February 18, 2004

Keep coming back

I think about 20th century revolutions in the context of cleanliness and communications - we set the standards for fighting disease through home and food purification, and we gained the ability to visit any part of the world physically or electronically in a short amount of time. Well, and the revolution of female contraceptives. I have been long fascinated by all three concepts, and today it was the communication revolution which popped into my head.

A subject which has been branded at the workplace and beaten to death...but it is still fascinating, given the context of human existence, that we now have the freedom and ability to get our thoughts across publicly to anyone who cares to (or would rather not) listen.

I bring this up because during a pause at work I decided to look up food processors at Target. Then I started reading customer reviews.

I understood the "I like this food processor because...", and "It doesn't have a choice of blades...", but then I came to:

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So who made it??? January 20, 2004

Reviewer: rls225 from Middleton, WI

I have a closet full of items "Made in China" that don't work ( the bread-warming "toaster", the "Mad Max" hand-held mixer, the non-humidifiying humidifier,the "size 13" golf shoes that don't fit my 13 year old niece, etc.) I flatly refuse to buy anything made in china unless it's made of bamboo or ceramic.

Unless your product information lists the country of manufacture, I ain't buying.

How about a "Made in the USA" page???
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It's hard to know how this expresses what I'm thinking, although it begs the question, does this reviewer imagine a Target marketing manager and/or a web developer scrolling through the comments, searching for a fresh idea in the myriad of food processor reviews? Now that technology is beginning to match the public's desire to pontificate (not that I exclude myself from this!), is it difficult to remember that there still has to be a human being willing to listen on the other end? Who are the people writing 158 comments about a recipe for goulash, and what about the others (like me) sitting and reading their passionate diatribe on the extra water that made the dish soggy, or how much their husband loved it?

I guess the weird part is that people do pay attention to these random thoughts; but they are like millions of little roots spurting out wildly into the crevices of our minds - since often, no one is really answering back.

Posted by zippy at February 18, 2004 6:34 PM