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The Value Chasm: Fake Prada Handbags and Terrorism

We hear a lot about the connection between terrorism and the black market. But what really causes this? The issue at hand is a value chasm: where illogical thinking and irrational consumerism has caused us to value certain items far beyond reasonable, and thus a black market is created.

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The Value Chasm: Fake Prada Handbags and TerrorismMuch has been discussed (sometimes in the form of political propaganda, but discussed nonetheless) in recent years about the link between the black market and fanatical terrorist-like organizations. The trail of money from the sale of things like knock-off handbags, bootleg DVD's, drugs, and the like can easily be seen leading back to criminal organizations, generally with some political bend.

While it's hard to argue the money trail (who do you think sells this stuff?), as well the "effect" portion of the theory (terrorism isn't good)- the "cause" seems to have been relegated to the arena of moral and political propaganda. Terrorists are evil-doers, thus so are pot smokers and bootleg DVD collectors. Patrons of the knock-off Prada handbag peddler in New York City? That's right- evil-doers.

Maybe this suffices for the simplicity necessary nowadays to market a political and moral agenda. Unfortunately, real-world cause-and-effect isn't so black and white. When we look at the issue under the microscope of socio-economic reality, the real causes involve players in our own capitalist economy: the companies that supply goods, and the consumers who want them.

The issue is of serious concern. Sure, it certainly may be difficult to take it seriously for most people, when the only interface to the issue is Reefer Madness-style public service announcements during the Super Bowl, somehow drawing a line from a teenager's desire to experiment with marijuana to Islamic fundamentalists flying planes into buildings. However, with the rapid globalization of the economy, combined with the fact that terrorist attacks are now a threat within the borders of nearly every nation- the issue of the supply and demand of the black market should be a primary matter in the War on Terror.

- THE VALUE GAP -

Sometimes it helps to skip over the moral arguments and move right into the universe of Economics 101 (in that morality is often made up, and economics is real). Black markets often exist because of a gap between the value of a product and the demand for it. This gap is often caused by some artificial effect on the current value of the product, because unaltered supply and demand should create a value for a product that generally works for everyone that needs it. We all complain about the price of gas and groceries, but there is a reason that there isn't a thriving black market for it.

There is, however, a black market for what our culture considers high-end luxury items. A select few people with relatively massive expendable income have valued, for example, certain purses or watches thousands of times higher than their normal, mass-market counterparts. I'm not about to condemn this on some "higher moral ground"- free market economics safely allows for value to be placed on items for purely intangible, vanity reasons. If you can easily afford a $1000 watch, go nuts.

The problem occurs when the mass culture- not just the ones who have nothing better to do than buy $1000 watches- ascribes a need for or entitlement to the same irrational types of products, disregarding the economic means of quenching this need. It works like this: A purse, for instance, is recognized as a need. The fulfillment of this need is valued at $1000 (a $20 purse will just not do!) The means to fulfill this need is, say, $20 (the person can reasonably afford a $20 purse). Thus, the perfect environment for a black market: $20 knock-offs of $1000 purses.

Now, will our desire for designer handbags bring about the end of Western Civilization? Most likely, no. At least not all that quickly. However, when you look at it conceptually, from above, one begins to see the connection between rampant consumerism and the destructive factions of our global culture. Gluttony and irrational consumerism- for this and many other reasons- certainly aren't helping the security and progress of our civilization.

- THE ANTIQUATED VALUE OF ENTERTAINMENT -

When we take a look at other areas of the black market problem, the socio-economic causes play out slightly differently. That is to say, the corporations supplying the legal versions of these products aren't necessarily free of fault, either.

The digital age has turned the entertainment industry on its head. The economics of the entertainment industry have always been very different than, say, manufacturing; the value of the end product- what is essentially intangible "content"- is mostly fueled by perception. For decades there was rarely- if ever- a price war in terms of the cost of a CD or VHS/DVD movie. Even though the tangible, base product (essentially a bunch of zeros and ones on plastic) was of little actual value, the ethereal "meaning" of the product (songs, words, and/or images) had a high relative value in the market. Of course, having a monopoly on the distribution of said product helped inflate that value.

