilization is built upon our willingness to accept rules and to curtail the pursuit of our individual interest out of deference to the needs and interests of others.\u201d\u00a0 (p. 342)<\/span><\/p>\n

Heath and Potter <\/span>are doing exactly what a free system allows them to do, questioning the rebellion of the counter-culture and questioning the idea of a system.\u00a0 If the authors haven\u2019t bought into a system, they have begun playing the all too familiar \u201cblame game.\u201d\u00a0 This game requires that everyone buy into the notion that society or \u201cthe system\u201d is inherently flawed and that each side knows how to fix it.\u00a0 Perhaps \u201cthe system\u201d is an illusion, or perhaps the authors are good salesman of the \u201csystem,\u201d trying to sell the idea that there is no system and therefore no need to counter the system.\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n

Were individuals like Gandhi, Jesus and Martin Luther King \u201cculture-jammers\u201d or just people trying to do good?\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n

Are we arguing semantics and\/or theories?\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n

Will Heath and Potter sell lots of books in the capitalist \u201cnon-system?\u201d\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n

Do you believe there is a \u201csystem\u201d or not?<\/span><\/p>\n

What does a non-capitalist, non-consumer, non-commodification society look like?<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Heath, Joseph, and Andrew Potter. The Rebel Sell: How the Counter Culture Became Consumer Culture<\/em>. Chichester: Capstone Publishing Ltd., 2005.<\/span><\/p>\n

Also sold as:\u00a0 Nation of Rebels: Why Counterculture Became Consumer Culture<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

http:\/\/this.org\/magazine\/2002\/11\/01\/the-rebel-sell\/<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

According to Andrew Heath and Joseph Potter, the authors of the book, Rebel Sell: Why the Culture Can\u2019t be Jammed, theories such as the one found in the book No Logo, by Naomi Klein, are false and unproductive.\u00a0 The theory, they explain, is actually a critique of mass society, not capitalism.\u00a0 This popular theory, found […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":47,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[2,114,363,364,365],"class_list":["post-937","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-dminlgp","tag-heath","tag-potter","tag-rebelsell","tag-system","cohort-lgp3"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/937","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/47"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=937"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/937\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=937"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=937"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=937"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}