Ten REVelations - Nick Leger

  Failure to change:

Detroit is an historic American City most known for its car production. The GM tycoon that finds its home there has not, however, kept up with the shifting trend in transportation technology and infrastructure. Lutz and Fernandez corroborate this point: “Detroit spends twice as much on roads as Toronto, while Toronto has spent eight times as much as Detroit on public transit.” (Lutz and Fernandez, 126). Despite being in a state of economic calamity, this car commercial suggests that the city and industry is on the rebound. In reality, it’s just a well made video that posits a big lie, using a combination of plain folks and celebrities.

 The downside of technology:

As time goes on, driving an automobile becomes increasingly easier. The industry “has put a premium on speed and fostered the idea that convenience and efficiency should rule as we make our way through the day.” (Lutz and Fernandez, 163). I feel that self-parking/driving boarders on absurdity, though; are we really too busy or too lazy to park our car and then walk the short distance to our final destination? What’s more, the cultural shift from privacy to surveillance is amplified by this technology, as a self-driving vehicle needs to be under constant watch.

 The illusion of safety: 

Although the intelligent headlights demonstrated in this informational video put out by BMW will make nighttime driving safer, the fact of the matter is that operating an automobile is still extremely dangerous. Even with other ubiquitous safety measures such as seat belts and airbags, we are still at risk “against other passengers or items in the car hurtling around the interior, intrusions into the passenger compartment, or high-speed collisions that partly or wholly destroy that compartment.” (Lutz and Fernandez, 184). The calm music and neat graphics in this promotional video are thereby appealing to the limbic brain, suggesting that driving is actually safer than it is.

 Context makes all the difference:

At the end of Carjacked, the audience is advised to “stay informed and make demands to our politicians” to better transportation infrastructure. (Lutz and Fernandez, 223). The above commercial advocates a similar message: we need public transit… Although I agree with the underlying message, I do not agree with how it is conveyed. Next City (the organization that produced this clip) sets public transit within a Christian context, which definitely evokes different value messages for different people. Maybe that’s the best the organization could come up with; their production techniques do not suggest any degree of affluence.

The loss of self: 

“Taylorization made automobility possible, but also made it necessary”. (Seiler, 18). A century down the road, this trend is still very much a part of American culture, as portrayed in this Bentley commercial. Manufacturing has become a group process where individualism has taken a backseat. Thus, one of the best ways to express oneself, both then and now, is through the automobile. In relation to the power tools, this video clip represents an epistemological shift and a technological shift, as it uses images to convey a message over the internet medium.

  The falsehood of individuality:

The Cadillac commercial that I used in my deep dive presentation demonstrates how advertisers (attempt to) dupe consumers into believing that that we can be autonomous through buying mass-produced goods. Seiler recognizes that this is no new phenomenon, stating: “This figure, featured in advertisements for a myriad of products from soap to clothing to automobiles, merged the expressive individual of the marketplace with the autonomous individual of republican political culture, offering reassurance that a subjectivity distinguished by self-determination had survived the transition from the old to the new regime of accumulation. It was a social self, but it looked like a sovereign self. Its characteristics were mobility and choice; and its embodiment was the driver.” (Seiler, 35). Again, the makers of the commercial suggest that through owning a Cadillac, you yourself will become “re-imagined” and “redesigned"; you, as a unique individual, are making a great choice in choosing cadillac. 

 The perpetuation of hegemonic masculinity: 

The realm of automobility has been ingrained with gender roles since its conception. Seiler gives an historic account of this relation: “The powerful conjunction of self-determination, speed, and mastery informed the common and durable trope of driver-as-monarch – a symbolic identity that merged masculine potency and charisma.” (Seiler 45). This relation is still very much present today, and is obviously drawn upon by the ford advertisers in this tug-of-war of manliness.

 The Destruction of Nature: 

In this VW commericial, automobility and nature appear to be in a state of harmony – the turtle-loving driver saves his shelled friend from a screeching eagle, all with the help of his car. This unfortunately posits a big lie, as the pollution from cars and car infrastructure threatens more species than any type of natural predation. What’s more, “the amount of driving necessary to exist within this system is stupendous, and fantastically expensive.” (Kunstler, 118) This, too, contributes to the land parcelization and the loss of species habitats. And what is a sea turtle doing in the wilderness in the first place...?   

Loss of Culture:

“In the early years of motoring, hardly anyone understood the automobile’s potential for devastation, not just of the landscape, or the air, but of culture in general” (Kunstler, 86). The above picture epitomizes this statement. Instead of local-businesses, streets virtually everywhere in the United States have been overrun with chain stores. We have sacrificed culture and individuality for perceived convenience.

 A Beacon of Hope: 

Masdar city is projected to be a contemporary utopia; zero pollution and person-friendly infrastructure foster environmental and societal health. It is the actualized manifesto of Berkeley professors, using infrastructure as “connections between spaces rather than mere objects.” (Kunstler 249). With effective policies, new technologies, and a bit of luck, this will hopefully be the template for cities of the future.