As the Internet became widely adopted, an interesting change occurred with the perceived value of entertainment content. It sank to next to nothing. The masses were easily- albeit illegally- able to obtain the same product for free. And they did. This is in stark contrast to the economics of the $1000 designer purse, where people clamor to value the intangible characteristics of a product well beyond the cost of its parts and distribution. Simply put, the masses told the entertainment industry that they wanted to consume massive quantities of their product, but they wanted it dirt cheap.

The industry responded not by quickly changing the way they sell their product, but by the rather curious move of criminalizing and suing their own customers in bulk. One would think that a normal market response would be for one or two record companies- for instance- to respond to the realities of the market and maybe to give away the songs as a leader into making money off concerts, t-shirts, and the like.

The irony in all of this is that the aforementioned changes in the demand were a result of the expense of distributing the supply truthfully becoming dirt cheap- a situation most industries beg for. However, the entertainment industry seems to be sticking by an inflated value for its product. At the same time, criminal organizations certainly don't mind selling bootleg CDs and DVDs at a price the market will bear. Yet again, an irrational concept of value creates a black market- this time on the supply side.

- THE REAL WAR ON TERROR -

The black market is unlike any other illicit and criminal environment in that it directly exposes- and exploits- irrationality in the counterpart legal environment it mimics- our economy. And the black market is no small affair- by some counts it is twenty to thirty percent of the entire global economy. That's actually not such a big problem until we see where this money is going.

As we evolve into a global economy, this black market is stretching far beyond the simple desire of an individual to make a quick-and-easy buck. The bad guys are no longer a few derelicts on a street corner peddling fake watches from a trench coat. Rather, the bad guys are now extremist political organizations- terrorists- many bent on disrupting or destroying capitalism itself.

One may take this as an indictment on the general concept of capitalism. Certainly, as we've seen, the forces primarily at fault for the rise in the black market are the players in the game of capitalism: suppliers and consumers. However it is not quite that simple. The problem is not capitalism, but rather the inability of the said players to responsibly participate in capitalism.

The variables here that cause the irrational flaws in the market- which, in turn, feed criminal interests- are very much cultural, even psychological. We are a culture that increasingly devalues true logical thinking. It's perfectly accepted for a consumer to value a purse at $1000. It's perfectly understandable for an industry to try to cling on to a business model based on inflated perceived value.

Terrorism is not funded simply by "evil doers" doing evil things. It is funded by illogical thinking and irrational consumerism. That, in the end, may be the toughest war to fight.

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The Value Chasm: Fake Prada Handbags and Terrorism

Fraction of a Vision: Political Documentaries vs. Mundane Reality

With the expansion of the importance of political documentaries on our culture, and conflict has arisen: the dichotomy between the sensational (and often treacherous) vision of the world as seen through this new media, and the realities of the mundane world of factual cause-and-effect. To the masses, life keeps getting worse and something must be done about it. Reality- though mundane- actually shows us something different.

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Fraction of a Vision: Political Documentaries vs. Mundane Reality

Liquid Laws and America's Security Technology Quandary

The argument over new security technologies in America seem to always center around the proverbial "Big Brother Police State." However, this is not the paramount issue. The real issue is how our overly complicated and often "liquid" set of laws interacts with this new need for much more precise and flawless law enforcement technologies. And that is where a lot of our anti-terrorism efforts will break down.

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Liquid Laws and America's Security Technology Quandary

Clamoring for Scandal, Selling America Short

Is the Plame/Libby/Rove controversy really news? Like Lewinsky and Watergate before it, we find the media- and its viewers- clamoring for scandal in an attempt at instant judgment of right or wrong on government policy. However complex events such as wars, economic decisions, and the like often take years for the results to be seen. Thus, the media often moves to replace such judgment with the simpler judgment on more benign issues like white lies and political manipulation.

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Clamoring for Scandal, Selling America Short

DNA Screening and the Fear of Equality in the Job Market

From THE VN/VO:

It is always a little strange- and even scary- when the worlds of high-tech science and professional basketball meet. Such a thing happened this month with Eddy Curry of the Chicago Bulls. It became clear last season that Curry suffered from a heart condition- which, one can imagine, is an especially risky thing for a man who makes his living running up and down a basketball court for hours each day.

During the negotiations on his contract this summer, the idea of using DNA screening to actually predict Curry's future health risks- and essentially his worthiness to be employed by the Bulls- came up. The Bulls sidestepped the possible legal mess of the whole thing and essentially traded Curry away to a team that was (probably foolishly) willing to take the risk without any DNA analysis.

