This book for me really brings the phrase "ignorance is bliss" to life. No, I do not want to support a mega, multi-billion dollar operation that ships its jobs over-seas so that it can pay pennies (if that) on the dollar for labor. And low wages aren't the worst of what's offered to the Vietnamese, Taiwanese, Chinese workers etc.(usually women) who wove together my Gap top and glued the sole onto my favorite old school Nikes. "Hey! Check out my new kicks! I'm keeping it real, yo!"

But then, what the fuck am I gonna do? Becoming politically and socially aware takes effort. And I'm lazy.

Still, just like when I go to spend money I don't have on something I don't need I hear my nagging boyfriend's voice in the back of my head saying "You don't need another pair of jeans," now that I've read this book I'll be more conscious of where the item was made and what that means to me.

"No Logo," much like "The Jungle" and "Fast Food Nation" is less about the end result (i.e. finger in the can of beans or 16 year old factory worker who isn't allowed to take a break to change her tampon and to ensure that her "monthly gift" doesn't interfere with production her pay comes every 28 days {just like her Aunt Flo} and is dependent on her ability to either stave off bleeding all together or just sit and bleed in her clothes like a good little worker) and more about how the decisions various corporations make to skimp on labor (i.e. people) affects that corporation's local workforce and, ultimately, the global economy.

What really gets my panties in a wad in this book (and in general) is the fact that the money these heroes save (The Gap, Nike, Levi's, Apple--your usual suspects) on production costs goes into constructing their "brand". What Klein emphasizes throughout the book is that these days it's no longer about what you sell, but how you sell it that brings in the big bucks. So fuck you Mr. and Mrs. American Worker. We don't give a shit how you're gonna make a life for yourself. We've got some ipods and iphones to sell. We need glitz, gloss, gimmicks and cool so that our profits can soar and our stockholders can continue to afford high priced (male) hookers--and those things don't come cheap.

Another depressingly shitty aspect to this idea that profits should promote brand over worker is the fact that most American corporations not only offer low wages with no benefits, but often--even in times of profit-- lay off workers to keep a steady stream of income flowing into the marketing department. Hooray! Now we can get Lebron James, Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, Mohammed Ali and that hot Russian chick that plays tennis for that new G campaign! Gatorade is so 2006! You have to evolve to stay ahead in THIS game.

Guh! It's all so vomit inducing. And frustrating. And aggravating. And I just feel so helpless to do anything about it. Plus, Old Navy jeans are fucking cheap and I'm a temp for Apple so they're all I can afford. Besides, isn't turning a blind eye The American Way? Three cheers for denial!


:(

العبوديه الحديثه
رأسمالية الكوارث
بلاشعار
ناعومي كلاين

“No Space”

“No Choice”

“No Jobs”

“No Logo”.
مصطلح العولمة وفوائده القادمة على البشرية، وكانوا يخبروننا بأن ربط الناس حول العالم ببعضهم البعض تجاريا عن طريق اتفاقيات التجارة والتسويق الإلكتروني سوف يمنح فرصة للفقراء والمحرومين في الدول النامية للتعلم والعمل وكسب المال، وأن شخصا يعيش في إندونيسيا مثلا سيتمكن من التمتع بوجبة ماكدونالدز واقتناء حذاء ماركة Nike واستخدام هاتف آبل تماما كأي شخص يعيش في أمريكا وكندا، لكن الحقيقة – كما تقول نعومي – هو أن فكرة القرية العالمية الصغيرة كانت فكرة تروجها الشركات الغربية لت��د موطئ قدم لها في الدول الفقيرة يكون بمثابة سوق لاستهلاك منتجاتها.
العلامات التجارية هي مجرد غطاء لصور مؤسفة من الاستغلال، العمال المساكين الذين يعملون لساعات طويلة وفي ظروف عمل مجحفة في إندونيسيا وفيتنام والفلبين هم القاعدة الذين يمنحون الماركات العالمية بريقها ويعاظمون أرباح ملاك شركاتها، وتؤكد نعومي بأن الفجوة الهائلة بين تكلفة المواد الخام وقيمة المنتج في السوق ليس لها أي تفسير سوى الجشع، ذلك الجشع الذي يمكن قراءته من التكاليف الهائلة لسياسات التسويق التجاري واستراتيجيات الترويج للاستهلاك.
https://www.trtarabi.com/issues/%D8%B...

