Groupon's Tasteless Restaurant Ad

     I am not a huge football fan. But, every year, I do sit down with my family on Super Bowl Sunday and watch the game. Truthfully, though, I could care less about the score. The reason I really watch is for the hysterical commercials during the breaks.

      I am aware that Super Bowl Sunday was quite a while ago, but I do believe that a specific controversial commercial seemed to go under the radar around school. The ad was for Groupon, a company whose focus is to sell coupons online for various restaurants and stores, with a social media aspect to their marketing: the more people you tell about a particular promotion who actually buy it, the more you get back from Groupon. The ad, Groupon's first on TV, begins with a heart-wrenching story about the poor community in Tibet, but the focus and tone of the commercial quickly shifts to an attempt to promote Groupon's business.

This commercial reminded me specifically of a discussion we had in my American Studies class. 

Also, during the Super Bowl this year, there were various ads beginning with a tribute to 9/11. At the end of each ad, however, the sponsoring company's logo would show up on screen, almost as if to say, "Hey, buy our product because we care about America and 9/11." 

In class, we discussed whether or not we thought that these specific ads were genuine, or if they were just to promote the companies and their products. We came to a very shaky consensus: overall, all of us were a little uncomfortable with the idea of using 9/11 as a way to boost a company's image.

I think this Groupon commercial is a completely different story. It is clear that they were trying to be funny and edgy at the "connection" between the unfortunate situation in Tibet which we are powerless to fix, and being able to save money at a local Tibetan restaurant. Groupon has no intention of trying to support the people of Tibet highlighted in the ads. The sole purpose of this commercial was to promote themselves through an attempt at humor.

It seems as though many American people have become so fixated on making it that they are willing to pretty much do anything it takes to achieve success. It's unbelievable the kinds of things that people will do in order to flourish. Americans will take drastic measures to get what they want done, and won't stop for anything in their way. In this case, Groupon crossed an invisible boundary. An American based company, they did what they thought they needed to do to create interest in their products, forgetting about the tastelessness of the message. 

Commercials like these really get me thinking about our values as a society. When did making money become more important than sustaining and promoting ethical values? At what point do we stop and and ask ourselves, "Is what I am doing right?" When have we as Americans crossed the line? Groupon was not the first company to cross the line (in my view); they are only a recent example of many others who have done so.

The Serial Quitter

“A quitter never wins and a winner never quits”


I can't tell you how many times I've heard this saying.


I run cross country, and there have been times when during a race, my hands tense, my breathing becomes painful and raspy, and the world around me starts to blur as I try to successfully finish with a new best time. Why don't I stop? Because of the fear that I will be viewed as a quitter, someone who wasn't strong enough or had enough will power to push through and finish the race. And so, despite these potentially dangerous side effects, I have never cut any race short. And I don't plan on doing so any time soon.


So does quitting ever override?


I started in the school band in the 5th grade. Both my brothers had played instruments all throughout junior high and into high school, so it wasn't really an option not to do the same. I too continued, but completely unhappily. I didn't enjoy it. I hated playing my instrument, I hated the kind of commitment it included, and I hated practicing (not that I ever did). However, I stuck it out. It wasn't until after my sophomore year that I finally did what I had been dreaming about doing for years... I quit. 


At first I was embarrassed. Regardless of my lack of interest, I had still invested so much time, effort and my parents' money into this activity that quitting seemed like throwing everything out the window. I felt that quitting made my previous 6 years of band a waste of time, and that was time I would never and will never get back. And since then, I've wondered if I did the right thing. 


A Freakonomics Podcast titled "The Upside of Quitting" offered some insight onto my issue.


Stephen Dubner, the show's host,  has a very different view than I previously did. He says, 


"My thesis is simple: in our zeal to 'tough things out,' to keep our nose to the grindstone, in our zeal to win, we underestimate the upside of quitting." 

He refers to himself as a "serial quitter," saying he's quit his dream job as a NY Times writer, his childhood dream job as a member of a successful rock band, and even his religion, but not once does he describe any guilt or second thoughts for quitting any one of these things. He is confident with his decisions to quit, with absolutely no regrets. 

I know that many Americans, like me, do have trouble with the idea of quitting. There is this negative connotation with quitting. It doesn't seem to matter why you quit , just the fact that you quit makes you automatically considered unsuccessful. Quitting is commonly associated with failure, and Americans don't want to be associated with or seen as a failure. The reality of the situation is that many people are willing to sacrifice their own happiness because of a deep fear of being seen as a "quitter." It's sad, but it's the reality. And I'm sure that, as an American, that part of the culture has rubbed off on me.

Dubner ends the podcast with an insightful outlook:

 “Of course it takes tremendous amounts of time and effort and, for lack of a more scientific word, stick-to-itiveness, to make any real progress in the world. But time and effort and even stick-to-itiveness are not in infinite supply. Remember the opportunity cost: every hour, every ounce of effort you spend here cannot be spent there... Stella Adler, the great acting coach, used to say: Your choice is your talent. So choosing the right path, the right project, the right job or passion or religion — that’s where the treasure lies; that’s where the value lies. So if you realize that you’ve made a wrong choice — even if already you’ve sunk way too much cost into it — well, I’ve got one word to say to you, my friend. Quit."