The job security of a $65 Million professional basketball player aside- the concept of using DNA technology to profile individuals and predict things about them is moving out of the world of science fiction and into reality. The reaction to such a concept- which undoubtedly over the next few years will grow even louder- exposes some rather interesting flaws in the mix of our culture and our economy.

There is no doubt that the time will come in the very near future where DNA testing for the likelihood of all sorts of diseases (and even personality traits and lifestyle choices) will be affordable enough to be used on everyone from minimum wage workers on up to those under multi-million dollar contracts.

As a rather adamant believer in personal freedom and individual liberty I am all for it.

- DOING THE MATH ON PERSONAL FREEDOM -

I know, I know. Usually one who claims to be "adamant about personal freedom", when asked about global workplace DNA testing, sides with the Brave New World, fear-of-machines-taking-over-the-world types. Yes, usually "individual liberty" is code for "I have a theory about a conspiracy between scientists and the military-industrial complex to stamp every worker with a number and slowly turn us into robots."

However, as with most scientific advances that knee-jerk reactionaries claim would render segments of our society absent of all that makes us human and free, we find that, in the end, the results are often much more beneficial- or, at worst, benign- to those very segments of society. I see no reason why the ability for the private sector to use DNA screening as part of the decision making process in hiring people will be any different. Using a little math, a little understanding of what science really is, and a healthy dose of "how things really unfold when you look at the total picture," we may find DNA testing to be the one thing that finally does bring equality to the workplace.

The most important thing, when discussing employment and the economy, is to understand one undisputable fact about the job market: the number of jobs available is a finite and specific number. Hiring practices never change this number, nor the quality of overall jobs available. If, for instance, I am hiring for two jobs, and I decide to refuse to hire women- two of the same jobs are still available. Certainly my rather unfair decision affects women, as well it affects the overall economy because potentially less qualified and productive people are getting jobs. But, in the end, two people are now employed.

So, leaving the specifics of using DNA screening as a form of differentiating candidates aside, one thing is for certain: no matter what happens in the universe of hiring practices, the average person still has the same chance of securing and keeping a job. If person A loses out on a job opportunity because of a predisposition to a negative health condition found through DNA screening, person B (or C, D, or E) will eventually pass and get the job. On balance, it would seem that there is nothing to be afraid of- but people inevitably are. That fear tells us a lot about our culture's misguided definition of what equality really means.

- THE DISCRIMINATION MYTH -

When it comes to issues like this, our culture immediately likes to throw around terms such as "discrimination." However, what exactly is discrimination? If a person is black and loses out on a job offer merely because of that condition, we all agree that is wrongful discrimination. How about if a person is less intelligent? Well, that certainly falls along the same dictionary definition of discrimination. One would, however, be hard pressed to argue that somehow less intelligent people deserve an equal shot at a job than more intelligent people. You see, not all discrimination is wrong. We've decided, as a culture, that characteristics such as race and gender are foolish and harmful conditions- for everyone- on which to base decisions of job hiring. That's obvious. But how about a person's predisposition to health risks?

Let's assume that DNA screening for one's true percentage risk of specific health issues is a solid and near perfectly accurate science. (If it's not, then it shouldn't be used- we all agree on that. But, by all accounts, it is.) If, indeed, such potential health problems would impact a candidate's performance on the job, it behooves everyone to utilize screening for such potential. The endgame, remember, does not stop at one person not being employable, and all of the distressing anecdotal tales that go along with that situation. The endgame is that someone will get the job- presumably a more qualified (in this case, healthy) person. If that is not total-picture equality, I don't know what is.

I would even go as far as saying that one day we should have a "heath risk score," much like our centralized and standardized credit scores. Combining individuals' past physical health, mental health, and behavior history with the predictive ability of DNA screening, such a number (or set of numbers) would be most valuable in many of the facets of life in which we have to evaluate and forecast how a person will perform.

Beyond that, I can only hope that DNA screening technology and science can come close to crystallizing some form of a score on intelligence, diligence, laziness, and the many other personality traits which, today, we really just guess at (and, more often than not, guess wrong). The roadblocks to such a thing are not just technological. Trepidation from our culture's innate Orwellian fantasies will certainly stand in the way.

