In defense of consumerism #137

I'm a big fan of Samuel Mulia. But less so this morning. No, I'm not talking about Samuel's column in Kompas -- it's still good as usual. I'm talking about O-Channel's "Pagi Jakarta" broadcast now. The topic is Style, Brand, and Status. Erwin Parengkuan and Jill van Diest are featuring Samuel Mulia.

The trio are lambasting consumerism quite excitedly. Samuel just talked about a new trend in Jakarta: exclusive bags for rent. He was concerned about Jakartans new way to show off by renting Hermes or Gucci by hour.

What's wrong with that? Samuel -- and Erwin and Jill -- think that way of life is artificial and not good for your health and pocket. I fail to understand it. On the contrary, I thing bag-for-hourly-rent is an excellent idea. When else do the not-so-rich can wear Hermes or Veneta? Kudos for the inventor of this idea. Because of you, the exclusive bags are not so exclusive anymore, give a room for others to fill.

Pacaran is sunk cost

I said in the last post that the guy who was left by his girlfriend after what he did (he said he had done everything -- presumably good things in his view) was just not good enough for the girl. Well, if I were my student, I would have given that answer a B-minus. A better answer is: because the costs incurred during dating or pacaran are sunk.

Again, dating is a two-to-tango game. So, when the guy said he had given everything, chances are she had given everything, too. When they both were giving each other, they incurred both costs and benefits -- of which I do not want to dwell into details.

In the story (Samuel Mulia, my apologies, I'm using your article here again -- by the way, keep up good writing), one person is left out: the girl. The decision that is relevant to see why "she left me after all what I had done" is the girl's decision to leave him, not the guy's fate to be left alone. That is, what matters is what probably triggered the girl to leave. So let's focus on her.

In the period of dating, the girl incurred costs: makeups, fancy skirts, perfumes, even the effort to walk and talk "like a lady". All this she did to attract and later, to keep that lucky guy with her. Right before she did every single item above, she had an expectation: All these I would do because I expect him to give me this or that, in return. But once the activities were done (e.g. once the fancy skirt was bought), they all became sunk costs: they were not recoverable (well, she might go to second hand market selling the used skirt, but hey, she is a lady).

Fast forward. There was a quarrel between the two lovebirds. The girl was now at the margin of decision: leave or stay (or, if you don't like these terms, use: leave him or keep him). What would you think she had in mind, as factors affecting her decision? Yes the costs and benefits of leaving him. She would leave him if the resulting benefits (relief, chances to get a new guy, etc) exceeded the costs (effort to make him go and to make up good, convincing story to friends, etc). But the costs incurred during pacaran were not relevant anymore.

(If this is not convincing, try picture you are about to go mudik. You are thinking of driving your car or simply take the train. The amount of money you used when you bought the car is not relevant to your decision).

So, ladies, next time a jerk begs you to not leave him, using "Please don't go, Honey. Remember what I have given you all this time?" Tell him: "Baby, it's all sunk. Now shut up".

Holden Caulfield's Antithesis

For your weekend, here is a good reading from NYT Magazine,a tale of three elite high school students struggling for elite colleges' scholarships. Personally, despite admirable competition spirit of those young minds (and their parents), I found the story daunting and somewhat scary. I mean, man, look at those credentials (not only in academic, but also high level French, cross country captain, flutist, novel writings, etc), the goal they set up, the way they made up their application, they don't seem like normal high school students I know.

And unlike Holden Caulfield of Catcher in The Rye, they don't quit.

Yet, one finale of the drama is the following:

It was her mother, who had logged in Maria’s PIN at various top schools that day, knowing her daughter wouldn’t have easy access to a computer as she interviewed. It was the Thursday that so many students across the country were on tenterhooks, waiting to hear from many of the Ivies, but that had slipped to the back of Maria’s mind. “You got into Princeton!” her mother told her. “And Columbia and the University of Chicago!”

Maria was tired. She was hungry. She didn’t feel like talking about college. It was one of those moments when it was hard to imagine that she would actually “ever enjoy the product of all my work.” She told her mother she’d call her back and hung up the phone.

If only they knew.

ps: Instead of Manager's (stupid) self-made quote on learning economics on the right sidebar, this is my line, "You can not learn economics without good coffee."