I can definitely relate to Stella Adler when it comes to my band experience: I realized that I made a wrong choice - even when I already sunk way too much "cost" into it - and had to quit. I know that I didn't "give up" - I put six years into it, and at some point I realized that I was never really going to enjoy the experience and that the "opportunity cost" was too high. Unlike Stephen Dubner, I do feel a bit of guilt about my decision, but not so much that I would ever reconsider. It will be interesting to see if these kinds of decisions in my life get any easier as I get older and there's more at stake in the outcome.

"Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish"

     Now that over one week has passed since Steve Jobs's death, the reality of the situation has begun to sink in. I first received the news the afternoon of October 5th. I received a surprisingly warm and heart-felt text from my brother informing me of Jobs's passing. I couldn't believe it. I knew Jobs was sick with severe pancreatic cancer and that his end was soon, but I never imagined the level of impact it would have on me. I ran downstairs and shared the news with my uninformed parents. They, too, were shocked. The three of us proceeded to sit around the kitchen table and discuss the amazing accomplishments of this incredibly successful man. The more we talked, the more I realized how much I didn't know much about his life. Curious, I began to research Jobs; at this point various articles and eulogies had already been published talking about his life's accomplishments and his tragic death.

     But something stuck out to me. Of everything I read, not one article had published a single bad word about him. He was described as devoted, hardworking, visionary, inspirational, loving, appreciative, and so on. I read article after article, and the overwhelming love and real appreciation for this man was incredibly heartwarming.
      In the process of reading about Jobs's life, I came across a video of Jobs delivering a commencement speech to Stanford University in 2005. He speaks about three things: "connecting the dots," love and loss, and death.

     Jobs's success did not come easily to him. His biological parents put him up for adoption under the condition that he would be adopted by college graduates. Although Jobs's adoptive parents were not college graduates, they promised that Jobs would get a college degree. Jobs ended up attending Reed College, but only for a little while before dropping out. Then came a little company called Apple Computer, formed with an old buddy, Steve Wozniak. The company eventually flourished and grew to be huge, and eventually Jobs was kicked out of his own company by the very people he had brought in to help Apple Computer manage its rapid growth. For over 10 years Jobs was out of Apple Computer, until he found a way to return when the company needed him the most. Since then, the company has more than made its name and its products known to society (and deleted the word "Computer" from its name). With easy-to-use inventions like the iPod, Macbook, iTunes and the Apple operating system for computers, Apple has forever altered the way we communicate with machines, and with other people.
     I think Jobs's view on life was very admirable. In his speech, he says,

"For the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: "If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?"

And whenever the answer has been 'No' for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something."

     Jobs shows how he is accepting of death as long as he is happy and loving what he is doing on Earth. He shares with the graduates how much he truly loves what he does, and how choosing a career that you are passionate about makes a huge difference in your happiness. He shares these ideals with the students of Stanford, inspiring them to find their calling, and do what they love. He says, 

"Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life."

     Jobs's outlook on life was incredibly unique. His effect on our society has not only been technological, but I believe emotional as well. Regardless of his riches and fame, I think people saw and will remember Jobs as a normal, genuine, relatable guy. I think that is why he is so inspirational. He is proof that anyone can succeed with enough hard work and devotion.
    
  Nowadays there seems to be a necessary path carved out that we must follow in order to succeed: Get A's, go to college, graduate, go to graduate school, and quickly find some kind of job. This is what you are "supposed to do." But, as Jobs has displayed, there isn't just one way to succeed in life. "Success" should be defined differently by every person. Success can only be measured by your own happiness. If you "stay hungry" and "stay foolish," you will likely achieve success on your own terms, perhaps in an unconventional way, and live a life with very few regrets.

     

The Death Sentence Controversy

After reading “A Lesson After Dying”, a blog post written by my American Studies teacher, I was overcome with my own contradictory opinions on the subject of the death penalty. I don’t think it's easy to just decide one way or the other on this issue. My initial response to this post was that I am totally,   100 % against the death penalty. But one commenter brought up some questions that really made me reconsider my original conclusion. I thought about if, hypothetically, someone in my immediate family was a victim of a murder, how I would feel. I was surprised at how quickly my opinions changed on the subject of capital punishment. With an act of violence as severe as murder against someone I was close to, I don’t think I would be able to live knowing that the person who caused such harm was still living. The death penalty sounds awful and inhumane in theory, but when you have a personal relationship with the victim, I believe that that would change most people’s prior beliefs.

However, it’s not realistic to think that the death sentence can be imposed every time a close relative of the victim believes it is the “fair punishment.” If that were true, the number of people put to death would be infinitely larger. An interesting blog post by Eric Zorn helped sway me back to my original beliefs. He brings up a great point, writing, 

“[The Death Penalty is] a bad idea because it is a punishment of perfect exactness administered by a justice system filled with imperfect human beings who often have inexact knowledge. Imprisonment leaves us moral room to make the inevitable errors and arbitrary applications; killing does not.”

 I think Zorn brings up a great point. Especially in Troy Davis’s case, with many witnesses taking back their previous testimonies, it is very possible that the “facts” contributing to Davis’s death sentence were not completely accurate. Regardless, Davis was put to death based on what I believe was shaky evidence. This leaves me with a pit in my stomach because a potentially innocent man was put to death. That is a punishment that can never be undone.