- THE FEAR OF AN EQUAL PLANET -

What, exactly, is the root of Orwellian fears when it comes to using more advanced science in our decision making process? The fear is a lack of randomness. The ugly truth of equality is that people tend to only be adamant about fairness when there is a better chance than not that it will benefit them. Now, when it doesn't benefit them, people do not necessarily naturally turn to purposeful unfairness. Rather, they turn to the security of randomness.

Nearly every popular belief on how we should decide who should be employed and who should not hedges more toward randomness than fair and accurate inequity. Individuals desire ever more less-than-perfect systems for deciding things such as job hiring, because if it turns out that the individual is actually not qualified (i.e. less intelligent, less healthy, and so on)- they'd still get the same shot. Never mind, of course, in the zero-sum game of economics, someone more qualified gets less of a deserved shot at the same job.

The somewhat bizarre tribulations of a multi-million dollar basketball player aside, the case of Eddy Curry and the Chicago Bulls should serve as a sign that, indeed, we are all slowly entering a Brave New World. However, when we look at the entirety of the picture- especially the relative randomness and guesswork in which we decide who among us is fit or unfit for certain jobs- maybe we're embarking on a welcome new world. One where science and technology help us achieve the true equality between people that we could never do alone.

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DNA Screening and the Fear of Equality in the Job Market

Baseball Playoffs and the Peril of an Average Culture

The evolution of the baseball playoffs- where now even losing teams now have a shot at winning- tells us a lot of about our culture. From the upbringing of our children, through our skewed vision of success as adults, we're a culture that is increasingly permissive of "averageness." How will this fare in a world where competing cultures are forced to be much more crude in their determination of winners and losers?

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Baseball Playoffs and the Peril of an Average Culture

The Anti-War Movement: A Cause Without an Issue

In the national debate on the war in Iraq, there has been surprisingly little debate on, well, the war coming from the anti-war crowd. Not only is this not helping their own cause, it is also rather dangerous- as the lack of a real debate on the real issues implicitly assures conformity to the Administration's side of such issues.

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The Anti-War Movement: A Cause Without an Issue

Atlas Misled: UN Book Exposes Flaws of Environmentalist Argument

The UN recently released an atlas "revealing the global devastation of man." Upon a closer look, what is included in the book does not help prove man's destruction- as media reviews have gleaned. However, what is not included in the book does illustrate where the modern environmentalist contention logically falls short.

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Atlas Misled: UN Book Exposes Flaws of Environmentalist Argument

New Orleans Disaster: A test of cultures, failed.

Taking a look at the disaster in New Orleans relative to the potential aftermath of the proverbial terrorist attack on our soil, what we find is frightening: a nation completely unprepared to handle a widespread, planned catastrophe. However, part of the problem is because we have the wrong idea as to what "preparedness" really means.

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New Orleans Disaster: A test of cultures, failed.

Rove and Plame: It's not about a leak

As the pundits take turns deifying and then roasting Karl Rove for his supposed involvement in the Valerie Plame leak, there is a much more important (albeit less sexy) issue at play here: Why was a supposedly "secret" CIA agent ever that close- even though personal relationships- to the ever ugly game of partisan politics?

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Rove and Plame: It's not about a leak

Learning from the British Stoic Reaction

Americans could learn a little something from Britons in the wake of their recent terrorist attacks. Shirking rampant flag waving and tacky memorials, a little healthy indifference and stoicism may actually go a long way in the real psychological fight against terrorism.

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Learning from the British Stoic Reaction

Our Desire to be Sick: The Healthcare Paradox

Do we really have a healthcare crisis in America? Everyone from the poorest citizens to multi-national companies seem to agree that we do, and that the only question is who should pay for it. The real question, however, is not how to pay down the healthcare crisis, but why Americans are so fixated on being sick.

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Our Desire to be Sick: The Healthcare Paradox

Lunacy Without a Plan: Today's Democratic Party

For the Democratic Party, Howard Dean's raging lunacy is not the problem.. Howard Dean's raging lunacy being a problem is the problem. Democrats should take a page from the GOP playbook: learn how to use your lunatics well.

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Lunacy Without a Plan: Today's Democratic Party

The Paradox of Reality Television Fame

The debate on the meaning of reality television seems to be stuck on the "individual," often heralded (or chastised) for bringing "fame" to the less idealized persona. However, the critics have got the actual revolution wrong. What it has really done is made famous, and bastardized somewhat, the "situation." This is a dramatic difference from nearly every other pop culture phenomenon, where the "individual" is the center of what we consider fame.

