Amid my peregrinations, I came upon a quotation by Professor Trevor J. Saunders in his introduction to Aristotle's "Politics." "The society that loses its grip on the past is in danger, for it produces men who know nothing but the present, and who are not aware that life has been, and could be, different from what it is. Such men bear tyranny easily; for they have nothing with which to compare it."
Hmmmm...a society that loses its grip on the past. Adweek has a banal article by Tim Nudd on the "Ten Funniest Commercials of All-Time." Not one was made before 1999. No Alka-Seltzer "Spicy Meatball." No Volkswagen "Funeral." No Federal Express "Fast Talking Man."
Likewise as a society, advertising, has forgotten what business we're in. We aren't technologists, though we use technology. We aren't artists, though we use art and are artistic. We sell things. We sell ideas. We create lust for brands.
Such notions were rife during the ascent of advertising during the consumerist 1920s. Now they are forgotten. More hours are spent creating apps no one will use and functionality on sites no one will see than on communications that can reach and influence hundreds of millions of people.
We have lost our grip on the past. We've sold our industry and our souls to bankers who recognizing that agencies bring in revenue while having no need for a physical plant and can therefore be milked dry.
This could be the reason I am in a funk.