"عبودية التكنولوجيا".. تعرّف الجحيم الذي يتعرّض له عمّال مصانع "أبل"
تتعمّد مجموعة "أبل" الأمريكية اختيار مناطق فقيرة لتدشين مصانعها، بسبب العمالة الرخيصة، ويواجه عملاق التكنولوجيا انتقادات بحق ظروف العمل المميتة الّتي يواجهها العمّال بمصانعه، وما تلاه من حالات تسمّم وتظاهرات وموجات انتحار للعاملين بها.
تُتَّهم "أبل" بتجنُّب تدشين مصانعها بدول متقدّمة نظراً إلى قواعد الأمن والسلامة الصارمة بتلك الدول (AFP)

تتعرّض مجموعة "أبل" الأمريكية، الّتي تتّخذ من دول جنوب شرق آسيا مقرّاً لعديد من مصانعها، لانتقادات واسعة من مجموعات حقوقية حول حقوق عمّالها وظروف العمل المميتة الّتي يواجهونها، مقابل رواتب زهيدة لا تتناسب أبداً مع أرباح عملاقة التكنولوجيا الأمريكية، الّتي تُصنَّف وفق كثير من الإحصاءات الأعلى عالمياً بين مثيلاتها

Klein tak dobrze pisze, że aż zastanawiam się nad zostaniem anarchistą, lol

The cover page reads "No Space, No Choice, No Jobs, No Logo" and that's how the book is broken up, into those four sections. It starts off relatively strong, avoiding a number of pitfalls you expect her to get caught up in. Unfortunately, as it progresses it becomes rather uneven, mostly the last section, "No Logo." The section starts off with a ridiculous chapter about "culture jamming," which is essentially the use of graphic design skills to subvert advertising. This is a perfect example of how she can sometimes come across as a stoned art school girl gushing in a coffee shop about how this ultra-cool hip thing the cool kids are doing is going to save the world. It's a strange contrast to some of her more sober, reality-based commentary. It's worth reading but parts of it may try your patience. That being said, I found some of her (to me) misplaced optimism compelling. I wondered if maybe we Americans aren't too cynical sometimes. Maybe we should be like the Canadians. Of course, Canadians aren't perfect either. It got me wondering though about how a lot of us in the midwest think that people in other parts of the country, especially in the West, tend to be pretty dippy and I couldn't help but think maybe we in the midwest might be too grizzled and world-weary for our own good? Or is it just me? Maybe the whole country is dippy. Maybe vandalizing billboards will put a dent in the corporate oligarchy. I don't think so but it's something to believe in, I suppose, and makes about as much sense as Jesus getting crucified so we can go to heaven, which according to the historian on NPR Christians did not even believe until centuries after Jesus's death. Anyway, I think part of what's going on here is that there are no simple solutions. You can't really propose a solution to the problems discussed in the book in few hundred pages. I mean, you could in general terms, but how will you engage people to get them to focus on something outside of entertainment land? She does seem very conscious of the difficulties. I just get to wondering why she goes overboard gushing about anti-corporate zines and things. Maybe she she didn't want a bleak book, I suppose. I also disagree with her contention that subverting corporate logos can strip them of some of their power. If anything I think it adds a new mystique to the logo and in the long run probably adds more value to the brand. I guess I've mostly talked about the problems with the book. There is value in the book, it just reads like a first book. I think it's pretty clear she'll be remembered for the Shock Doctrine, which is next on my list. I know she has a great capacity for reflectiveness and nuance and I hope she was able to put that to more sustained use over the many pages of The Shock Doctrine...