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The Paradox of Reality Television Fame

My Robotic Vacuum's Cult of Mysterious Intelligence

What this mechanized contraption has inadvertently taught me about everything culture has ever really wanted from proverbial Gadgets Of The Future, and what these gadgets truly represent to us.

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My Robotic Vacuum's Cult of Mysterious Intelligence

They're snatching up our pretty, white women! Film at eleven.

The saga of runaway bride Jennifer Wilbanks is more than a hoax, it's the perfect representation of how the misdirection of priorities in the media is as dangerous as the misrepresentation of facts.

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They're snatching up our pretty, white women! Film at eleven.

Our Lady of the Salt Stain, Patron Saint of the Future of America

We humor ourselves with the masses flocking to see a vision of The Virgin Mary in a salt stain under a Chicago expressway, but is this affair also a reflection on the state of religion in America? If so, what does that foretell about America's future position on the ever-changing world stage?

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Our Lady of the Salt Stain, Patron Saint of the Future of America

Environmentalism's perilous ignorance of the free market

Environmentalists are crying for faster adoption of alternatives to oil-consuming products and eco-friendly corporate practices- but, as always, through a flawed process that ignores their own responsibilities within a free market system.

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Environmentalism's perilous ignorance of the free market

The Life Expectancy Endgame

Or: How to win every argument dealing with the physical, mental or moral health of Americans.

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The Life Expectancy Endgame

What's Wrong With a Little Classism?

Is it really the division between the haves and have-nots that is the problem, or is it merely the faulty characteristics in which we decide the haves and have-nots? Maybe classism is actually a good thing when applied correctly.

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What's Wrong With a Little Classism?

America's Religious-political Contradiction

The resurgence of religion into America's common discussion could be considered anything from humorous to dangerous. In actuality- and most importantly- the interjection of religion into political discourse is an ignorance of what religion truly is, and what role it is meant to play.

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America's Religious-political Contradiction

The Childification of America

In an effort to supposedly protect children from the theoretical horrors of American culture, we're turning ourselves into children- our laws now becoming our collective parent.

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The Childification of America

Obscenity, Censorship and the Revival of Mob Rules

A second-term right-wing administration once again is taking on obscenity, and once again the argument becomes whether or not harm is caused by certain images and words. But is it really the role of government, in a free society, to even consider such questions?

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Obscenity, Censorship and the Revival of Mob Rules

Steroids, Statistics and the Affront to the American Dream

Baseball's steroid controversy will not only tarnish the reputations of a few players, but quite possibly the sport's previously immortal place in American culture. The following is a case for eradicating all statistical milestones of the past 10 years, else risking the future meaninglessness of The American Pastime.

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Steroids, Statistics and the Affront to the American Dream

Social Security and Trust

If we don't trust our own economy with our Social Security nest egg, we have much bigger problems than simple retirement surpluses and debts.

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Social Security and Trust

Right, Wrong and Why the Left Lost

Conservatives aren't winning because more Americans believe in their worldview. Its because their worldview is based in right versus wrong. There's no reason the Left can't- and shouldn't- follow the same approach.

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Right, Wrong and Why the Left Lost

The Revolution will not be Blogged

Why "The Blogosphere" is failing at truly revolutionizing mass media.

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The Revolution will not be Blogged

It's the Math, Stupid

Is a simple understanding of economics and math really that much to ask for?

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It's the Math, Stupid

Tsunami Relief and Tax Dollars Don't Mix

The US Government's involvement in aid for tsunami victims is being done for all the wrong reasons. And it continues a perilous precedent.

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Tsunami Relief and Tax Dollars Don't Mix

The Damn Liberal Media

Its become fashionable to have the a mass media conspiracy against one's brand of politics. Unfortunately, media bias is more subtle- and more dangerous- than that.

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The Damn Liberal Media

What's Missing From Tort Reform Arguments: Reform

Tort reform is not about frivolous lawsuits. It's not about the costs of medical malpractice insurance. A sincere reformation of the legal system is indeed necessary, but we're missing the point in which to start.

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What's Missing From Tort Reform Arguments: Reform

Iraq: Good Questions Lost to Partisan Answers

Iraq is a mess. It's supposed to be. It's a war. But, what then are we fighting for, and what determines success?

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Iraq: Good Questions Lost to Partisan Answers