My own stupid analysis: Indonesian rap music

Indonesian rap is annoying and stupid.

I know this might irritate some people and it shows my own ignorance. But, I can't stand it -- I was once told by economists here that there's nothing you could do with other people's taste; well I don't care. . . I just happened to be in a long ride with this damn bus, and all I could hear was that continuing weird noise called Indonesian rap.

I said "weird" and "noise" because of the following.

Rap music, I gather, is a part of hip-hop culture that uses rhyme and rhythm spitted mostly in a very fast beat. I'm no phonologist or morphologist, but I believe human tongue (and mouth) has its limit when it comes to spitting words quickly. It is then easier to spit one-syllable words than two-syllable words. English (and I believe African, too) words are dominated by one-syllables. At least for words you want to rap with. Fine, two-syllables are also used. But not much. Try this (from Usher feat Ludacris and Lil Jon):

I'm (1) in (1) the (1) club (1) with (1) my (1) homies (2), tryna (2) get (1) a (1) lil (1) V-I (2),
keep (1) it (1) down (1) on (1) the (1) low (1) key (1),
cause (1) you (1) know (1) how (1) it (1) feels (1).
I (1) said (1) shorty (2) she (1) was (1) checkin (2) up (1) on (1) me (1),
from (1) the (1) game (1) she (1) was (1) spittin (2) my (1) ear ( 2 or 1.5) you'd (1) think (1) that (1) she (1) knew (1) me (1).
So (1) we (1) decided (3 or 2.5) to (1) chill (1).

See, there are only 5 two-syllables and 1 three-syllable (even so, you can spit "decided" as "decid'd" -- so it sounds like a 2.5 only; like "ear" to "e'r", a 1.5). The rest are one-syllables. Imagine if this is to be adapted in Indonesian (forget about rhyme for now):

Aku (2) dalam (2) klab (1) dengan (2) teman-teman (4),
coba (2) dapatkan (3) sedikit (3) kesenangan (4!)
Jangan (2) berisik (3), kar'na (2) kau (1.5) tau (2) aku (2) s'dang (2) asik (2)....

.... and so on

Look how many twos and threes (and even fours) we got, just in the beginning! Now try visualize a rapper wannabe who raps with Indonesian words like that. Either he or she can be damn good with extremely fast tongue (Iwa K was fast!) or you would experience a torture.

Not that there's anything wrong with Indonesian words. They just don't go with rap, trust me. You may as well end up funny: you move your hip and wave your hands up and down. But your phonetic tools can't follow.

Even in singing, efficiency matters -- as the economist would say.

... at a diner on the corner

Having breakfast or brunch at a diner is something I particularly missed. Diner is a specific American culinary culture – the East Coast, or Northeast, to be more specific. The choice of brunch menu at every diner is quite typical. That’s a kind of place I can find a burger, a true one, not the junk food version, good pancake, and coffee. Just coffee; no latte, au lait or frappe. I don’t know the local equivalence for diner in Indonesia, but maybe Warkop is the closest one.

Unfortunately, not many diners around the Harvard Square part of Cambridge, Mass. I had to go to Davis Square, Medford, or Brighton Avenue on the way to Waltham. There are more choices in New York City. My friend used to take me to one near NYU, in the Union Square neighborhood. And of course, the famous Tom's Restaurant on the corner of Broadway Avenue and 112 Street, Upper Manhattan, near Columbia University. This place had been the regular meeting place of Seinfeld and co. It was also featured in Suzanne Vega’s single hit, Tom’s Diner, in the late ‘80s (I am sittin’/in the morning/at a diner/on the corner).

Last long weekend, my wife and I found one ‘American Diner’ (that’s what the place claim itself) in Kemang, about five hundreds meters down the street from my high school (as well as Sjamsu’s and Ujang’s). They do offer diner-type menu. The taste and quality was OK. Not great, but not bad. However, it was not the type of setting I expect from a diner. For one, the place was too fancy, too colorful and too decorated for a diner. And the guests, I think they are over-dressed to go to a diner.

But maybe it is just me. It is Kemang, and it is ‘American’ gitu loh… Expecting informality and casualness from the place is perhaps too much, or too few. And maybe it will be the same thing if sometimes Warkop becomes a global culture, or a place for socialites.